Miami Is A 10 Foot Town

SHIP'S LOG:

Well I certainly got my waling in today, and I've got the blisters to prove it! I joined the Miami Yacht Club ($16.55) so that I could land my dinghy and know that it would be there when I got back. And I began mile two mile walk( seemed longer) from 1001 MacArthur Causeway to 260 SW 6th Street all to get the proper connectors for the fuel line for my outboard engine. The weather was hot(80's) but there were lots of clouds(white fluffy ones) and a good breeze was blowing so it wasn't a trek across a desert. It was during this walk that I discovered that Miami is a 10 foot town. Everything looks great so long as you are at least 10 feet away, but closer than that you see a lot of stuff that needs fixing and cleaning and such. Empty lots with abandoned cars and garbage, lots of cracks in the sidewalks and potholes in the streets. It was rather surprising to see it this way but doing 2 miles down Biscayne Blvd and 2nd Ave, you get a much clearer picture of the way things really are. Horatio Cane and the CSI squad are obviously taking too much for the city treasury.

Amazingly though, they have a rail system called "Metro Rail" that I discovered on my return trip. It covered much the same route as I walked. I hopped aboard and saved myself a 20 block walk. The best thing about it is that it is absolutely free! It is made up of automated rail cars with no seats and incredible air conditioning. It was fast and clean and free. I suppose you could get pretty much anywhere in the downtown area and along the waterway by using it and it's free.

The Miami Yacht Club, "The Home Of Sailing Champions," is a nice spot but not particularly friendly. I can't point to anything specific but it is just the attitude around the place. It was disappointing really. They will take your money but they do not make you feel at home for some reason. Several of the people I've met on the way down are going to gather there later in the week for drinks and dinner and the swapping of tales. It will be a real "gam" and I am looking forward to it.

The Miami Boat show left town and I am not sure how it went. There didn't seem to be a noticeable increase in boats during the show so I don't know how big a crowd they attracted. I how it went well for the sake of the marine industry.

When I got back from my little walk, I finally feel overboard. I was in the dinghy, hoisting some stuff I bought aboard when I ran afoul of Newton's First Law -for every action and there is an opposite and equal reaction. Heaving stuff onto the boat from the dinghy caused me to push the dinghy away from the boat and in I went. Nothing lost, except for my dignity. And as far as I can tell, no loss of Harbor Face as no one was around to see it. SO keep it quiet. SHHHHH!