Category: Florida

postcard from america

Fort Lauderdale beach on a very windy and humid day

When we arrived in Fort Lauderdale after a long flight to Miami and an hours drive in a taxi from the airport to our hotel, the Fort Lauderdale Marriott Harbor Beach Resort, we decided to stretch our legs and go for a short walk. The walk was even shorter than expected as we had not realised just how hot and humid it was even in September. Before we even made it to the road we decided that perhaps a nice cold G&T in the bar would be more pleasant.

postcard from america

The Everglades in Florida is made up of coastal mangroves, sawgrass marshes and pine flatwoods that are home to hundreds of animal species including ubiquitous Florida alligators. On a cloudy day we took a trip on one of the Airboats through the waterways to find those alligators in the water. Seeing one swimming lazily towards the boat, eyes just above the water getting close and personal is quite an experience. It is quite exhilarating as the Airboat picks up speed and heads for the river of grass heading into miles of wetlands – thoughts of Miami Vice or CSI Miami entered my head, hoping we didn’t discover a dead body in the reeds.  Our tour ended with a bizarre Gator wrestling match and seeing baby gators (with their mouths tied up). It wasn’t something I would repeat although the boat trip was fun.

Ocean Drive

SoBe (South Beach) in Miami, Florida is famous for not only its white sandy beach and turquoise water, but also the well-preserved Art Deco buildings, the relaxed life style, the restaurants and beach cafés.

Some people commented on my Miami photo that they would love to see some photos of the South Beach architecture.

On Ocean Drive outdoor cafés give you a ringside view of all the action.

I had a lot of difficulty actually photographing the buildings as there are a lot of obstacles in the way. There are a lot of parked cars, moving cars, pedestrians and restaurants along this road.

Not to mention palm trees! I had to stand on the pavement / sidewalk opposite to try to get the buildings in frame, but it wasn’t easy and the perspective is easily distorted.

Art Deco decoration
Curved window grills
Flamingo outside the Tropical Café

But I hope this photo essay gives you a feel of the place. With the sugared almond colours, the cubic shapes, the curves, the barley twist columns and the decorative patterned features. And the fabulous windows, especially those corner ones on the Congress Hotel. And opposite all this busyness is this…

leading you to the sea.

~wander.essence~ photography

postcard from america

“Staying in Fort Lauderdale offered me the opportunity to take a coach trip to Miami and in particular, South Beach (SoBe), with its sugar-white sand and beautifully preserved Art Deco buildings along Ocean Drive. Before we got there though we took a trip out into Biscayne Bay from where we could see the wonderful skyline of Downtown Miami itself and the fabulous millionaire properties”