I was inspired to write about my first experience in South Beach, Miami with my dear friend Irene. It was the first spring after I graduated from college so I must have been about 22. I can't really remember how it all went down, I think she might have been sharing stories and some how I wound up invited or inviting myself. Irene did all of the booking, I handed over my hard earned money and high expectations. We were booked on a Spring Break package even though we were a tad past our prime. By the time that we booked all of the flight packages were taken and so we were scheduled to leave by chartered bus. The details of the 26 hour bus ride were not exactly music to my ears but I was just glad to be nominated!
I was so excited! I shopped for days for this trip. I packed, unpacked and repacked. I'd been to florida once before this trip but Sarasota doesn't really count does it?
The trip was a total of eight days including the two it would take to come and go. The ride down was actually kind of fun, it gave everyone time to bond. When we got to South Beach we'd already made friends.
That year Irene and I stayed at the Rose Hotel which is now called the Ocean Five Hotel. I was old in the way that most Art Deco hotels in that area that aren't luxury are. The water pressure was bad, it smelled sort of wet because of the ocean air but to me it was the best thing ever. I loved it from the top of it's non elevatored floor to the bottom of it's badly needing to be changed hallway rug. I was on VACATION! The hotel was on Ocean Drive across the street from the beach, it really doesn't get better than that.
For a whole week my life was beach, relaxing and going out. We made friends with a guy group on the bus who were from the Bronx. We actually used their shower a couple of times due to our lack of water pressure. They were cool guys, Danny was my favorite. We nicknamed him Drama King because he was always making things bigger than they really were.
One night we went for pre-going out drinks at The Chesterfield Hotel then wound up making a night of it on the hotel porch. At some point one of the guys decided that we were spending to much on happy hour and miraculously a bottle of Hennessy, Pepsi ® and ice appeared. Hours later all bottles and cups were empty and we were looking for the next adventure. I think we all went dancing for a bit that night...yes, it's all coming back to me know. Oh, yeah (a-hem) it's ALL coming back to me now...
Fast forward.
Over all the week was filled with laughing, eating, drinking, sun worship all the things that any good vacation are made of. I think that is even the year I had a celebrity spotting. I also randomly ran into two guys from High School-it's a small, small world.
Since that trip I've been back to South Beach just about every year, sometimes twice! It's always a good time. I've stayed at lots of hotels and travelled with different people down there and always had a good time but some how you never for get the first time.
