Road trip south - Miami

The drive from Cocoa Beach to Miami took just over 4 hours.  It was a Saturday, and the nearer we got to Miami, the more crazy the traffic was.  I was glad I drove first, so paul handled the Miami traffic.

I have been to Miami before, back in 1998, when I was 16.  I can remember most of that trip, it was my first time in America, and everything was amazing and awe inspiring.  In that respect, Miami has not changed.  We drove to South Beach first.  We parked up and headed for the beach.  What an affluent area.  

Typically the boys wanted to go in the sea, even though it was freezing.  So they got their stuff on.  Daddy had to go with them.  To be honest, this was really not a very nice beach.  It seemed dirty, the tide was rough, and there were more asses on display than at a donkey farm.  

The weather started to turn a little grey and windy, so we headed back to the car, very unimpressed.  Fortunately the hotel we had booked was in Coconut Grove, a suburb south of the craziness of Miami. Driving there was an experience: high rise buildings, people everywhere, and the general madness of a city.  Reminded me why I didn't like them.

As we drove into Coconut Grove, we breathed a little sigh of relief.  Yes, there were still high rises, but all the crazy people had gone. Granted it was raining.......

We took a little drive around before checking into our hotel.  What a delightful, artistic, eclectic area.  A real breath of fresh air.  However, not overly kid friendly......  We ended up eating dinner at a local sports bar, early.  They were more than accommodating, and it was almost relaxing

We had booked into a suite hotel, so the boys took the 2 rooms, and we slept on the sofa.  It wasn't a great night sleep, but us all not being in the same room was nice......  We awoke the next morning, and went for a good breakfast, before going for a walk to the local marina.  We walked past the Ritz-Carlton on the way.....

There were some nice boats here.  Absolutely stunning on a Sunday morning.

There was a park of sorts, so the boys had fun playing and climbing.  

We headed back to the hotel as the boys wanted to take a dip in the pool.  It was freezing.  Our hotel was full of NASCAR supporters.  I sat by the side of the pool watching them all depart for the race at Homestread, before deciding we needed to get a wriggle on to the track too.....