From Miami I wanted to go to Tampa, but didn't want to take the freeway, and highway 41 through the Everglades looked like a good alternative. It took a while to get out of Miami that way, but that was ok.
I'd known that there was a very large Latino population in Miami, and that was certainly proven to me. I drove through sections where there were a lot of signs I couldn't read. I stopped at a Subway where I couldn't communicate with the person making my sandwich. She was an older lady, and had to keep asking someone else what I was saying.
The highway through the Everglades was very straight but bumpy. There was a wide ditch/canal alongside the road for many miles, and there were a lot of people fishing. There were also a number of places offering air boat rides, though most were closed presumably due to its being low season. At one point I stopped at a small pond beside the road for a better look. It was immediately obvious why people were fishing - the water was filled with fish. They weren't huge, but they were big enough for a meal. Also, there were plenty of alligators. I guess I should have tried to count them, but every time I tried I'd notice another one in the bushes or another one would pop up. The two other critters I saw a lot of were dragonflies and vultures.
The Everglades ended quite abruptly into a golf community. I wasn't quite at the coast yet, but when I did get to the coast I was reminded a little of Galveston: most of the houses right next to the water were on stilts. Also, this was clearly a tourist area in low season - there wasn't much activity in the shops or on the beach. I drove along the coast for quite a while, but it was fairly slow going and I began to realize I wouldn't get to Tampa at a reasonable time if I continued this. Besides, there was a feature on the map that I wanted to investigate with at least a little light left in the sky. So, I eventually headed across to the Interstate and made my way north.
The feature on the map did not disappoint. It was a spectacular bridge into St. Petersburg. I snapped a few pictures while driving, but they won't do it justice. I noticed after it was too late that there was a pier from which I'm sure I could have gotten some nice pictures.
I continued on the freeway to Tampa. Crossing the bridge from St. Petersburg across Tampa Bay to Tampa, I was reminded of the San Francisco Bay: a number of large bridges across the bay. The view of the cities, though, was less spectacular.
Immediately after hitting land again, I got off the freeway and drove around for a bit. The views weren't all that impressive in the dark, so I eventually headed for a hotel. The GPS took me on a route that was kinda weird. I was driving through an urban area, but it seemed somehow oddly deserted.
I got to my hotel around 10:00, and had to do a little more driving. I couldn't find much of interest, so I got back before midnight (!) and decided to try to catch up on some sleep. That might have been a good idea if I hadn't turned on the TV! I thought I'd drift off to sleep in front of it. I did, eventually, but that was only after a movie or two (ie. probably 4:00am)! Oh, well, the conference starts tomorrow and that will force me to start keeping better hours.
OK, it's time to head for Orlando to pick up Mark. Once again, I'm too impatient to proof-read. :-)
Sunday, June 05, 2005
Saturday, June 04, 2005
6/3/2005
I woke up in Key West, Florida - cool! Before heading back north, I decided to drive around a little more, making a stop at the "southernmost part of the continental US" and taking a documentation picture.
Here are just a couple of miscellaneous observations about Key West. There are a lot of morning doves (or is that mourning - I never did figure that out), and I enjoy the sound they make. There are scooters everywhere! At this time of year, at least today and for me, the heat together with the humidity is almost unbearable. I'm sure I'd get used to it quickly, but.... Here in southern Florida they keep talking about "hurricane season", which apparently started June 1. I saw a lot of large birds that I couldn't identify - terns, maybe? They have long, split tails.
On the way back to Miami, I took a different route and discovered a road that appears to me to be completely useless. Highway 905A (aka Card Sound Rd) is significantly longer than staying on highway 1. It's not particularly scenic, doesn't appear to connect anything of significance, and I saw absolutely no homes, businesses, nor development of any kind along it. What's more, it's a toll road! There's probably a good reason for its existence, but I haven't figured it out.
I made a little detour into the Everglades National Park, but didn't do it justice due to my lack of time. I then headed into Miami. I made a stop at a shopping mall for some clothes, getting that necessity out of the way.
Shortly after starting into Miami my driving bug hit in a big way. As is my habit, I try to stick fairly close to the coast, and it paid off in Miami. The pleasure of the road had nothing to do with the coast, though. Ingraham Highway (that's what my mapping software called it, though it was called something else on all the signs - I never did see a sign with Ingraham Highway on it) went for miles through a tunnel of trees. They were large trees that formed a complete canopy overhead. Nestled in amongst the trees were, of course, opulent homes.
