Tijuca Forest w/ Chinese View,cascatinha Taunay,horto waterfall and parque laje

Built in the early twentieth century in honor of the Chinese and imported tea cultivation in Brazil, the monument of Vista Chinesa offers a wide panorama full of green of the southern zone of Rio. The trail has easy access and is fully paved, leading to the lookout on a demanding, steep climb, but it pays off with one of the most beautiful peaks in town!

From 1856 the Botanic Garden was connected to Alto de Boa Vista by a cantilevered road, opened by influence of Baron of Bom Retiro and whose execution and maintenance was contracted to Thomas Cochrane. It records the chronicle of the age that, in this work, workers were employed "cules" brought from China (Macau) to develop the rice crop, but which, having demonstrated no ability to agriculture, were used to build the road. This region presents an astounding coincidence of Chinese presence, begun with the arrival of the tea planters of D. João VI. After the failure of this crop, according to Brazil Gerson, the Chinese would have spread "through the diapers of Tijuca." In 1844 a map of the area records a building called "Casa dos Chinas", probably a remnant of this primitive experience. This "vocation" probably explains why the City Hall (Mayor Pereira Passos, in 1903, with a project by the architect Luis Rey, in mortar copying the bamboo) built a pavilion called "Vista Chinesa", a few years later, which can still be visited. Above, a place prepared to serve as a resting place on the frequent walks of the Royal Family gained the name of Table of the Emperor.

In 1860, engineer Job de Alcântara was commissioned by the Imperial Government to construct the beautiful stone bridge, in Roman arch format, which stands in front of the Taunay Cascatinha. The highest PNT waterfall is formed by the fall of the waters of the Tijuca River, the Conde River and other tributaries. In 1817, the artist Nicolas Antoine Taunay built a small house near the cascatinha and, enchanting, immortalized the beauty of the waterfall in his pictures. He became the great host of the forest, organizing meetings for the court. The house of Taunay was demolished in 1946. On the site, the old Cascatinha restaurant was built, which is currently being prepared and refurbished to house a café and a new restaurant.

Parque Lage is located in the Jardim Botânico neighborhood, in the south of Rio de Janeiro, close to attractions such as the Jardim Botânico and the Cristo Redentor. With an area of ​​52 hectares of forests, the space is surrounded by the Atlantic Forest and is part of the Tijuca National Park.