Goin' to Miami

Miami has is full of variety, culture and experience. It is one of the biggest travel spots in the US and is a hot spot among many celebrities and stars. With temperatures that average 70 degrees all year long, why wouldn’t you want to travel here? The off-season the weather is very hot and humid, mostly 90’s and it rains pretty often. June 1st starts the rainy and hurricane season, so be prepared for some heavy rain but somewhat sporadic. And be prepared for those storms. In the on-season the weather is in the 70’s and great for the winter months to most. The nickname for Florida is the sunshine state and that it is for most of the year.

As far as what to do, Miami is full of fun and entertainment. Something for everyone, you have beaches, clubs, hotels, food, and several family activities. Since we were in Miami for 5 weeks we wanted to get the most out of our time and experience. We started with the zoo and then worked our way around. It was hard to choose what to do, but we managed to make a few decisions and enjoy what Miami had to offer.

Miami is a great place to take a family vacation, with things like the zoo, museums, Bayside shopping center, a sea aquarium, and beaches. You can find a safe and fun, family friendly place to entertain the kids.

You can also find entertainment if you are a single person and like to party and have a good time, South Beach is a party haven and known for its clubs and party places. You can also spend the day laying out at topless beaches and soak up the sun.

If you are a married couple there are also activities you can enjoy like a boat tour at night, many romantic restaurants, and also laying out at the beach.

What ever you prefer there is something you can find you’re self-indulging in. Miami is a haven for those seeking adventure and entertainment.

Quick Tips:

Purchase an entertainment book for Miami and look for coupons. Of course we stayed in Miami for 5 weeks and this was such a money saver for us. Before our trip we bought an entertainment guide that cost about and had tons of buy one-get-one free coupons for lots of activities and restaurants. We were able to use them at the zoo, Hard Rock Café, Pizza Hut, Miami Subs, Starbucks, and many other places around the area.

We also looked around for coupons before our trip. We found some eating coupons on a website called restaurant.com, you can find dollars off a dollar meal, 50% off or buy an entrée get one free. You can buy these at very reduced prices and they help out a lot. We also found coupons in the newspaper for the baseball game, and coupons in hotel lobbies for other activities.

The main grocery store, Publix, has lots of specials and free stuff if you look closely and read all the ads well. This was a huge help when we had to buy groceries. You can find all kinds of deals if you just look and plan ahead.

Best Way To Get Around:

Getting around Miami can be a little tricky, make sure to get a map and figure out how to read it. Many of the streets have two numbers; the numbers are a north number and a south number but many times on opposite sides of the city. For example South 34th street maybe in Little Havana and North 34th street maybe heading out of Miami. It can get very confusing and it is very easy to get turned around.

There are two roads that run parallel through Florida and in the Miami area. Highway 1 and 95. Highway 1 will take you all the way to the Florida Keys and and up to Jacksonville and runs close the ocean. This road is a little slower but definitely much more scenic, if you plan to stop a lot and look out at the Atlantic, I would recommend this route. Highway 95 is a major highway; it meets with 1 in South Miami and also heads all the way north on into Georgia. This too runs parallel to the ocean but allows for a fast moving ride, except during traffic times. Traveling down 95 can be hectic and can take a while to get down the road.

Know where you need to go and how you are going to there. There can be more than one way to get to many places, but some can take much longer. Due to not knowing that we took a 2-hour trip to the zoo which was only 25 miles away and a 35-minute drive.

Home of the Florida Marlins and the Miami Dolphins, Pro Player Stadium was a disappointing experience for a baseball game. My husband is a huge baseball fan, and enjoys traveling to different stadiums to check them out. Pro Player Stadium was built with football in mind. I believe few changes have been made to accommodate baseball, however, these minor changes do not make watching a baseball game as enjoyable as in a stadium that is designated only for baseball. For starters, the stadium is huge, and only about a third of it is used for the game. Since the stadium is so big, and the fan base is so small, it felt really weird...almost like I was at a high school game. Second, the seats did not face the home plate; they face what would be a football field sideline, so you kinda have to turn a little and that gets uncomfortable after a while. The stadium really did not have anything fun and unique that was more baseball centered, whereas several other ballparks we have visited have. The experience of the game was fun, since my husband loves baseball so much, but the stadium itself was not a great one.

However, due to some of these disadvantages we were able to watch batting practice before the game, and several of the players came and talked to our 7-month-old son, and gave him a batting practice ball. This was possible because very few people even go to the games, much less get there early enough to catch batting practice. It helped too that is was raining that day

The Miami Metro Zoo was incredible. It is the best zoo I have ever been to. The environment the animals live in and are kept in is very lifelike. I don't remember seeing many animals behind glass or in cages. Most of the animals were out in an area that had big trenches or something to keep them in. The way this zoo is set up is you basically walk a path from one end to the other, and you never have to tun around or see the same animal again. It is great that you can see every animal without having to go back or turn around. You do not have to choose a direction and then go back another direction.