Eventually I got to South Bayshore Drive. Roughly at the intersection was a neat shopping/dining/nightlife area. A section of South Bayshore Drive was closed off - something about George Bush coming for a visit - sheesh!
I continued on my way along South Miami Avenue, and took a side trip through Key Biscayne - more opulent homes. However, the best part of this was that there was a little park just off the road that provided some incredible views of downtown Miami. The views were spectacular, but not something my digital camera did a good job of capturing. The spot reminded me a lot of the spot on Treasure Island that provides such a nice view of San Francisco.
I took another side trip to Brickell Key - wow! Hotels that I'm sure I won't be affording in this lifetime!
I then drove around downtown Miami a little, before heading for Miami Beach. Yep, Miami Beach is the art deco area that you see a lot of in movies and TV (lots on "Miami Vice", as I recall). It was very cool! I think most of Miami was on Ocean Drive for the nightlife. Given more time and my lovely wife, I would certainly have enjoyed that part of town for longer. There were a lot of street-side restaurants with live music. Many of the performances were outside, right next to the street. I'm not good at describing the fun it is even just to drive through areas like that.
In Miami Beach there were more homes and boats that blew my mind. There are times when I simply can't understand where all the rich people come from. I don't know if I've ever even met a person that could afford some of these homes or boats! And yet the world seems full of them.
It was getting to be around 10pm and I had neither eaten nor found a hotel, and I was getting quite hungry. I stumbled on a Burger King that was still open, and got some food. That's me - drive past all those nice restaurants and eat at Burger King - what's that about?!?! I finally found a hotel I could afford, and checked in just after midnight. However, Miami at night had me, so I went driving some more after that. Eventually I realized that there was a checkOUT time awaiting me, and I'd better get a little sleep first.
As with almost all of the trips in my life, there is simply not nearly enough time to do them justice, and I find places I'd love to come back to sometime. I am finding on this trip, though, that a lot of the things I'm seeing I'd really like to share with my wife and/or kids! Oh, well, maybe next time. :-)
Anyway, they're trying to chase me out of my hotel room again, and I want to get on the road. L8r!
P.S. I'm too impatient to proof-read this, so please forgive any spelling or grammar mistakes.
Here are just a couple of miscellaneous observations about Key West. There are a lot of morning doves (or is that mourning - I never did figure that out), and I enjoy the sound they make. There are scooters everywhere! At this time of year, at least today and for me, the heat together with the humidity is almost unbearable. I'm sure I'd get used to it quickly, but.... Here in southern Florida they keep talking about "hurricane season", which apparently started June 1. I saw a lot of large birds that I couldn't identify - terns, maybe? They have long, split tails.
On the way back to Miami, I took a different route and discovered a road that appears to me to be completely useless. Highway 905A (aka Card Sound Rd) is significantly longer than staying on highway 1. It's not particularly scenic, doesn't appear to connect anything of significance, and I saw absolutely no homes, businesses, nor development of any kind along it. What's more, it's a toll road! There's probably a good reason for its existence, but I haven't figured it out.
I made a little detour into the Everglades National Park, but didn't do it justice due to my lack of time. I then headed into Miami. I made a stop at a shopping mall for some clothes, getting that necessity out of the way.
Shortly after starting into Miami my driving bug hit in a big way. As is my habit, I try to stick fairly close to the coast, and it paid off in Miami. The pleasure of the road had nothing to do with the coast, though. Ingraham Highway (that's what my mapping software called it, though it was called something else on all the signs - I never did see a sign with Ingraham Highway on it) went for miles through a tunnel of trees. They were large trees that formed a complete canopy overhead. Nestled in amongst the trees were, of course, opulent homes.
Eventually I got to South Bayshore Drive. Roughly at the intersection was a neat shopping/dining/nightlife area. A section of South Bayshore Drive was closed off - something about George Bush coming for a visit - sheesh!
I continued on my way along South Miami Avenue, and took a side trip through Key Biscayne - more opulent homes. However, the best part of this was that there was a little park just off the road that provided some incredible views of downtown Miami. The views were spectacular, but not something my digital camera did a good job of capturing. The spot reminded me a lot of the spot on Treasure Island that provides such a nice view of San Francisco.
I took another side trip to Brickell Key - wow! Hotels that I'm sure I won't be affording in this lifetime!
