Penedo - Rio de Janeiro

170 kilometres from Rio de Janeiro.

It is inside the region of Las Sierras.

It is inhabited by Finn immigrants since 1929. It is the only colony of this nationality in Brazil.

This people introduced a new kind of saunas in the country by replacing the bétula (aromatic leaf) by the south American eucalyptus.

The Finn gastronomy is present in the restaurants of this city.

Is interesting to visit:

Park National of Itatiaia
Pico das Agulhas Negras: The Agulhas Negras Mountain is located on the highest part of the National Park do Itatiaia, between Rio de Janeiro and Minas Gerais states.

The mountain is located in the National Park do Itatiaia, the oldest one of Brazil, founded in 1937 by the president Getulio Vargas. The park has mountains of more than 2.000 meters of height, varied fauna and flora because of its altitude and its varied climate.

The temperatures on the mountain reach to 10ºC. On June and August (the southern winter), the temperature falls because of the rains, making it dry and cold. The 93% of this area is placed in the tropic, but it snows in the coldest days, unusual phenomenon these days. On June 1985, it snowed a lot and it was the third biggest snowfall in Brazil.

It is possible to get by the federal highway, the highest of Brazil, the BR 354 which reaches to 1,670m, at the entrance of the national park and borders the states of Rio de Janeiro and Minas Gerais states, in a place named “Garganta do Registro”. This highway connects the district of Engenheiro Passos, located in the municipality of Resende with the Municipality of Itamonte (Minas Gerais)

It can be seen to the northwest of Resende when you travel on the Via Dutra highway.

From its summit, it is possible to have views of different places of the region like: the Funil dam, the Cerro Fino, the region of Visconde de Maua, the area of Valley of Paraiba, where the most populated cities of Brazil; and the Paraiba River which names dues to.
The region is very visited by tourists that want to stay in hotels and inns near the park in winter, and by the adventurers who go camping near the mountain in order to have adventure sports as mountaineering, trekking and rappelling.

Pico do Penedinho
Casa do Papai Noel (Pequena Finlândia)
Museum Finlandês of Dona Eva.