We have had
an interesting time in Miami Beach. Unfortunately
we have both been trying to fight off this dreadful cough we got on the
ship. It got the better of me and we
decided I should see a doctor. You
cannot go to a doctor when you are a visitor from overseas and so the Hotel
organised a ‘house call’. Bronchitis was
the diagnosis for me and the doctor said Den still wasn’t free of his infection
from the ship – so antibiotics for me and more cough mixture etc. for both of
us. We have spent most of our time here
in our hotel room with the ‘Do Not Disturb’ sign on the door. We are feeling much better, but still have
bad coughs. The doctor’s fee was $450
and the antibiotics was $60. So pleased
we have travel insurance.
Anyway some
thoughts on Miami Beach…....
The street
cafes are all along Ocean Drive. They
all have at least one but usually two or three people trying to get you to take
a seat and eat/drink/breakfast/lunch/happy hour….at first I would say no
thanks, but after a while it is easier to just ignore them and feel like you
are being rude.
The meals
are huge…..twice as much as you would ever contemplate eating, all with a side
serving of fries – even pancakes can come with fries.
The bill is
interesting– the cost of what you ordered, plus 18% gratuity and tax plus there
is usually another opportunity for you to give a tip.
The money
takes a bit of getting used to – the notes are all very similar in colour and
size. They still have $1 notes and they
are the same as the $20.
There are
big drinks you can order – they look like they have made the drink in a fish
bowl.
There are
girls wandering around the streets and cafes selling cigars and cigarettes from
trays strapped to them, like ice cream sellers at the cricket. I remember seeing them in old American movies
but was really surprised to actually see them these days.
Every café
has music playing, people talking over the music and cars travelling along the
street……..it is so noisy you can hardly hear yourself think.
Police ride
around on quad bikes, golf carts as well as the traditional black and white
sedans. We were wandering back from going to a diner for breakfast the other
morning and passed by police talking to a couple that they had in handcuffs
that were seated on the gutter edge.
We went to
the Post office – we asked for advice on the best way to send a parcel – with a
dead pan expression we were told all of the supplies are there it is up to us
to choose….if something goes wrong it won’t be their fault. Customer service is definitely not a high
priority.
We saw a guy
this morning walking around with a sign that read ‘I will smoke your weed for
free’. I guess only he knew the
reason………..we were not going to ask.
Not a great
place to try and rest up with noise of the cafes and street still loud at 2am
and in the morning the road works start up at around 7am.
Lincoln
Drive Mall is a nice area – a nice market on a Sunday, lots to see and nice
cafes without lots of noise.
We also went
for a walk along Espanola Way – very Spanish and quite stylish.
We have made
the most of our time in Miami Beach. I’m
sure we would have had a different experience if we had felt better – we would
have gone up to Orlando and gone to Disney World etc. but anyway it has been a
good place to rest up and try to get healthy to fully enjoy New York.
