Panama Canal
Hello everyone, just returned from another great California with a really nice bunch of folks. Laundry is done and re packed, and now on my way to Miami, Florida. Taking a cruise through the Panama Canal, and finish in Los Angeles. below is the information from today's Destination Daily.
Miami
No
city in the United States has evolved into as many disparate
identities in so short a time as has Miami. A bit more than a hundred
years ago this former Spanish settlement, located along the Miami
River where it spills into Biscayne Bay (now the center of the city
of Miami), attracted neither interest nor population. That's
understandable since up until that point, the only way to reach Miami
was by boat.
That changed in 1896, when financier Henry Flagler extended his new Florida East Coast Railroad south from its previous terminus at West Palm Beach. By the turn of the 20th century the first of Miami's real estate booms was underway, a pattern that continued unabated right up to the Great Depression. Miami was one of the few places on earth where someone could offer you a get-rich-quick deal on 10 acres of swampland, and there was a good chance that you could actually get rich on it. Many made their fortunes here and left monuments to their achievements in places such as the grand Mediterranean-style estates like Villa Vizcaya and the slew of privately developed islands along the causeways crossing Biscayne Bay.
The city of Miami sits on the Florida mainland. Offshore, due east in the Atlantic, are a series of barrier islands. The southernmost island in the near vicinity is Key Biscayne. Next to the north is Virginia Key, then Fisher Island, and then comes Miami Beach. The body of water between these islands and the mainland is Biscayne Bay. Early on, resort developers looked to the Atlantic Ocean beaches of Miami Beach, beginning their development with the elegant Art Deco hotels at the southern tip, now better known as South Beach. As development proceeded northward its complexion changed, becoming more "high-rise" and grandiose, with amenities geared to a wider range of interests, from yachting to golf.
That changed in 1896, when financier Henry Flagler extended his new Florida East Coast Railroad south from its previous terminus at West Palm Beach. By the turn of the 20th century the first of Miami's real estate booms was underway, a pattern that continued unabated right up to the Great Depression. Miami was one of the few places on earth where someone could offer you a get-rich-quick deal on 10 acres of swampland, and there was a good chance that you could actually get rich on it. Many made their fortunes here and left monuments to their achievements in places such as the grand Mediterranean-style estates like Villa Vizcaya and the slew of privately developed islands along the causeways crossing Biscayne Bay.
The city of Miami sits on the Florida mainland. Offshore, due east in the Atlantic, are a series of barrier islands. The southernmost island in the near vicinity is Key Biscayne. Next to the north is Virginia Key, then Fisher Island, and then comes Miami Beach. The body of water between these islands and the mainland is Biscayne Bay. Early on, resort developers looked to the Atlantic Ocean beaches of Miami Beach, beginning their development with the elegant Art Deco hotels at the southern tip, now better known as South Beach. As development proceeded northward its complexion changed, becoming more "high-rise" and grandiose, with amenities geared to a wider range of interests, from yachting to golf.
The
1960's saw another sea change in Miami, generating another boom
cycle, brought about by the unlikely combination of the advent of
universally available air conditioning and the rise to power of Fidel
Castro. As Cuban refugees fled in droves to the U.S., they settled in
that part of our country most like their former homeland in climate
-- namely, South Florida. Miami, whose tropical temperatures were now
tamed by indoor climate control, thus tolerable to an influx of
workers, became the gateway to the Caribbean for any number of
businesses, which soon rivaled tourism as the keystone industry.
The Caribbean population influx also profoundly changed Miami's personality. It is now largely bilingual, with French and Creole also gaining a foothold with increasing waves of immigration from Haiti. It's hard to walk a block in Miami without coming into contact with Cuban food, Cuban music, Cuban culture. It is a dynamic, vibrant city steeped in multiculturalism. These new Miamians and their businesses have also contributed directly to the revitalization of the mainland portion of Miami, leading to a number of tourist assets along the western shore of Biscayne Bay, such as Bayside Marketplace.
Across the bay is the renovated Art Deco district, including South Beach (SoBe), which has become a mecca in its own right, attracting celebrities and those who follow them, whether it be with camera or with autograph book. SoBe is also home to Miami's nightclub, fashion, music and hip dining scene, and rivals Venice, California as the place to go to people-watch.
