Stiltsville

A few months ago, El Hombre procured a boat. No particular reason why, he just wanted one, went on the hunt, and found one for a reasonable price. Once we got it all fixed up, we have been exploring the waters of Miami-Dade County. This past Sunday was no exception. We docked out of Coconut Grove and decided to find some new sites to explore. Afterall, Miami is a different city, even on the water, and there continues to be unique spots even at sea. Stiltsville is no exception.

Ever since I started seeing photos of these houses hovering above the water, I have been fascinated. Stiltsville has been around since the late 20s, early 30s and is apparently a hotspot during the spring and summer months for boaters to hang out on the sandbars and flats on the weekends. But these parties didn't start in the past few years, Stiltsville was one of the original party spots in Miami. Rumored to have been a hotbed for gambling and drinking during prohibition, people have been making their way out there since it's inception, to throw down and have a good time. Kind of fitting now, given Miami's reputation, right?

Now most of these homes are empty, their residents moving onto firmer grounds after hurricanes and storms. Seven homes remain, darkened windows and birds on roofs. The only way to get there is by boat, and stay far off during low tide or you may get stuck. Once we got out there, and found a safe place to drift without getting stuck, we admired these homes on stilts, like giants taking quiet moments over calm, clear blue waters while staring off at El Farito and Key Biscayne. You can't help but wonder what was life like back then. How did people weather the storms, how did they survive? Looking across the calm, serene blue water, did it make up for the terrifying nature of whipping winds from hurricanes and waterspouts? Did they flee conventional life to live free from traditions and societal pressure, and did they get lonely at all? We will never know, but it's interesting to imagine.

Of course I took a few photos:



To learn more about Stiltsville, check out the following links:
Biscayne National Park Info
Wikipedia entry
Miamism Article

If you don't have access to a boat, the South Florida Historical Museum offers a tour by Dr. Paul George, a leading South Florida Historian

NYE: A recap

New Years Eve in Miami. man. So many people come down here to party their butts off in overpriced, snotty clubs on the beach, hoping to brush up against celebs while clinging champagne glasses. Me personally? I hate crowds and I love fireworks. Typically we hang with friends on the Key Biscayne beach while drinking champagne at midnight and watching the fireworks. This year didn't happen that way, and for some reason we decided instead to watch the orange drop at Bayfront. This time reaffirmed a few things for me:

1. Riding on a packed metromover to an event is always highly entertaining. I don't have any pics or video this time, but watching the traffic, this was definitely the way to go.

2. I hate crowds. I really, really hate crowds.

3. I hate Bayfront. Combining Bayfront with crowds is the worst thing ever.

4. People will get drunk and stupid and get into fights. Everyone will run thinking there are guns involved. Not awesome.

While points 2 and 3 are true, watching people in a crowd at Bayfront is hilarious. Just make sure you are watching your belongings as well. Despite having a cough that sounds like tuberculosis and hating bumping into people, it was actually kind of fun to watch all the different people that showed up. And the fireworks this year were awesome. Unlike the 4th of July a few years ago, the City of Miami put on an awesome fireworks show. I even caught a little bit of it on video for you guys:

7 years in Miami: A retrospect

This afternoon, El Hombre and I were driving to our favorite Argentine bakery for some empanadas, when it hit me. It's been almost seven years since I moved to Miami. It's strange because it seems like a long time ago, but at the same time, sometimes it seems like it was only two or three years ago.

From the moment I moved here, things were different. From having a homeless guy try to open my windows in my old apartment (subsequently, I moved out as fast as possible), being laid off a month and a half after moving here, getting my second degree black belt and getting a masters degree, I have gone through a lot. Miami is tough, and South Beach is tougher. I lived on the beach for three years, and often held two - three jobs just to get by. This included waiting tables at Nikki Beach (I quickly learned that I hate waiting tables and am terrible at it), retail management (it's easier to upsell when you are waiting on drunk people who just rolled off Ocean Drive) and hospitality of sorts.

