Great Loop: Miami

Boating through Miami

February 23, 2022

Miami is an amazing city.  It is a city of contrasts.  What can be seen from the water is the thin veneer of glitz, crazy wealth, and opulence.  Excessive largeness and opulence is the order of the day and what is really amazing is how little of it is actually used.  The boats are in port and crews wash them and keep them ready.  The villas have gardeners tending their grounds, but seldom do you see anyone that looks like a resident.  

Beth at Bay Front Park

It is a bustling city.  The waterways are full of boats, all going different directions at high speed.  You really have to maintain an awareness in all directions.  Every one is on their own personal mission.  To live in Florida means you embrace the water and recreating in it or near it.  Miami has some wonderful parks along the waterways. Bay Front Park is a good example.  

We actually visited Miami twice on our trip.  We passed though on our boat, too expensive to dock.  So we returned a couple of days later on the train to walk the area around Bay Front Park.  Miami clearly has a lot of restaurants worth sampling.  So that was our goal.  We found a delightful Peruvian restaurant, Pollos y Jarres, and had a terrific meal.

A Small Cup of Chicken Rice Soup to Start

The Inside of Pollos y Jarres

Lunch

Our return to Miami was via train from West Palm Beach.  There is regular train service between Miami, Fort Lauderdale and West Palm Beach.  It is carefully designed to allow those with money and wealth to ride separately from the proletariat.  Yes, there is a special train for the well healed Floridians complete with many amenities such as lounges with cocktail service.  For just $54 round trip, you can experience  complete luxury from the moment you enter the station till you reach your destination.

TriRail Train Station in West Palm Beach

West Palm Beach Brightline Train Station

TriRail - The Bargain Ride to Miami

The alternative service is TriRail.  The same trip is $5, round trip, and requires a transfer to reach downtown.  Once in downtown, there is a people mover that increases your mobility.  The TriRail Station is West Palm Beach is awash in homeless people and those seeking a bargain.  We were bargain hunters!  Once aboard the train, it was clean and on time.  We had a pleasant trip to Miami, with multiple stops as it served each community along the way.

Miami People Mover - Free!

The bottom line, is - visit Miami,  it is an experience.  Form your own impression. This is a big city and you can filter what you see as you like.  It is hard to deny that it is a city with very large contrasts.  It is a city that meets a full range of needs.  It is multi-layered, so there is something for everyone.  For us, it was finding a good meal and sampling Miami's many layers.

Once we passed through Miami by boat, we continued north and anchored for the night in Hollywood.  We had a quiet night on the boat. It was good to recharge as we still had the challenge of passing through the 24 hour party that is Fort Lauderdale.  That is what we came here to see.  Our voyage to see America was helping us to see more clearly the diverse realities of our country.  It is always better to see it yourself so you can process all, unfiltered.  

Trip Log