All that remains of an Atlantic rain forest that once thrived around Rio de Janeiro is the Tijuca Forest, the largest urban forest in the world. Only fifteen minutes from Copacabana, the 120 sqaure kilometer Tijuca, part of Rio's National Park, is a stunning place for a day hike amid bright green foliage, unearthly terrain and white waterfalls, as well as birds, iguanas and monkeys.