I then drove around downtown Miami a little, before heading for Miami Beach. Yep, Miami Beach is the art deco area that you see a lot of in movies and TV (lots on "Miami Vice", as I recall). It was very cool! I think most of Miami was on Ocean Drive for the nightlife. Given more time and my lovely wife, I would certainly have enjoyed that part of town for longer. There were a lot of street-side restaurants with live music. Many of the performances were outside, right next to the street. I'm not good at describing the fun it is even just to drive through areas like that.
In Miami Beach there were more homes and boats that blew my mind. There are times when I simply can't understand where all the rich people come from. I don't know if I've ever even met a person that could afford some of these homes or boats! And yet the world seems full of them.
It was getting to be around 10pm and I had neither eaten nor found a hotel, and I was getting quite hungry. I stumbled on a Burger King that was still open, and got some food. That's me - drive past all those nice restaurants and eat at Burger King - what's that about?!?! I finally found a hotel I could afford, and checked in just after midnight. However, Miami at night had me, so I went driving some more after that. Eventually I realized that there was a checkOUT time awaiting me, and I'd better get a little sleep first.
As with almost all of the trips in my life, there is simply not nearly enough time to do them justice, and I find places I'd love to come back to sometime. I am finding on this trip, though, that a lot of the things I'm seeing I'd really like to share with my wife and/or kids! Oh, well, maybe next time. :-)
Anyway, they're trying to chase me out of my hotel room again, and I want to get on the road. L8r!
P.S. I'm too impatient to proof-read this, so please forgive any spelling or grammar mistakes.
Friday, June 03, 2005
6/2/2005
After getting far too late a start (see below), I was stuck in Miami traffic for a couple of hours. I finally made it to the Overseas Highway. It was not quite what I expected. (I guess I don't know my geography as well as I thought! :-) Whereas I thought it was a very long set of bridges punctuated by islands, the islands make up a much greater part of the trip. In fact, of the 126 mile distance, there are 42 bridges that only make up 18.8 miles (about 15%).
Anyway, there were a lot of places I'd like to spend more time, but I'm on a quest to see all of southern Florida in just a few days! Besides, the weather wasn't particularly nice. It was POURING to the point of slowing traffic to a crawl for a while, especially just after Key Largo. They were talking on the radio about flood warnings, and it's apparent that they've already had more rain recently than normal. There's a lot of water laying around.
Noteworthy during the drive were many beautiful flowering trees, the greenery, and the mangrove swamps. Also, I'm not sure what I was expecting, but the transition between the mainland and the Overseas Highway was a bit of a surprise to me. There were miles of unoccupied, low-lying land in between.
I guess I'm just not in the picture-taking space right now. I don't seem to find many photo opportunities. Anyway, the drive over all those bridges was still enjoyable.
I eventually made it to Key West, renowned for its sunsets. Despite all the rain, the sun did peek out for a nice sunset. Unfortunately, I'd been dawdling, and hadn't found the perfect spot in time. Also, unlike our Calgary sunsets at this time of year, it didn't last long. I'm clearly further south: the sun goes down very quickly, and darkness descends almost immediately.
As is my habit, I drove around until all hours of the night. Key West reminded me a lot of some of the other places we'd seen last time we were in the south. There were plenty of old, Victorian-style homes. Duval Street was interesting, with lots of tourist activity and the requisite fancy shops, candy stores, small galleries, and bars. I don't know how common it is here, but, with the exception of Calgary's Red Mile during the last playoff run, it's certainly something we don't see in Canada: three girls with beautifully painted breasts (i.e. no tops) wandering the street. Between that, the "clothing optional" bar, and the transvestite entertainment bar, it ain't downtown Calgary!
For those of you that didn't know, I'm a confirmed night-owl. I drive around until all hours, get back to my hotel way too late, watch the comedy channel for an hour or two, and finally drift off to sleep wishing I could stay up even later but knowing that morning is coming. Then, in the morning I struggle to get out of the hotel before checkout. This trip I've added another activity in the morning: this blogging thing. By far the hardest thing about that is my impatience. I want to get moving! Still, I guess I owe it to posterity and the ones I love to let them know what's happening in my life.
More tomorrow (if I can curb my impatience)!
Anyway, there were a lot of places I'd like to spend more time, but I'm on a quest to see all of southern Florida in just a few days! Besides, the weather wasn't particularly nice. It was POURING to the point of slowing traffic to a crawl for a while, especially just after Key Largo. They were talking on the radio about flood warnings, and it's apparent that they've already had more rain recently than normal. There's a lot of water laying around.
