Such is the beauty of Rio’s beaches, that its lagoon – a 6 km around saltwater lake, lined with gardens, restaurants and highrise apartments, and overlooked by five jungly mountains, right in the heart of the city - is sometimes forgotten. Its not the kind of thing you’d overlook in most parts of the world.
The lagoon suffered from pollution for many years, leading in 2000 to the infamous fish die-off, in which every fish in the lake simultaneously suffocated due to toxic sludge and floated to the surface (just in time for Carnival!) causing an apparently unbearable stink and this iconic photograph:
The authorities got the message, and embarked on a major cleanup and today the lagoon is in better shape than for many years, as evidenced by the return of the elegant egrets (like the one I photographed above), previously not seen there for many years.
Along the banks of the lagoon (going in a clockwise circle from Ipanema) are a racetrack, one of Rio’s most happening nightclubs, an openair Arab restaurant, a heliport, and the city’s beautiful botanical gardens.
The gardens were planted on the orders of the Emperor of Portugal (who moved his court to Rio during the Napoleonic invasions of Europe, thus making Rio for some time the capital of the worldwide Portuguese empire, a rare case of colony overtaking its colonisers). They are famous for their avenues of palm trees and lakes of huge Amazonian waterlilies, and wild monkeys and parrots. They also have a cafe that serves the best food I have eaten in South America.
A few minutes away by bus is another, and even more stunning garden; the grounds of the Parque Large, once a private mansion (surely one of the most opulent houses ever!), and now the city’s art school. For many years the rambling gardens were left to seed, gradually returning to a semi-jungle state and merging seemlessly with the forests the rise from its back fence up to the Christ statue o nthe mountain above. But now, the city has refurbished the centre and revamped the gardens, while still maintaining their wild splendour. You walk through the gardens, on paths lined with rainforest trees and fluorescent pink fallen blossoms.
U ntil you get to this:
Its hard to imagine anything more beautiful. Until you walk inside:
Snoop Doggy Dogg filmed the poolside scenes here for his “Beautiful” video.
