The last you heard from us was when we were heading
towards the coast of Florida
… we have been busy, busy, busy ever since.
The two weeks before the Miami Boat Show were spent cleaning,
polishing, pillow puffing and washing, to make our home a show boat. In
that time we have also had six test sails.
What strikes you as you return to the States is that
it is indeed the land of plenty: in its space, resources, energy and
wealth. Take Fort Lauderdale
for example. (We were there for a few days when busy cleaning before the Show.)
It must have been an area of swampy mangroves – almost impossible to make
a living from the land. In the middle of the last century there was the
vision to change it on a grand scale, excavating wide canals over a huge area
and using the spoil to build up the land in between. It is dubbed the
‘Boating Capital of the World’ and I can quite see why: think of
our English country lanes and then motorways; think of Venice
and then Fort Lauderdale.
The scale is huge, the vibrancy tangible and the wealth overwhelming. There are
many miles of wide canals flanked by a catholic collection of housing styles,
yet all the homes exude wealth. Lush manicured gardens, sprouting with hammocks
and easy chairs, provide an ideal way to take advantage of the 300 days of Florida sunshine and
temperatures rarely below 20 degrees C. A boat dock flanks each property,
vessels being anything from a fun trimaran to a glitzy 120 ft state-of-the-art
motor yacht.
Take a stroll to the beach and the whole place has a
different pace. Loud music competes for attention, whilst revellers spill from
the bars and pavement restaurants. The expansive, fine sandy beach is a
magnet for those seeking sun, sea and to be seen. Leggy teenagers (with far
more confidence than I ever had); a middle-aged man walking two fluffy balls of
dog with ribbons in their hair; a yummy-mummy roller-blading her
daughter’s push-chair at high speed along the boulevard; and a Latino
family noisily sharing a joke are just some of the cameos to be seen along this
vibrant sea-front. There is little to indicate any kind of recession here.
A couple who visited us at the Show graciously offered
to give us a tour of their beloved Miami.
We saw the full scope of Biscayne Bay as a wonderful sailing area, some of the high-rise
downtown area with its smart shopping centre, but also the older parts of Miami with avenues of
Banyan trees and character homes. Florida
did not become part of US
territory until 1821, being previously owned by Spain. With thousands of
Cubans fleeing to the States when Castro took power and many South Americans
emigrating here since, Miami
is very vibrant city with Spanish spoken as a first language in many of the
shops and restaurants we visited.
Two highlights were stopping for a Cuban coffee (it
gives you a real zing) and visiting The
Barnacle a house built in 1891 by yacht designer Commodore Ralph
Munroe. The plot preserves a tiny bit of the ‘Miami Hammock’
that was once a 50 miles stretch land which supported tropical and temperate
species mingled together, and it was great to enjoy the lush vegetation and
shade it afforded as we wandered to the garden and waterfront.
I think we can deem the Miami Boat Show to be a
success. A lot of people visited us as a result of winning awards from
two leading yachting magazines, some were just struck by the lines of Discovery Magic and wanted to learn more,
and some were very seriously interested in having one built for them. We
are delighted that we have enlarged our Discovery
family as a result, with Imagine soon
to be constructed and more being planned.
We are taking a short trip back to the UK,
after which we will head south to new lands.
