Chapter 15 - feb 2010 - south beach (trip 2)

©2011 Tom Weathers

On Thursday morning (the second day of the Miami adventure), we drove down the barrier island known as Miami beach and stopped to walk around the southern end, called "South Beach". The upper part of Miami beach is distinguished by big new hotels and by some old places like the Eden Roc that I remembered from my last trip here in 1959. South Beach is mostly smaller older places done in Florida pastel art deco. Even in the unseasonable cool, South Beach was crowded with exotic people from all over the world. English was not the language most often heard. Sexual orientation was not always clear. We ended up doing more walking then lunch in the Coconut Grove section of Miami. Also nicely restored, also exotic, Coconut Grove was a little less crowded than South Beach, maybe a little more mature. (It was on leaving Miami that we had the Porsche encounter.)


South Beach street scene shot accidentally in B/W from window of Bill's car - this might not be far from Princess Anne hotel where I stayed with friends for $1.00 night in 1959.


The place in the middle is where chainsaw work took place in Scarface - picture shot from across the road where Pacino's buddy waited in the convertible while drug dealer cut off guy's arm in the upstairs room - WmP turns out to be a fine tour guide. He knows where the good stuff can be found.


Upstairs lobby of little hotel beside chainsaw place.


In the same lobby where I try to appear cool in front of Scarface picture and end up simply fat and slumped.

South Beach art deco.


Down the road in Coconut Grove near a place with velvet furniture and figurines of flying ghosts - that's where we had lunch - see Bill's post for more words and pictures.