In case they forgot to tell you it does rain in Rio. If you have a rainy day ahead of you do not sulk, and make the best of it. We have lined up some interesting suggestions for your enjoyment.

As usual our day starts with a healthy Brazilian breakfast at the hotel. As you sip your coffee try to consider the options. To explore the local culture nothing better than a day museum hopping. The Museums of the Indian, the Republic, Carmen Miranda, Modern Art, Fine Arts, Imperial Palace and others are lined up on the way to Downtown. You could do this by subway, taxi, or take the museum express, a bus leaving from the Imperial Palace.

To associate museums and shopping stop only at the Museum of the Indian in Botafogo. There are several interesting articles for sale. We are sure everybody back home will be impressed by your Native Brazilian necklace, bracelet, or hat. Our next stop is shopping Rio Sul. If you do cemeteries, ask the taxi drive to pass by São João Batista along the way. Celebrities that rest in peace there include Carmen Miranda, Tom Jobim, and many others.

Rio Sul is a vertical mall, with four floors to explore. There are movie theaters, restaurants, and you could easily spend the whole day there. If you get bored, take the underpass and explore Rio Off-Price, right across the street. There are more movie theaters, in addition to outlets and discount stores. Save some room for a sandwich at Cervantes in Copacabana on the way back - it's considered the best in Rio!

If it's not raining a storm the Barra experience is also to be considered. The first stop is at one of the hypermarkets, like Carrefour or Paes Mendonça. If you have never explored a hypermarket in a foreign country, you don't know what you are missing. If you would rather go directly for the main dish, head straight to BarraShopping.

The biggest mall in Latin America is a giant with its own monorail system and hundreds of shops, restaurants, snack bars, a top bowling alley, video arcades, movie theaters, theaters, a farmer's market, even nightclubs... It may well take you a whole day walking from one end to the other, with so much to see and browse. Take your credit cards...