When you get to the end, there is a tram that can either take you through the whole zoo or back to the front gate. I feel like we got to see a lot of the animals out and about and we even went late in the afternoon...it was extremely hot. This is a great place to take the kids, and the adults will enjoy it as well. I know that we enjoyed it very much

Parking is free at this zoo and the parking is actually pretty close. This is the first zoo I have ever been to where parking was free. The day we went the zoo was not crowded and it was very quiet, maybe it was because it was so hot.

The hours of operation are:
9:30am - 5:30pm

The prices are:
Adult (ages 13 & older): $11.50
Seniors: $10.50
Child (ages 3 - 12): $6.75
Children 2 and under: FREE

Indulge yourself at Bayside—the best food, fun, and shopping Miami has to offer. Whether you are interested in our vibrant marketplace, exotic restaurants, daily live entertainment, or national brand name stores. Bayside's wealth of activity offers something for everyone. Come experience Miami, visit Bayside!

Bayside is a shopping center in the Miami Port bay. There are several shops, dining, boat tours, and games. It reminded me of a carnival almost, only a little more upscale. Bayside had tons of retail shops, like Guess, Victoria's Secret, Bath & Body Works, Brookstone, Champs, Foot Locker, Gap, a Nike shop, and many others. It's pretty much like a mall, only all the store entrances are outside rather than in a building.

There are also several restaurants, including Hard Rock, Bubba Gump Shrimp Co., Captain Joe's, Chili's, Fat Tuesdays, and some Latin and Italian places; whatever other type of food you are looking for, they have it. Bayside also has places like Starbucks and Coco Gelato, and an ice-cream place.

Bayside also offers boat tours, carriage rides, and dancing in the afternoon. There is always something to do and the scenery is great

The mall hours are:
Monday - Friday: 10:00am - 10:00pm
Saturday: 10:00am - 11:00pm
Sunday: 11:00am - 9:00pm

The Port of Miami is home to the biggest cruise ship industry. Several cruise ships come in and out daily. I don't think I went one day without seeing at least one ship. In fact, during our trip in Miami, the cruise ship NCL Pride of America made its debut and hosted the show Live with Regis and Kelly right from the Port in Miami.

Cruse ships come in and out all day long and sit right off the toll bridge from Miami's main land and South Beach. As you drive in every day you will see several cruise ships there in the post. Not only will you see the cruise ships you will also see lots of cargo and other goods that are shipped from there as well. You can see these cruise ships when they leave the port out on the beach.

If you have never seen a cruise ship they are huge and truly a sight to see. The whole port in Miami is a sight to see and something everyone should experience. There are several places around the port that you can pull off the road and look at the ships and sit and enjoy the quietness. I recommend taking a visit.

While on our trip, we had to go to a baseball game. One thing my husband has to do on trips is go to a baseball game in whatever city we are visiting. In this case, we went to the Marlins game. They played the Atlanta Braves. The game itself was pretty fun. Fans are not big on baseball here in Florida, but the staff was friendly. The tickets were pretty cheap. We found a coupon in the paper for a buy-one-get-one free, which was nice since it rained and the game was delayed a little.

The Marlins are an expansion team and the first major league team to come to Florida. The Marlins have never had a true stadium and because of a flood in the market with several minor league teams and spring training facilities in Florida, they were just never able to pick up a fan base despite winning two world series in 10 year. This can explain why the game was a little bit of a different experience and fun in that you did not have to fight big crowds.

I like the big crowds for the most part, it makes me feel like I am at a big game, but it was a neat experience. Pick up a BOGO and go for the experience.

Little Havana is a small suburb of Miami that got its name from its residents. Its population is almost 100% Cuban. Calle Ocho is the main road that runs through Little Havana and when you hit it, you know it. Every thing immediately turns to Spanish and you see many Cuban or Latin American people everywhere.

My husband’s school, where he took his immersion program, was in the heart of this little town. He drove through it every day and found the experience very interesting and different than anything he has ever experienced before. A place so rich in culture it was as if he drove right in Cuba itself.

Little Havana is a pretty well known place, it has made TV appearances on C.S.I. Miami, The Amazing Race, and many other show. It is a landmark for the community and city of Miami. Since the law in Florida says that if you come from Cuba and you touch American soil you can stay many, many make it come true and make there home here in Little Havana or surrounding areas. This is one of the reasons Miami has such a diverse culture and a great place to immerse your self in Spanish