City At Night

As in Spanish, in Portuguese there is a traditional distinction between cities—cidades—and towns—vilas. The difference is defined by law, and a city must have:
- at least 8,000 electors (more or less 10,000 inhabitants)
- at least half of the following services: hospital, pharmacy, fire department, theatre / cultural house, museum, library, hotel services, basic and secondary schools, public transport, gardens / urban parks
In special cases, some towns may be granted the status of city if they possess historical, cultural or architectonic importance.