The cars run out to the Botanical Gardens, among the most beautiful in the world, and much favoured by climate. As they are approached tall palms are seen that mark their boundary near the border of the great Lake Rodrigo do Frietas, a curious piece of water separated from the Atlantic by a narrow strip of land over which great billows break during a storm. The gardens cover two thousand acres. The avenue of royal palms is half a mile in length, and gives a strongly marked character to these gardens. Fountains and arbours, rustic bridges and ponds, rivulets and waterfalls add to the charm of this sylvan spot. At the foot of the hill grow great clumps of bamboos, whose trembling leaves bend down the pliant stems till they meet and form an arch overhead. The bases of these stems have grown to great proportions, and are so close together that they form an almost solid mass. Narrow shafts of light stream through the roof of leaves, and pattern the path with many curious forms. An infinite variety of ferns abound of lovely shades of green and beautiful design. But for the incessant buzzings of mosquitoes and flies the spot would be perfect. Lizards dart across the ground and birds flit twittering through the trees, and in the sparkling sunlight, brilliantly coloured humming-birds flutter round strange flowers. Butterflies soar high and so rapidly that they can easily be mistaken for birds. Near by a small waterfall that makes rippling music stands a tall palm protected by railings; it is the parent of all the palms in Rio, and sprang from a seed planted in 1808 by João VI, whose bust stands on a pedestal in close proximity. Another favourite car ride takes one to Tijuca, a suburb situated six miles distant on a beautifully wooded hill, from which extensive views of the city and harbour are obtainable. This suburb contains many summer residences, and abounds with beautiful walks and sylvan paths twining amidst cascades that sparkle in the sunlight. Other suburbs, Copacabana, Ipanema, and Leme, outside the harbour and on the Atlantic seaboard, are also connected by car routes with the centre of the city, and are popular holiday resorts. [Illustration: THE BOTANICAL GARDENS.] CHAPTER XXIV _Vianna_ Amongst the hundreds of islands in the Bay of Rio, there are two which have special claims upon the attention of visitors to Rio, as well as on the gratitude of all good Brazilians.