Noteworthy during the drive were many beautiful flowering trees, the greenery, and the mangrove swamps. Also, I'm not sure what I was expecting, but the transition between the mainland and the Overseas Highway was a bit of a surprise to me. There were miles of unoccupied, low-lying land in between.
I guess I'm just not in the picture-taking space right now. I don't seem to find many photo opportunities. Anyway, the drive over all those bridges was still enjoyable.
I eventually made it to Key West, renowned for its sunsets. Despite all the rain, the sun did peek out for a nice sunset. Unfortunately, I'd been dawdling, and hadn't found the perfect spot in time. Also, unlike our Calgary sunsets at this time of year, it didn't last long. I'm clearly further south: the sun goes down very quickly, and darkness descends almost immediately.
As is my habit, I drove around until all hours of the night. Key West reminded me a lot of some of the other places we'd seen last time we were in the south. There were plenty of old, Victorian-style homes. Duval Street was interesting, with lots of tourist activity and the requisite fancy shops, candy stores, small galleries, and bars. I don't know how common it is here, but, with the exception of Calgary's Red Mile during the last playoff run, it's certainly something we don't see in Canada: three girls with beautifully painted breasts (i.e. no tops) wandering the street. Between that, the "clothing optional" bar, and the transvestite entertainment bar, it ain't downtown Calgary!
For those of you that didn't know, I'm a confirmed night-owl. I drive around until all hours, get back to my hotel way too late, watch the comedy channel for an hour or two, and finally drift off to sleep wishing I could stay up even later but knowing that morning is coming. Then, in the morning I struggle to get out of the hotel before checkout. This trip I've added another activity in the morning: this blogging thing. By far the hardest thing about that is my impatience. I want to get moving! Still, I guess I owe it to posterity and the ones I love to let them know what's happening in my life.
More tomorrow (if I can curb my impatience)!
Thursday, June 02, 2005
6/1/2005
After getting up FAR too early, I caught my flight just fine. Fortunately for me, it was cloudy most of the way down, so I didn't have to stay glued to the window - I was able to sleep a little.
The first step out of the airport in Orlando was like we've experienced a few places: a little like stepping into a sauna. Ok, that's a poor description, since it wasn't too hot or anything. It's just that, after coming from the very dry air of Calgary, stepping into the humid, fragrant air closer to the tropics is still a treat!
My time in Florida began a little poorly. I had rented a car from Alamo, and they appear to be taking over the car rental business. With all the car rental desks in the airport, the only one with a lineup was Alamo, and their lineup was RIDICULOUS! (Minor rant: why, even after providing all of your information in the reservation request, do places like car rentals and hotels still have to type into their keyboards for half an hour before giving you what your reserved?!?)
I eventually got through the lineup and went to get my car. I was happy because the cars were at the airport, and I didn't have to take a shuttle. However, that meant a long walk. Alamo just sends you into their parking lot to pick out a car. Well, when I got there, there were no cars left in the class I'd reserved. I made the trek back to the desk, and they told me to try the National cars (I guess they're connected). I made the trek again, and there was exactly one car left - a really boring looking white Cavalier. I took the car and made my way out of the parking lot. Once outside the parking lot, I plugged my laptop into the cigarette lighter so that I could use my GPS to navigate. Well, the cigarette lighter didn't work, and I didn't really want to spend all my time here looking at maps, so I turned around and went back. Now there were NO cars left, and two of us were looking for compact cars. The attendant had us wait while he tracked down cars. Eventually he came back with two set of keys. I got a beige Impala, and the other guy got a PT Cruiser. I tried to trade him, but he wouldn't go for it. :-( Oh, well, the Impala's not bad.
My first day of driving around Florida was actually a little less exciting than I'd anticipated. Being a prairie boy, I instinctively headed for the nearest coast, which from Orlando is Cape Canaveral. I decided not to go to the Kennedy Space Center, since I wanted to spend more time there than I had left that day, and I wanted to get to Miami so that I could start for Key West Thursday. I did, however, see it in the distance from one of the bridges I crossed. About the same time, I also saw a flock of flamingos flying over, and I knew I wasn't in Canada anymore! :-)
East of Orlando, on the coast, there are a number of long, skinny islands running parallel to the coast. I decided to drive down these on highway A1A. There were two things that were particularly noteworthy: the damage that remained from the last hurricane, and the storm shutters on all the apartment buildings. The hurricane damage wasn't necessarily huge, but it seemed to be everywhere. It was the kind of thing I couldn't really capture with a picture, but I did get a picture of apartment buildings with storm shutters (coming later).
