Day 24 – January 18, 2026
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
We met up for breakfast around 8:30 am, both of us feeling refreshed after a great night’s sleep. The others, however, had clearly enjoyed the night before and didn’t roll in until around 1 am—sounds like a good time was had 😂. Catherine had already been teasing us about dinner plans, hinting that she’d found the perfect place and that John and I were going to absolutely love it.
Marguerite was still dealing with some phone-related damage control, so we got a slightly later start and decided to visit the Rio de Janeiro Botanical Garden. Our driver, Theo, picked us up—he had lived in New York for ten years, so his English was quite good, which made the drive easy and enjoyable.
The botanical garden is absolutely beautiful. Spread across 130 acres, it’s home to around 6,500 species of plants, along with multiple greenhouses. Nestled at the base of Corcovado Mountain, the garden features more than 6,000 tropical and subtropical plant species, including nearly 900 varieties of palm trees. One of the most striking sights is the Avenue of Royal Palms, a perfectly aligned row of 134 towering palms that leads from the entrance into the gardens. We also saw impressive collections of bromeliads, orchids, carnivorous plants, and cacti—a peaceful and fascinating way to spend the morning.
We arranged for Theo to pick us up afterward and asked him to drop us off at Copacabana Beach, where we enjoyed a quick bite and a beer before heading back to the hotel for showers and a short rest.
Then it was time for dinner at Marius.
Let’s just say… this place is unlike anything we’ve ever seen. The interior is bursting with color, décor, and stuff everywhere—eclectic, over-the-top, and totally unforgettable. The staff were fantastic, and the food was incredible. They offered a huge variety of meats and seafood, all cooked perfectly, along with an enormous buffet of sides. There was absolutely no danger of anyone going hungry.
We had an amazing time—and admittedly drank a little too much 😂.
So much so, in fact, that when we got back to the hotel, I suddenly became convinced I’d left my bag behind. John and I changed clothes and rushed back out—first to the bar where we’d had pre-dinner drinks, then on to the restaurant… which was, of course, closed. Slight panic ensued.
We finally made it back to the room around 2 am, where I discovered that I had simply draped the strap of my bag over a chair where my backpack was sitting—completely hiding it from view. 🤦♀️
Oh well. We laughed, shook our heads, and agreed: we had fun, we made memories, and that’s what counts. The perfect way to wrap up our last night in Rio. 🌴✨
