"Palma Mater"

This has got to be one of my favorite things so far in Brazil. The beaches are great, the food is amazing but this....... is fantastic. It is called the Jardim Botanico (Botanical Garden) in Rio. It is a mix between Central Park and a tropical jungle. The palm trees are about 30-40 feet high. This park was originally the property of the Portuguese monarchy when they controlled Brazil from Rio in the mid-1800's. Now, it is a public park. Much of the flora and fauna here has been preserved since the late 1800's (which explains the height of the palm trees at the entrance). The title for this blog entry actually came from a monument at the front gates that explains the history of the park. In it, it names these palm trees at the entrance the "palma mater" (no joke and even in quotations) for the rest of the park.

I love this fountain-- it's so romantic it reminds me of something from Rome or Athens. We took about a dozen photos (which I will send to everyone). These white gables are actually a pretty famous site here in Rio. Several soap operas have used this as a location and also a few movies.

This last photo was actually taken by a professional photographer who happened to be in the park at the same time. The place we are standing is the Japanese gardens portion of the park. Several parts have a theme to them but this was our favorite. The sun was setting as we arrived so, we got some really beautiful photos at the start but, then the sun dropped lower (and the park closed) so we had to leave. We only were able to see about a third of the whole thing so, we will try to schedule another day to go back and see the rest.

I'm having a wonderful time---actually TOO wonderful a time; I haven't gotten shit accomplished in two weeks here. That is highly unusual for me. I'm just racking it up as the "vacation" portion of this trip. However, the "work" part will have to start rather soon.....

On another note, Brazil is completely INSANE right now with World Cup fever. Every street has yellow and green streamers hanging from the lamposts and every other person on the street is wearing a soccer jersey or some other apparel with yellow and green. I have never seen such fervent nationalism and sports enthusiasm. We Americans take our football pretty seriously but we are party-poopers compared to Brazilian soccer fans. I'm enjoying, to be honest. I've never really taken an interest in soccer but, I have to admit, the games are pretty dynamic. Happily, Brazil beat Croatia (barely) 1-0. If things go well against Australia on Sunday, they might shut down the country on Monday in celebration---no kidding.