Gemini Loop: Miami and Ft. Lauderdale

We crossed to Miami on a very windy day, but we were going withn the wind so it wasn't too rough. From the waterway we could see LOTS of big buildings - Miami, Key Biscayne, Miami Beach... and it will be that way for a while! The first few nights we stayed at Dinner Key Marina in the Coconut Grove area of Miami. Steve rode his bike around and saw the sights, but I had a "down day" when we got there. Steve's friend TK picked us up and took us to his house for drinks before we went to dinner. We met his new puppy, Slater, a Brittany spaniel - we were already acquainted with the older spaniel Lucy.

Dinner was at Seasons 52. It is a beautiful place with lots of wood and leather. It has seasonal food, with a menu that changes four times a year. We ate in the bar - an intimate setting good for conversation. Steve and TK talked about friends from Rollins College and reminisced a bit, and we caught up on news about our children. We had dinner with TK in Key West, but the restaurant was noisy and we were with another couple. This was a little better for catching up.

The following night we had dinner with Danny and Sande. Danny was Steve's roommate in college. Sande is an artist, whose work is featured at the gallery in Islamorada. (Remember the big lobster sculpture? She didn't do it, but it marks the gallery.) We went to the Peacock Garden Cafe. It is named for the flocks of wild peacocks that move around Coconut Grove. The natives have a love/hate relationship with the peacocks. They are beautiful, but they are very messy. We didn't see any, but Sande told me about them.

We enjoyed getting to see Danny and Sande. The boys reminisced and Sande and I talked about her art. Her new passion is raku ceramics. She does beautiful tiles and artwork with the tiles. She also does her own papers and mixed media collages. We really do have to get them to Savannah so Sande can be inspired to do some "Low Country" art.

It was windy and threatening rain when we left Dinner Key, but it ended up being a pretty good cruising day. We headed for Ft. Lauderdale via the ICW, with the mast lowered in anticipation of bridges. Most of them we could get under with the mast down, but there were still a couple that had to open for us. There were lots of high-rises, some beautiful homes, canals off the river and plenty to see. The scenery changed to a canal and ships, cruise ships, then yachts ... and we were in Ft. Lauderdale.

We got to our destination, the city docks for Ft. Lauderdale, and biked (a very long way, across bridges, with the wind blowing hard... I was pooped!) to the grocery store.

We skyped with Sara and Olivia, and then Chris. It's his birthday today and we wanted to make sure we got to talk to him early just in case... Chris has been a very cool kid since the day he arrived, and he is a wonderful young man. I am honored to be his mom! Happy Birthday, Sweetie!