The 75 cm gauge VFCO was headquartered in Sao Joao del Rei, northwest of Rio. I hate to call any railroad "cute", but the VFCO has to be about the "cutest" working railway I ever saw. The dimunitive little engines combined with the decoration and polish made it something special to about anyone who enjoyed trains. And they were friendly. Even though our group rode one of the regular trains, they still accomodated us with a runby. Note the Brazilian flag on the engine. The engine crews were really proud of their loks. The Sao Joao facilities and some of the line survive today as an operating museum. The original film image was very underexposed (as in the shadows being pure black), so this image has undergone a lot of post processing. I found it intesting how much detail was hidden in the dark shaddows, something we take for granted with digital but rather surprising with film. February 1977.