The length of the islands alternated between opulent areas, with fancy homes on one side of the road and golf courses on the other, mixed with more run-down areas. It didn't really grab me all that much, and I didn't get much for pictures. It was nice enough, but not spectacular like, for example, the 17 Mile Drive in California.
I drove down A1A until after dark, and then headed back to the freeway to get to Miami. When I don't have a navigator beside me (thanks Sue! :-), a GPS certainly is a great help.
The rest of that day is relatively un-noteworthy, and I want to hit the road. I'm sitting in a hotel lobby typing this, and even though the weather outside looks miserable (raining and very windy), I still want to get out there.
Unfortunately, the ribs I injured last weekend are bothering me a little more. I still don't think it's anything serious (or that a doctor could fix - I understand they don't do much with cracked ribs), but if I were in Canada, I'd probably go get an X-ray just for confirmation. Oh, well, a little pain never hurt nobody! :-)
The first step out of the airport in Orlando was like we've experienced a few places: a little like stepping into a sauna. Ok, that's a poor description, since it wasn't too hot or anything. It's just that, after coming from the very dry air of Calgary, stepping into the humid, fragrant air closer to the tropics is still a treat!
My time in Florida began a little poorly. I had rented a car from Alamo, and they appear to be taking over the car rental business. With all the car rental desks in the airport, the only one with a lineup was Alamo, and their lineup was RIDICULOUS! (Minor rant: why, even after providing all of your information in the reservation request, do places like car rentals and hotels still have to type into their keyboards for half an hour before giving you what your reserved?!?)
I eventually got through the lineup and went to get my car. I was happy because the cars were at the airport, and I didn't have to take a shuttle. However, that meant a long walk. Alamo just sends you into their parking lot to pick out a car. Well, when I got there, there were no cars left in the class I'd reserved. I made the trek back to the desk, and they told me to try the National cars (I guess they're connected). I made the trek again, and there was exactly one car left - a really boring looking white Cavalier. I took the car and made my way out of the parking lot. Once outside the parking lot, I plugged my laptop into the cigarette lighter so that I could use my GPS to navigate. Well, the cigarette lighter didn't work, and I didn't really want to spend all my time here looking at maps, so I turned around and went back. Now there were NO cars left, and two of us were looking for compact cars. The attendant had us wait while he tracked down cars. Eventually he came back with two set of keys. I got a beige Impala, and the other guy got a PT Cruiser. I tried to trade him, but he wouldn't go for it. :-( Oh, well, the Impala's not bad.
My first day of driving around Florida was actually a little less exciting than I'd anticipated. Being a prairie boy, I instinctively headed for the nearest coast, which from Orlando is Cape Canaveral. I decided not to go to the Kennedy Space Center, since I wanted to spend more time there than I had left that day, and I wanted to get to Miami so that I could start for Key West Thursday. I did, however, see it in the distance from one of the bridges I crossed. About the same time, I also saw a flock of flamingos flying over, and I knew I wasn't in Canada anymore! :-)
East of Orlando, on the coast, there are a number of long, skinny islands running parallel to the coast. I decided to drive down these on highway A1A. There were two things that were particularly noteworthy: the damage that remained from the last hurricane, and the storm shutters on all the apartment buildings. The hurricane damage wasn't necessarily huge, but it seemed to be everywhere. It was the kind of thing I couldn't really capture with a picture, but I did get a picture of apartment buildings with storm shutters (coming later).
The length of the islands alternated between opulent areas, with fancy homes on one side of the road and golf courses on the other, mixed with more run-down areas. It didn't really grab me all that much, and I didn't get much for pictures. It was nice enough, but not spectacular like, for example, the 17 Mile Drive in California.
I drove down A1A until after dark, and then headed back to the freeway to get to Miami. When I don't have a navigator beside me (thanks Sue! :-), a GPS certainly is a great help.
The rest of that day is relatively un-noteworthy, and I want to hit the road. I'm sitting in a hotel lobby typing this, and even though the weather outside looks miserable (raining and very windy), I still want to get out there.
Unfortunately, the ribs I injured last weekend are bothering me a little more. I still don't think it's anything serious (or that a doctor could fix - I understand they don't do much with cracked ribs), but if I were in Canada, I'd probably go get an X-ray just for confirmation. Oh, well, a little pain never hurt nobody! :-)
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