Dec 4, Sunday

Dec 4, Sunday

Spent a nice leasurely morning in the hotel room updating my blog.  By the early afternoon I decided to go out despite the grey skies, and walk down the 3 blocks to the Beach.  

 Copacabana Beach

  Market on the street near where I caught the taxi.

Walked on the beach getting my feet wet from Santa Clara to Rua Gomez, which goes over to Ipanema Beach.    From there I caught a cab to the Botanical Gardens n/ Jardim Botânico.  I probably spent about 2 hours walking around, but it’s hard to tell because I did not wear a watch today.   ! ! ! Aline without a watch ! ! !   Now that is unusual.

  Royal Palms lining the walkways at the front of the gardens

  Very strange looking tree with even stranger looking fruit ? nut ?

  But which has a beautiful flower

  Wedding pictures in the gardens

  Have you ever seen a black orchid ?  Isn't it beautiful ?

 Huge tree measuring 6 feet across the bottom

  Regular grove of bamboo right ?

Wrong !  Take a look near the gate on the left side.  Can you see the people standing there?  Gives this shot quite a different perspective doesn't it !

 Gorgeous flower from southeast Asia, about the size of a big grapefruit

From the Botanical Garden,’s southern most gate, I made my way to the side of Lagoa Rodrigo de Freitas and walked along the water front past the Marina and past the Jockey Club where I saw some horse jumping.   I was on the lookout for a restaurant and thought I would find some along the waterfront, but all I found were apartment buildings and a few gas stations.   I made it all around the bottom part of the lake to Ave Afranio, where I finally waved down a taxi to get back to Copacabana Beach where there were plenty of restaurants. 

  Great jump !

  The lake when I started walking beside it

  The lake from the southern side, beautiful statue in the water, with Christmas Tree steel structure at the other end of the lake

  Looking back along the southern side.  Those clouds are looking mighty dark.  Time to find a cab.

  Looking back across to the Marina, where I started walking around the lake

  Am I ever glad I don't have to climb these stairs !

Had a nice meal of shrimp & rice witch a nice glass of chilled white wine, and a “death by caramel dessert”.   It was called a torta “crocante” and is very hard to describe.  A layered cake which appeared to be thin slices of sponge cake but with more of a creamy subsistancy with a caramel sauce, a white light cream sauce and “baconbit” size hard caramel pieces within the layers as well as on top of the cake.   YUMMY !   Needed a pot of black tea to go with this dessert, to café latte this time.    I walked a few blocks out of my way to ease down the meal and was back at the hotel by 6 pm.

There has to be a football game on, and obviously Brazil is winning, or the local team is winning, because the cheers keep erupting from the corner cafés, or any other shop that has a TV turned to the game.   I’m now in my room, on the 4rth floor of the hotel, with my window open to clear the air, and although my window faces the back of the block (no streets below) I can still hear the cheering each time they score.   They really love their sports teams here in South America.