PARKS

Redenção, officially Parque Farroupilha, is very beautiful for walking, it's shady and large enough to stroll around for a few hours. There are also wide open spaces for sports such as frizby throwing and TACO (street cricket), or you can just laze around on deck chairs (take-yer-own) in the sun or shade. Redenção has a large lake full of turtles and you can rent paddle boats. On the lake there's also a very nice café bar, Café do Lago with a shaded deck and live music. On Saturdays and Sundays there is an open market, feira, on Avenida José Bonefácio the road bordering one side of the park. On Saturdays it's for organic fruits and veggies and on Sundays it's for arts and crafts and antiques, the Sunday market is known as the brique. Both days are very popular with the locals who come out strolling and to drink a chimarrão with friends or family.

Parcão, is less shaded and smaller, lots of people excersise here, good for jogging and walking. There's a large open playground for kids but can be too hot during the Summer due to lack of shade. There's also a turtle lake here with a mini-windmill structure on a small island (it's in Moinhos de Vento neighbourhood, which means "windmills")

Parque Marinha and Maurício Sirotsky (aka Parque Harmonia), very large area extending along the riverfront to almost the city centre, Marinha blends into MS. Marinha has a skate park, long lawns and a great riverside promenade walk with about a 4 mile extension from the Ibere Camargo Museum to the Gasómetro. MS has shaded barbecue pits and a huge traditional barbecue restaurant, Galpão Creolo. Parque MS is the venue for the annual Gaúcho Semana Farroupilha Camp.

Asside from these three main parks, each neighbourhood has its own praçinhas smaller shaded parks for walking or just relaxing.