Trianon Park (Parque Tenente Siqueira Campos)

R. Peixoto Gomide, 949

Jardins

11-3289-2160

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Shady and breezy against the concrete crock pot that is Sao Paulo, Lieutenant Siqueira Campos Park, more commonly known as Trianon Park after the high-class social club that once stood on its grounds, is one of the few spots of green around Avenida Paulista that's actually larger than a tree planter box. It's also one of the scant remnants of the Atlantic tropical forest that once covered the entire Brazilian coast. Opened in 1892 for families of high-rollers and coffee barons calling it casa in the glistening mansions along a then-brand-spanking-new Avenida Paulista, the 48,000-square-meter park features native plants, birds and insects—look for sparrow hawks and thrushes fluttering around the country's namesake brazilwood trees. Walking trails course lazily through the park's two hilly city blocks, linked by an arched footbridge and pockmarked by benches and playgrounds. Whimsical statues of fawns, nymphs and someone's deceased beagle (near the Avenida Paulista entrance) stand among the shards of sunlight that pierce the tree canopy from opening to closing, during which time families, couples, pets, teenagers, office workers and cruisy bachelors all breathe in the verdant air.