Miami, Miami, You've Got Style

...The Golden Girls said it best!

Over the past several years my mom and Greg have made a few trips to the Everglades.  A few years ago I planned to join them, but work got in the way and I ended up missing out.

When the opportunity to join them in south Florida for a week this month appeared, I wasn't going to pass it up.

Ryan was originally going to drop me off at the airport on the 6th, but because of a last minute job interview, I ended up dropping him off for a flight to Harrisburg, PA.  My flight wasn't until 1, so I was able to fit in a pilates class before heading back to airport and parking Ryan's car in long-term parking.

After a stop in Houston I was Miami bound.  Mom and Greg picked me up and we headed to Florida City.  It felt good walking out of the airport into the night air and not freezing (and Salt Lake hasn't even been that bad!).

Since it was almost midnight by the time we got to the Travelodge, we just watched a little TV and went to bed.  My mom and I talked about how one of the best parts of arriving at night is the "big reveal" the next morning.  The Big Reveal meaning when you first step out into the Florida sun and feel the warmth and see all the palm trees.  Ahhh - heaven!

We spent that first day seeing some of the classic spots that my mom and Greg have frequented in the past.  We stopped at Schnebly Winery, and bought tickets for a bbq/dance night and fed some koi fish in their large pond.

Greg feeds the Koi at Schnebly

We went to a popular fruit stand called "Robert is Here" and bought a key lime milkshake and some mangoes and passion fruit.

A cat naps at "Robert is Here"

Next we headed to the Royal Palm visitors center where I picked up a national park magnet.  We walked the Anhinga Trail and saw lots of egrets, herons, Anhinga birds, and alligators.  Its a really nice boardwalk over the swamp with lots of opportunity to see wildlife.

Mom and Greg at the Anhinga Trail

We finished our day with a stop at the Gator Grill for some fish tacos and a coco frio (coconut water straight from the coconut)  We spent the evening watching the Olympics in the room.

Coconut water at "The Gator Grill"

It was an early wake up on Saturday morning for the "Run Wild" 5k through Zoo Miami.  The course took us through the zoo and we saw elephants, giraffes and monkeys as we ran by.  My mom shouted encouragements at me for a large chunk of the race as I grew hot and tired.

Before the 5K

We grabbed some freebies from the tents at the end before heading back to Florida City.  Thanks mom, for grabbing the free sunglasses that I felt like passing up - I wore them the whole trip!

After changing at the hotel, we headed for the keys.  We went to "Robbie's Marina" on Isla Morada and fed some huge tarpon fish.  There were egrets and pelicans walking around, and we stilled tough a few shops right at the marina.

Pelicans at Robby's Marina

We enjoyed lunch at Wahoo Grill - a perfect spot overlooking a harbor.  The fish tacos and ceviche were good, and only enhanced by the open air views.

View from the bar at Wahoo

After lunch it was back to the room to relax before our winery dance night.  Mom and I did a wine taste of 5 different fruit wines.  We both decided we prefer wine from grapes.  There was live music while we ate our bbq, and we danced to a few salsa and merengue numbers before heading home for the night.

Mom and I at the winery

My mom and Greg have a favorite spot to visit called RF Orchids.  Its an orchid nursery and shop, with an attached owners residence in which tours are given.  The owner walked us through his grounds which were filled with artifacts from all over the world among many exotic plants.  he has an alligator named Wally living in a pond in his backyard.  We all tasted some scorpion vine at his outdoor bar.

Back in the shop there are iguanas (chameleons?) and parrots to look at.  My mom stuck the end of her sunglasses into the bird's cage and he about snapped it in half.  She yanked it out just in time.

Where the scorpion wine was served

We finished our Sunday with some strawberry picking and walking around a few shops in the area.  We witnessed an onslaught of over a dozen raccoons when we saw a shop owner feeding them.  It was a little scary.

Strawberry Picking

On Monday we went on a park volunteer-led bike ride through a portion of the Everglades.  We saw some solution holes, snails on trees, and a couple of alligators.  We drove out to an area with a huge osprey nest where we saw the female and male birds, and of course another alligator nearby.  We stopped at a bonsai shop on the way home for Greg.

Bike ride through the park

Dinner that night was at "Bangkok Cuisine."  Pad Thai for me, Pho for mom, and beef with mixed veggies for Greg.  Strawberries we picked for dessert.

Tuesday found us in Shark Valley, a walkway with lots of wild-life spotting opportunities.  We stopped for lunch at "City Seafood" in Everglades City.  We had stone crab claws and conch salad.  The food was delicious, but it was made better by the open air harbor views.

We dove on, after this, to Naples, Florida.  In large part because we were fairly close, but also because an artist I admire has a home studio there.  It's ratable artist Nicario Jimenez.  We were able to tour his studio and see some incredible retablos.  He was so friendly to personally show us around. His wife is an artist as well, working with appliqué fibers.  It was a really neat little side trip, and I'm so glad my mom and Greg made the extra drive to take me there.

Nicario and I

Since we were already in Naples, we decided to stop at Tin City, a collection of restaurants and shops that we always used to go to when we came here as a family about 20 years ago.  We got my grandma a t-shirt, and my mom and I got a pair of earrings from one of the jewelry stores.   We also tasted some wines at a winery right in the plaza.

We couldn't leave Naples without stopping at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel.  Greg dropped us off and my mom and I went out to the pool area and on to the beach.  We took a few pictures of us in the sand, and then bought 2 giant chocolate chip cookies from the Ritz restaurant.  We ate them on the way back to Florida City.

Mom in front of the Naples Ritz

Wednesday proved to be our most adventurous.  My mom found a paddle board rental place in the keys and we decided to give this sport a try.  Greg watched from the dock as my mom and I started out on our knees and paddled around for a while in the canal until we both felt comfortable enough to stand up.  it was a little scary at first, but we felt pretty comfortable after a while.  We stayed in the canal area where the water was calm.  It was a really neat experience and I'm glad we tried it out.  I would paddle board again if Ryan and I find ourselves in a coastal town.

Paddle boarding in the Canal

We finished out my last couple days in Florida with a stop at Biscayne National Park.  We saw a manatee there.  We did some laundry, hung around Florida City a bit, and had a fun dinner together at a Mexican restaurant on Thursday night.  My flight friday was in the afternoon, so we drove through Miami and had lunch at Cafe Versailles.  After a zip down South Beach I was dropped off at the airport while my mom and Greg headed on to the Keys for the remainder of their trip.

Dinner at El Toro Taco

Biscayne National Park

Have fun, Mom and Greg - Thanks for a great time!