Martin Cardenas Botanical Garden is a green pause inside Cochabamba, named for the Bolivian botanist who documented thousands of native plant species. It is the sort of place to use between bigger sights: shaded paths, local flora, and a calmer rhythm than the city streets outside.
The garden is most rewarding if you are curious about Bolivia's plant life beyond the postcard cactus and highland scenery. It is not a polished show garden in the European sense, but it gives Cochabamba a useful open-air counterpoint to its markets, churches, and viewpoints.