October 6: The last day at sea was primarily getting re-packed and sitting on the balcony one last day. Lin attended a book discussion group. With this many passengers on board I envisioned an auditorium full of participants but there were only about nine of us. Part of the problem may have been miscommunication about the book. On the internet it stated the book to be discussed would be "Heroes Are My Weakness" but instead the book "Whistling Past the Graveyard" was substituted and there were not many copies on board in the ship's lending library.
October 7: Disembarking was easy at Port Everglades/Fort Lauderdale. We caught a van which took us to the auto rental agency. From there we drove around visiting Randy's old haunts and various places while he lived in the Miami area for six years during the 1970s while working for IBM and Knight Ridder located in the Miami Herald Building.
We drove by the Herald and found it in the process of being demolished. What a shock. It's located in prime real estate on Biscayne Bay and was probably sold for a billion or so. More people and more traffic made Randy feel he was in a strange land.
At an authentic Cuban restaurant, Casa Larios in South Miami I should have had a Cuban sandwich because the entree was too much.
On the internet Randy found a boutique hotel, for the first night, located on South Beach off Collins Street. Riveria Suites was small and charming. Until I tried to take a nap. Even in daytime, with windows closed and air-conditioner on I could tell it was a "rockin' hot night spot (loud) for several generations younger then us. We asked for a quieter room that did not overlook the bar, band and dance floor. That room was even smaller then the other, but somewhat quieter.
We explored on foot and walked to South Beach then shed our shoes walking on the sandy beach. Continuing on we took a quick stroll through the lush botanical gardens then for a beer/wine in the shopping district and people-watched and noticed most of pedestrians were carrying parcels from high-end stores.
October 7: Disembarking was easy at Port Everglades/Fort Lauderdale. We caught a van which took us to the auto rental agency. From there we drove around visiting Randy's old haunts and various places while he lived in the Miami area for six years during the 1970s while working for IBM and Knight Ridder located in the Miami Herald Building.
We drove by the Herald and found it in the process of being demolished. What a shock. It's located in prime real estate on Biscayne Bay and was probably sold for a billion or so. More people and more traffic made Randy feel he was in a strange land.
At an authentic Cuban restaurant, Casa Larios in South Miami I should have had a Cuban sandwich because the entree was too much.
On the internet Randy found a boutique hotel, for the first night, located on South Beach off Collins Street. Riveria Suites was small and charming. Until I tried to take a nap. Even in daytime, with windows closed and air-conditioner on I could tell it was a "rockin' hot night spot (loud) for several generations younger then us. We asked for a quieter room that did not overlook the bar, band and dance floor. That room was even smaller then the other, but somewhat quieter.
We explored on foot and walked to South Beach then shed our shoes walking on the sandy beach. Continuing on we took a quick stroll through the lush botanical gardens then for a beer/wine in the shopping district and people-watched and noticed most of pedestrians were carrying parcels from high-end stores.
Later we partook in our hotel's free Happy Hour from 7-8 p.m. Randy stood in line for a Rum Punch since wine and beer were not offered. The drink reminded us of our honeymoon in Barbados. We were scotch drinkers at the time but it was so expensive. After turning our noses up at the Rum Punch we quickly came to enjoy the tropical drink.