Once the wedding was over, we settled into enjoying South Florida.
We’ve visited Calle Ocho, the cultural and political centre for Miami’s Cuban community. Here we’ve eaten delicious Cuban food, purchased Panama hats and domino sets, and my husband Theo and his best mate enjoyed a cigar.
We went to Miami Beach and dined at Tap Tap, a beautiful Haitian restaurant. We cruised up Ocean Drive and walked along Lincoln Road before going in to see Black Panther, which was great.
We had frozen daiquiris and mojitos and a took a tour of the bay.
We went to Key West, one of my favourite places in South Florida. We visited the Key West Art & Historical Society and the Ernest Hemingway Home and Museum. Hemingway lived in Key West from 1931 to 1939. I’ve been to his house before, but as a writer and fan of his work, it’s like a pilgrimage. I’m happy to visit again and again and I learn something new every time.
We also went to the Everglades. There are many ways to experience the Florida Everglades. My favourite is via the southern Homestead entrance, which we did last time. This time, I wanted Theo to have a different experience so we went to the Miccosukee Indian Village. We took an airboat ride and ate lunch at a little restaurant owned and operated by the Panther Clan of the Tribe. We drove further into Big Cypress National Preserve and also visited Clyde Butcher’s Gallery.
Winter is peak tourist season in South Florida and there is a lot to do such as the Miami International Boat Show, the Coconut Grove Art Festival, the South Beach Wine and Food Festival, and Carnaval Miami. For 40 years, my local Greek church, Saint Sophia Greek Orthodox Cathedral, has held a Greek festival. It may not be as big and fancy as the other Miami festivals, but it’s a great community event. You can shop and, more importantly, eat, and watch traditional Greek dances performed by children and young people. It draws hundreds, maybe thousands, of people over the three days it runs.
We also went fishing. We went out with the Kelley Fishing Fleet. Reviews are mixed for this company, but we enjoyed the experience. We went on a weekday, from 9am to 1pm. You can take your own gear, but we used their rod, reel, and tackle. You can also take a cooler with snacks and drinks (including beer). We found the crew friendly and helpful. It’s worth noting that there weren’t a lot of people on our boat. If it had been full, it would’ve been tight and not as pleasant.
It was a beautiful morning and they took us to three sites at 120, 170, and 150 feet deep. I didn’t catch a thing. Most people didn’t. Theo caught two small sharks, which were thrown back into the water, a snapper that was too small to keep by law (so, back into the water), and a moray eel that was also thrown back. One guy caught a number of snapper, most of which were large enough to keep, and another man caught a bluefish that was also large enough to keep.
Even though I didn’t catch anything, I enjoyed the outing and would do it again.
