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Flying back into Miami was a very nice thing indeed, the welcoming warmth was present... even though it was dark when we arrived. We seriously needed to have a chill session after the intensity of our New York visit, so the next couple of days we did just that! We caught up on some sleep, chilled on South Beach and had a great dinner with Brandon and some of his friends at Rosie's Restaurant, which we believe was owned by the one and only Roseanne Bar.
But the big show was looming: the night that some levels of preparation and mind-racking decisions had gone into, and the main reason we were staying in Miami as long as we did.
HALLOWEEN!
So on the evening of the 31st of October Clare, Brandon and I checked into our cheap and tacky hotel, which was located close to the action. Stepping into the foyer was like stepping back in time into some hotel in Cuba. We were allocated a room with only one double bed (which we of course got sorted straight away) and Clare and I got stuck in the lift at one point, but apart for that the hotel did its intended job superbly. Its main job was to provide a place where we could prepare ourselves for Halloween, which for me meant putting on a striped shirt and a beanie and calling myself "Where's Wally" (or "Where's Waldo" if you're American). This took me a matter of minutes, so I sat on the bed drinking cider while I watched Brandon and Clare take a couple of hours doing theirs. Brandon had to paint his entire head, neck, arms and hands jet black to achieve his "tormented devil guy thing" and Clare spent quite a lot of time perfecting her face make-up and blood-soaked neck to become "trampy Rocky Horror Picture Show Vampire chick". But it was well worth it, they both looked absolutely spectacular! Horrifyingly gruesome!!
The main mall in Miami Beach was absolutely overrun with all sorts of ghosts and ghouls! There were thousands of people dressed up in every type of costume you could imagine. 10 points to the Americans for enthusiasm. Some people had really gone all out, no expense spared! But not me: my costume was the cheapest I could find. Still, I was getting quite a lot of attention with someone pointing at me and yelling out "Hey, I found Waldo" every couple of minutes. However my slight popularity paled in comparison to Brandon's. He has pulled aside for literally hundreds of photos! Clare and I would be walking through the masses then suddenly look back to see Brandon posing with yet another group of strangers for a photo. It was hilarious, he should have charged $1 a photo!!
A top night and so cool to see such a large number of people getting into the swing of it.
The next morning, Clare and I found ourselves hungover and lost in the sunny streets of the Miami Beach area looking for the meeting point for an Art Deco walking tour Clare had booked us into. Somehow we were in the wrong part of Ocean Dr, but found a taxi, bought 2 well-overpriced bits of toast from the closest hotel restaurant, shovelled them in our gobs then began the walking tour with a large bunch of not-hungover, elderly tourist with cameras swinging around their necks. It was a fantastic tour though, full of interesting stories and facts and info on what exactly makes an Art Deco building "Art Deco". We walked around observing the colourful and fascinating architecture built all throughout this area, which has the largest concentration of this style in the world.
The night before we left as a thank-you to Brandon and his Dad for all their help and hospitality, Clare and I took them (as well as Brandon's BFF Anna) out to a nice dinner at the Yard House with loads of beers on tap and big servings of food. As we had been here once before, we learnt our lesson and didn't order quite so much food, so this time when we left it didn't feel like our bellies were about to burst open like in that movie 'Alien'.
Off to the airport the next day and after an epic check-in line and a delayed take-off, we were again in the air, leaving behind a fully English speaking country for the last time. The mysteries of the Inca await… along with, no doubt, a much less comfortable 4½ months of travel. But we signed up for it, so here we go!!
Daz
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Ruth Hi you two - just cheered myself up immensely by reading all your blogs in one go - what a trip you are having!!! Logan loved your photos. Can't wait for your next update. Love to you both - keep safe. Xx
Clare Thank you for that, I'm really glad you like it. Its definitely been an adventure so far, so glad we did this xx