We stared out the day with a bike ride around the lagoa, that sits about 6 blocks inland from Ipanema. It was a really fun ride. The outside perimeter of the lake is about 8 kilometers. It is great to see how many fitness minded Cariocas were out running and biking. Nike plus had a tent set up to stretch people out and distribute Gatorade. After the ride, we took a hike to the Rio Botanical Garden (which is the photo above, btw).

The Botanical Garden is right across the street from the stables of the horse track. There is a huge wall around the stables that is completely tagged up. It is amazing. I was ogling it, the whole way to the garden entrance. I almost tripped a few times, because I was staring across the street, instead of where I was walking. Below is a shot looking across the street from the front of the garden.

The garden itself was incredible. There was every type of tropical plant that you could imagine. It was also full of tropical birds and reptiles.

This little area with the columns, below, is the reason that Reagan wanted to see the gardens. There was a photo of it, in one of the little information books that she bought when we were planning the trip. It is pretty cool in real life, too.

Here for more photos from the bike ride and Botanical Garden.