Adventures of Pamela and Dave: Art Deco in South Florida

Art Deco Weekend in Miami

Our seven night Caribbean cruise finished up in Miami on a cool Sunday morning. We grabbed a rental car and headed to South Beach that afternoon for a day at the beach. The first problem was finding a parking spot, we drove around for about 20 minutes before finding a spot up near 18^th street and Washington Drive. After parking we spent about an hour lounging on the white sand beach while watching kite surfers and others swim in the clear blue waters of South Florida.

Hanging out on South Beach

Watching Kite Surfers on South Beach

Walking down to the Art Deco district of Ocean Drive we discovered the street blocked off and a large street fair called Art Deco Weekend happening right before our eyes. The 35 year running art festival celebrates Miami’s rich art history through music performances, car show, food and film. We walked up and down the streets admiring the exhibits and shops while taking photos of the buildings, cars and people that make up this culture rich area. We put some of the more artistic settings on our new camera to good use while in South Beach. Art Deco complete, we left South Beach and headed to a Cuban café for some great food.

Art Deco in Miami

The next morning we hopped in our rental car and headed down Florida Highway 1 to Key West. Along the 150 mile scenic drive we stopped in Islamorada for a great country breakfast and then made a pit stop to Bahia Honda State Park for a walk along the beach and abandoned bridge/railway. It was a great drive along what seemed like endless bridges along crystal blue water.

Bahia Honda State Park in the Florida Keys

Abandoned car and railway bridge in the background

Arriving in Key West we hopped straight to a beach where we proceeded to get blasted by the wind and sand. After about 30 minutes being pelted by sand we headed off to the Southernmost point of the Continental United States and a very long line to take pictures in front of the point. We declined the line, and grabbed a snap of the landmark quickly in between the groups of people getting there picture with it, and continued over to the main Street - Duval St. where we ate lunch at Willie-T’s Bar and Restaurant then hit the Sunset Pier with about 5,000 other people where we watched a magnificent sunset. Sunset complete we headed back to Duval St. and checked out some of the many great art galleries in Key West. After consuming an amazing and giant ice cream from Kilwin's, we hopped in the car and made the three hour drive back to Miami. We would have loved to stay in Key West longer and hope to get back there someday.