Not all is development (or over-development, some would say). Though the seaside corridor has been urbanized almost from the tip of Florida to midway up the coast, there is still much for lovers of nature and the great outdoors. The Everglades are within a half-day's drive to the southwest. Off the Atlantic coast a short distance to the south is the only living coral reef in the continental United States. Birders wax poetic over opportunities to spy tropical shore birds and waterfowl found nowhere else in the States. And where else in the U.S.A. might you have to brake to avoid alligators crossing the road?
The Caribbean population influx also profoundly changed Miami's personality. It is now largely bilingual, with French and Creole also gaining a foothold with increasing waves of immigration from Haiti. It's hard to walk a block in Miami without coming into contact with Cuban food, Cuban music, Cuban culture. It is a dynamic, vibrant city steeped in multiculturalism. These new Miamians and their businesses have also contributed directly to the revitalization of the mainland portion of Miami, leading to a number of tourist assets along the western shore of Biscayne Bay, such as Bayside Marketplace.
Across the bay is the renovated Art Deco district, including South Beach (SoBe), which has become a mecca in its own right, attracting celebrities and those who follow them, whether it be with camera or with autograph book. SoBe is also home to Miami's nightclub, fashion, music and hip dining scene, and rivals Venice, California as the place to go to people-watch.
Not all is development (or over-development, some would say). Though the seaside corridor has been urbanized almost from the tip of Florida to midway up the coast, there is still much for lovers of nature and the great outdoors. The Everglades are within a half-day's drive to the southwest. Off the Atlantic coast a short distance to the south is the only living coral reef in the continental United States. Birders wax poetic over opportunities to spy tropical shore birds and waterfowl found nowhere else in the States. And where else in the U.S.A. might you have to brake to avoid alligators crossing the road?
Miami's
South Beach:
This Art Deco-styled waterfront district has it all -- beautifully
restored historic buildings, funky shops and boutiques, elegant
restaurants and casual cafes, fabulous people-watching, and an
awesome, wide and clean beach. Technically, the art deco district
runs from 6th to 23rd Streets between Ocean and Lenox Avenues and you
can take a self-guided
art-deco
walking tour (the Art Deco District Welcome Center, 1001 Ocean Drive,
has maps). Good sustenance stops include the News Cafe (800 Ocean
Drive) for all-day casual fare and, for a great dining experience
that's chic-with-a-view, ask for a table on the outdoor patio at The
Tides (1220 Ocean Avenue). For serious shopping, head a few blocks
west to Lincoln Road (at 17th Street), a four-block-long outdoor
shopping promenade with unique boutiques and restaurants.
Explore Miami history via the neighborhoods of Coral Gables and Coconut Grove (renting a car is advised). Coral Gables was developed in the 1920s and is best known as home to the Biltmore Hotel, noted for its resemblance to Seville's Giralda Tower); its Miracle Mile (Douglas Road/37th Avenue to LeJeune Road/42nd Avenue) has a mixture of fashionable boutiques and eateries. Bring a swimsuit and head to the Venetian Pool (2701 DeSoto Blvd), a fantasy-themed public pool created out of a rock quarry.
Coconut Grove is Miami's oldest section with construction beginning in the 1870s. It's also a place of fashionable boutiques and restaurants. Worth a detour: Vizcaya Museum and Gardens (3251 S. Miami Avenue), an early 20th century Renaissance-style -- and quite grandiose -- estate built for a Chicago industrialist who wanted to recreate a 16th century Italian estate.
Explore Miami history via the neighborhoods of Coral Gables and Coconut Grove (renting a car is advised). Coral Gables was developed in the 1920s and is best known as home to the Biltmore Hotel, noted for its resemblance to Seville's Giralda Tower); its Miracle Mile (Douglas Road/37th Avenue to LeJeune Road/42nd Avenue) has a mixture of fashionable boutiques and eateries. Bring a swimsuit and head to the Venetian Pool (2701 DeSoto Blvd), a fantasy-themed public pool created out of a rock quarry.
Coconut Grove is Miami's oldest section with construction beginning in the 1870s. It's also a place of fashionable boutiques and restaurants. Worth a detour: Vizcaya Museum and Gardens (3251 S. Miami Avenue), an early 20th century Renaissance-style -- and quite grandiose -- estate built for a Chicago industrialist who wanted to recreate a 16th century Italian estate.
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