Anyways, I thought I would share some of the things I have learned since I moved here:
- It's ok to buy your produce off the back of a truck. It's cheaper and better than the grocery
- Finding parking on South Beach is a nightmare. Finding parking on the Gables campus of UM on a Tuesday or Thursday is even worse
- Yes you will probably be towed
- No you don't have to pay the meters on Sunday in Coral Gables
- Everyone in Miami drives by the rules of the country from which they originate
- After a light turns red, AT LEAST 4 cars are allowed to turn left
- People in Miami may be rude, but people in Boca Raton are worse
- Learning Spanish is important, but every so often it's better to feign ignorance in a conversation
- The La Carreta on Bird Road can withstand anything, including fire
- If anything happens in Cuba, or a new "Fidel is dead" rumor catches, it will be on the front page of the Miami Herald and there will be crowds of people outside the aforementioned La Carreta and Versailles
- Homestead has the best produce AND the best Farmer's Market
- If you tell someone you don't speak Spanish, be prepared for a lecture
- Channel 7 will always lead with American Idol, no matter what else is happening around the world
- There are random chickens and peacocks all over the city
- Coffee is cheaper and better at Cuban bakeries
- If you talk about the lack of hills in Miami, there will always be that one person who references the hill at Tropical Park
- Santa's Enchanted Forest is a nightmare and an eyesore. It looks like the Christmas Faerie vomited her hangover all over Tropical Park
- Seeing Miami via boat is a whole different experience
- Fairchild is amazing, but so are the Pinecrest Gardens and not as many people know about them
- Vizcaya is super cool to boat up to. You can never really get the full appreciation for it until you see all angles.
- There are good people in Miami, but you probably won't meet them in South Beach clubs
- South Beach clubs are extremely overrated and after awhile you get tired of going places where a beer is $15 and you have to wear shoes that make you want to cut your feet off. When that happens, you will migrate to downtown and Brickell
- People in Coral Gables are surprisingly nice and shop owners welcome your business
- You will never get good service in South Beach. It's not even worth complaining about anymore.

Worst Valet Ever

So normally I don't valet my car. It's not just that I don't feel high roller enough, it's also that I used to work for a rental car company on the beach and I knew alot of valet guys. I saw it all - kids crashing $50k cars, stealing things out of cars, joyriding, etc. Normally I would rather shell out the money for a garage and keep my keys in my pocket. But yesterday El Hombre and I were up at Riverfront for my company holiday party, the company is reimbursing me for valet, and I don't know that area at all, so I figured, "What the hell? How bad can it be?"

Well, after waiting over an hour for the car yesterday, I found out. Ameripark Valet Services, as it turns out, is the worst valet company in the world. Nobody was running the booth, because apparently the company is too cheap to hire more than 3 guys to work a Saturday night during season and the same night as the boat parade. Smart. So there was nobody running the booth. This resulted in the following: People who showed up 30 minutes after me getting their cars before me, nobody knowing where my car keys were and an extremely angry crowd. Normally I am patient, but when I am the only person being nice to the valet guy, and he explodes at me that everyone else came first, I lost it. Magically my car appeared after I made an extremely angry call to the corporate center and then accused the guys of either crashing my car in the parking lot or taking it for a joyride.

So my advice? Avoid this parking company at all costs. They are poorly run, overpriced, poorly staffed and have worse customer service than any company, restaurant or store on South Beach. And that's saying a lot.

Happy Friday Morning on US1

Autumn Rambles

Just in case you were wondering, this is the both the best and worst time of the year to be in South Florida for me. Why the contradiction? Well, the weather is amazing, especially in the mornings. It's a crisp warmness, if that makes sense. Every day this past week, I have walked out the door to a 70 degree morning, light on humidity. It's a blessed reprieve from summer's blistering heat. We leave the windows open and the cats luxuriate in the breeze, lazy and calm and content to be outside. Hanging outside at night is amazing, and we can kick back with a cool glass of wine in our yard and be totally comfortable with the darkness creeping in, just a little earlier every day.

But (you knew it was coming) fall is really a cop-out down here. I'm a Carolina girl and fall is my favorite season. I miss the crisp cool days, with barely-warm afternoons. I miss the trees turning colors, the crunch of leaves underfoot and the smells of grills on a crisp evening. I love the beautiful fall colors, bright and warm on sweaters and wool, but there's no way I can justify wearing something that warm down here.

I was telling El Hombre that we have to get a pumpkin and carve it so we can toast the seeds. He seemed ok with the idea, but reminded me that the pumpkin will last no more than a few days. We grew up doing that, but it seems no one down here has had toasted pumpkin seeds. That's a fall necessity! Just like hot teas (which, admittedly, I drink year-round) and hearty soups and stews (something else that's year-round for me.)

So yeah, South Florida, I love you, but I wish you could pull together an awesome, authentic fall for me!

October is a good month for Zombies

It's been FOREVER since I've written and had good material to share with you on our bloggy blog, but this past weekend got me re-inspired to dedicate time to the blog. The second annual Zombie Walk was held on Lincoln Road Saturday night. It was fun, bloody, zombie-like, mass chaos (somewhat), and exciting. I'll post some photos and video from my zombie friends soon! The stains from the "blood" can still be found around Lincoln Road and in various parking garages. I also have a friend who made an awesome short film about it. I'll be sure to post a link to that too.

"Brains...."

- L