From Swampy to Swanky-Palm Beach and Miami Beach, Florida
Florida has areas of preserved nature, plenty of luxury, and everything in between. We have seen new or unusual things at nearly every turn! On the way to West Palm Beach, Florida, Craig spotted Air Force One sitting in a parking lot right by the highway. I questioned whether or not it was really Air Force Once, but then looked at the President's schedule, and sure enough, he had landed a couple of hours ago before heading to Mara-a-Lago, and later would attend the Daytona 500. That was pretty neat since it is not every day you drive down the road and see the plane of the President of the United States.
While visiting Palm Beach, we stayed at the Lion Country Safari campground on the property of the park. The parking situation was the toughest we had encountered to date. Once again, Craig would need to back the RV into our site. Even the park attendant became overwhelmed due to the tight quarters and said Craig had “the patience of an oyster" while navigating him onto the parking pad. It was a tough one for sure, but we got settled in and started to explore our new neighborhood.
The first evening we walked around historic Clematis Street in downtown West Palm Beach, but we found the real gems the next day across the bridge on Palm Beach. The beaches were lovely, and the section of the beach we happened upon was also dog-friendly. Happy dogs dancing around unleashed all over the beach across the street from multi-million dollar homes. It was a preview scene from heaven, I am sure! We drove down Billionaire Row and asked what everyone else who drives down these streets asks, "What do these people do for a living??" We also tried to catch a better glimpse of Donald Trump's Mar-a-lago Resort, but there were police cars at every gate. With an initial membership fee of $200K, and an additional $20K in monthly dues, I suppose it's members and their guests deserve some privacy.
The next day we visited the Lion Country Safari animal park. Naturally, my favorite part was the petting zoo. One notable was the sloth exhibit. The worker was trying to help us spot the sloth in the trees when she found him sitting on the ground outside his little house. She said he only plops down in the dirt when he's especially annoyed and wants to go inside. Apparently, he had put in his full eight hours and was ready to go home. She got a stick, which he latched on to in true slow-motion sloth style, and then placed him in his house. It was amusing to think he "had an attitude," as she said. We couldn't tell, but I guess we can say we've seen a ticked off sloth now. Craig made a little video of our trip to the zoo. Spoiler alert: Nothing happens in the video; it's just a bunch of cute animals. 😊
A few days later, we headed to Miami Everglades RV Park. We enjoyed touring Miami Beach and South Beach. The Miami campsite was about an hour away from Miami Beach, and we got a lot of culture between the two places. We discovered some of the best Mexican food at a very unassuming Mexican grill in Homestead, and the next day rode bikes on the beautiful boardwalks of South Beach and took in all the sights. As we sat at Monty's Sunset for lunch, we looked over the water and discovered Fisher Island, where 33109 represents the wealthiest zip code in America.
What We Learned: Carl Fisher was an automotive entrepreneur and the co-founder and first president of Indianapolis Motor Speedway. He's also responsible for developing Florida swampland into the posh Miami Beach. • Fisher built his 20,000 square foot mansion on Star Island. • Carl Fisher owned Fisher Island. • A 1926 hurricane and the stock market crash three years later collapsed Miami Beach's real estate market and Fisher's fortune. • Completely broke, Fisher built The Caribbean Club in Key Largo. It was built to serve as a “poor man's fishing retreat.” Adopting a lifestyle of womanizing and heavy drinking, Fisher died the next year of cirrhosis of the liver. The bar is still open today. • Fisher Island can only be reached by boat and is home to some of the wealthiest people in the world. The average income for a Fisher Island resident is 2.2 million per year. • A prerequisite to purchasing a home on Fisher Island is to join the Fisher Island Club for $250K and pay $20K in annual dues.
Our next stop is Naples, another beautiful place where apparently money loves to live and play. See you there! ❤
Pictures from February 15-February 21, 2020
