love affair with miami beach...
i love the city of miami beach.
one of my friends from springfield was down on vacation, and we made plans to have lunch in south beach where she was staying. she flaked out on my way down, but i had made up my mind that i would spend the day in miami, so i went anyway. it was lovely...
first of all, every time i go, i die a little inside as i pass the houses on alton road on the right, right when you get off I-195... so beautiful. it is my goal to live in a house like that some day. so i drove around a bit, trying to figure what i would do, and eventually found a little parking lot a (tiny) block off lincoln road. i had NO idea it was so inexpensive to park in south beach, after hearing so many horror stories, and also paying a LOT when i had gone with other people. anyway, adorable, shaded, close, little parking lot, unfortunately- for me as a planner interested in MT planning- an absolute pleasure to park. so after i put my money in the meter and displayed my ticket in the dash, i skipped on over to lincoln road, and almost immediately bought an organic eggplant for a dollar from a vegetable vendor. super effin' chill. i took my time, sauntered down the road, admired jewelry, and special teas, orchids, fresh fruits. i walked in and out of the unexpectedly smooth mixture of boutique shops, chain stores, and tourist havens. i read the menus of the many restaurants, cafes and bakeries that dotted the street mall, my mouth watering at the descriptions of food, and admiring the many drink specials (and advertisements for hookah!). i watched people: children, parents, babies, teenagers, young adults, couples, friends, people alone, older people. an adorable waiter smiled and flirtatiously said, "ciao, bella." to me as i walked by, and i felt chic and beautiful in my cute little skirt, tank and flats outfit. i meandered on... as i made my way back up lincoln road on the opposite side, i passed an orchid seller, who had humongous, flowery orchids for $15. insane. i selected two, and felt even cooler toting the exotic blossoms. by this time, it was 2:30, and i was pretty hungry. i stopped at a cafe that was connected to a store called booksandbooks, and had a nice sit-down lunch alone, of a vegetarian chicken sandwich with avocado, onion and tomato with a coke. DEElish. when i was finished my sandwich, i realized i was 20 minutes over my parking limit, so i paid my bill and peaced. i enjoyed the little walk to my tucked away parking secret, sure that a parking ticket would greet me. when i got to my car, i was pleasantly surprised to find my window ticket-free. and so ended my lovely day in south beach.
miami beach is perfect. it doesn't try to be anything that it isn't. it's chaotic, and yet comforting. there are extremes of reveling in wealth, and affordability (in a select few places). beautiful landscaping, bright, exciting colors, mediterranean/spanish/modern facades, walkable neighborhoods, a gorgeous beach, huge, shady trees, colorful built environment, fun and interesting people, day life, night life, vibrant, full of life. it is a place i would like to live someday, even if it's just for 6 months. in no particular order, besides the top two:
1. center city, philadelphia
2. new york
3. washington d.c.
4. portland
5. copenhagen
6. lisbon
7. miami beach
8. chicago
9. atlanta
10. boston
11. seattle
12. new orleans
12. austin
13. san francisco
14. paris
15. london
16. rome
17. dublin
18. sydney
19. vienna
20. los angeles
i really just need to find a way to be wealthy, so that i can live in every major cosmopolitan city for a year at a time, and take photographs, and publish a book of my city photographs.
unrelated, but i'm watching unfaithful on tbs (diane lane is so pretty) and i'm a little sad that cell phones have made payphones obsolete. also, insanely hot sex scenes. geez.
i'm also a little sad i had no one to go out with for a st. patrick's day beer. i also miss my dad, he loves st. patrick's day. i want to make him a card to tell him how much i enjoyed going to the st. patrick's day parade every year as a child. it's weird that i probably won't ever live with my parents again...
one of my friends from springfield was down on vacation, and we made plans to have lunch in south beach where she was staying. she flaked out on my way down, but i had made up my mind that i would spend the day in miami, so i went anyway. it was lovely...
first of all, every time i go, i die a little inside as i pass the houses on alton road on the right, right when you get off I-195... so beautiful. it is my goal to live in a house like that some day. so i drove around a bit, trying to figure what i would do, and eventually found a little parking lot a (tiny) block off lincoln road. i had NO idea it was so inexpensive to park in south beach, after hearing so many horror stories, and also paying a LOT when i had gone with other people. anyway, adorable, shaded, close, little parking lot, unfortunately- for me as a planner interested in MT planning- an absolute pleasure to park. so after i put my money in the meter and displayed my ticket in the dash, i skipped on over to lincoln road, and almost immediately bought an organic eggplant for a dollar from a vegetable vendor. super effin' chill. i took my time, sauntered down the road, admired jewelry, and special teas, orchids, fresh fruits. i walked in and out of the unexpectedly smooth mixture of boutique shops, chain stores, and tourist havens. i read the menus of the many restaurants, cafes and bakeries that dotted the street mall, my mouth watering at the descriptions of food, and admiring the many drink specials (and advertisements for hookah!). i watched people: children, parents, babies, teenagers, young adults, couples, friends, people alone, older people. an adorable waiter smiled and flirtatiously said, "ciao, bella." to me as i walked by, and i felt chic and beautiful in my cute little skirt, tank and flats outfit. i meandered on... as i made my way back up lincoln road on the opposite side, i passed an orchid seller, who had humongous, flowery orchids for $15. insane. i selected two, and felt even cooler toting the exotic blossoms. by this time, it was 2:30, and i was pretty hungry. i stopped at a cafe that was connected to a store called booksandbooks, and had a nice sit-down lunch alone, of a vegetarian chicken sandwich with avocado, onion and tomato with a coke. DEElish. when i was finished my sandwich, i realized i was 20 minutes over my parking limit, so i paid my bill and peaced. i enjoyed the little walk to my tucked away parking secret, sure that a parking ticket would greet me. when i got to my car, i was pleasantly surprised to find my window ticket-free. and so ended my lovely day in south beach.
miami beach is perfect. it doesn't try to be anything that it isn't. it's chaotic, and yet comforting. there are extremes of reveling in wealth, and affordability (in a select few places). beautiful landscaping, bright, exciting colors, mediterranean/spanish/modern facades, walkable neighborhoods, a gorgeous beach, huge, shady trees, colorful built environment, fun and interesting people, day life, night life, vibrant, full of life. it is a place i would like to live someday, even if it's just for 6 months. in no particular order, besides the top two:
1. center city, philadelphia
2. new york
3. washington d.c.
4. portland
5. copenhagen
6. lisbon
7. miami beach
8. chicago
9. atlanta
10. boston
11. seattle
12. new orleans
12. austin
13. san francisco
14. paris
15. london
16. rome
17. dublin
18. sydney
19. vienna
20. los angeles
i really just need to find a way to be wealthy, so that i can live in every major cosmopolitan city for a year at a time, and take photographs, and publish a book of my city photographs.
unrelated, but i'm watching unfaithful on tbs (diane lane is so pretty) and i'm a little sad that cell phones have made payphones obsolete. also, insanely hot sex scenes. geez.
i'm also a little sad i had no one to go out with for a st. patrick's day beer. i also miss my dad, he loves st. patrick's day. i want to make him a card to tell him how much i enjoyed going to the st. patrick's day parade every year as a child. it's weird that i probably won't ever live with my parents again...