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Friday, June 30, 2006
June 30: Everyone in the Pool
When you mention the word “pool” in Florida, most people think of diving boards and chlorine. But this weekend in Hollywood, 64 women are jumping into a different kind of pool. Billiards, I mean. They tell me that nearly 41 million Americans play this game. The smart ones will go to the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino for the next few days.
The best female billiard players in the world are here right now, all the skillful players with lovely faces you see on ESPN. Perhaps best known among them, both for her skill and beauty, is Jeanette Lee, who I chatted with today for an hour. Got a quick pool lesson from her too, and she had some very interesting comments about staying at the Hard Rock. I’ll pass those along next week, including the pool tip! But other huge names, and pretty ladies, are part of the tournament. They include Allison Fisher, Vivian Villarreal and Jennifer Barretta.
This is the second consecutive time the tourney has come to Broward County in the summer. The participants seemed happy to be here. Today I spent a few hours watching the action, the first time I’ve seen professional billiards in person. It’s much better live than on TV, honestly. Sponsored by the Women’s Professional Billiard Association, the event features eight tables all going at once. You sit very close up and personal, which is fun because you see what they’re doing and their expressions while doing it. If the play on one table seems to get slow, you just shift your eyes to another table nearby. I really had fun – and I plan to return a few times over the weekend.
The 2006 Cuetec Cues Florida Classic runs from today through Sunday, July 2, with both afternoon and evening sessions in the Hard Rock hotel ballroom. ESPN will tape the semi-finals and finals matches. Not a bad way to spend the 4th of July weekend.
June 30: Feelin' Hot, Hot, Hot? Here's a Cool Down...
Summertime, and the livin’s easy… That’s how it goes, right? Most of us Floridians would scoff. “With this heat? Livin ain’t easy!” True enough. So what if we here in Fort Lauderdale aren’t honored with the distinction of “America’s Sweatiest City?” (I just heard about this poll on the radio the other day and was amazed that it actually existed. Phoenix beat us out, unfortunately). It’s still hot, and there’s no getting around it.
Or is there?
In my opinion, the heat only gives us more reason to explore what is most plentiful to us in this great peninsula of a state – the water! Activities abound when it comes to not only the ocean, but the Intracoastal, pools, water parks, even the Everglades.
So that’s why I’m taking it upon myself to introduce you to some fun ways to save yourself from the scorching sun in these summer months, and possibly discover something new along the way.
Stay tuned for every type of water-based adventure you can think of, because in the next few days you’re getting an earful (eyeful?) of what Fort Lauderdale has to offer via its most abundant resource.
Maybe even get a head start while you’re at it and teach me a thing or two…the Fourth of July weekend is right around the corner!
Tuesday, June 27, 2006
June 27: Walkin' the Walk
The common wisdom is that South Florida lives and dies by the automobile. Like me, most residents hop in their car to drive two minutes to the local store or restaurant or wherever. And I suspect many tourists do the same. Who can enjoy this area without wheels, right? So I was surprised this past week when my car was in the shop – my old Mustang needed a part that Ford doesn’t make anymore. Anyway, I was forced into a lot of walking, which was something I’d done by choice on my recent “local vacation.” Two different areas of town, but both times I really enjoyed absorbing the sights and sounds of Fort Lauderdale on foot. You notice things you wouldn’t notice otherwise, experience people along the way that you would barely notice if darting by them in a car.
That got me thinking. I could have a wonderful time visiting Fort Lauderdale, or Hollywood, or Lauderdale-by-the-Sea, for example, without a car rental. Same thing if I was settling into a resort like the Hard Rock. If I was looking to save a little money, I’d just hop a taxi to the hotel and then hoof it. That’s not only do-able – it can be fun, I now see. This was the surprising part for me. When you have a car, you rely on a car. When you don’t have a car, you rely on footpower – and gain a slower, richer perspective. I have nothing against cars, mind you. I’ve got mine back and I’m glad. And obviously a rental car gives any visitor a lot more flexibility to see the whole region. It’s just that some folks might think that every Broward County visitor absolutely needs a car to have a good time. I’m suggesting that walkers can savor things here in their own way. And maybe I’m suggesting that some of us locals, like me, leave the car keys at home once in a while too. If South Florida is paradise, why race through it all the time at top speed? Palm trees are prettier when they’re not just a green blur.
Friday, June 23, 2006
June 23: There's No Place Like Home
For the past three weeks, I’ve been writing about my recent vacation trip – a trip that meant going from my Fort Lauderdale home to a Fort Lauderdale hotel, about 15 minutes north. I’ve done this sort of thing before. But somehow on this most recent trip, I looked at Fort Lauderdale a bit differently. I saw it through the eyes of a tourist for the first time in a long time. Really could feel the sheer pleasure of swaying palm trees as an outsider might feel them. Truly looked out at the ocean with that strange sense of marvel that is different in some way from the inspiration I draw from the sea during my regular meditation sessions. Watched the passing parade of couples and singles, vacationers and locals, along A1A as the charming curiosity it is rather than as the normal and familiar old scene. And all this gave me one strong feeling at the end of my vacation – the Fort Lauderdale area is one heck of a place to come for a getaway. Even if you’re only getting away a few miles.
I rediscovered the Bonnet House and the Water Bus and Bahia Cabana. I “discovered” places like Jimmy’s Cabaret, Franco & Vinny’s restaurant and The Deck, a fabulous spot for an oceanside breakfast – worth a blog all its own sometime later on. I walked through the hot afternoon, holding my girlfriend’s hand, and stopped in small shops for ice cream, then went back to the hotel for a dip in the hot tub. It was all fun and relaxing – and a great way to forget about work for a while. All of us can use that sort of escape these days, I’m sure.
It didn’t matter that we took our at-home vacation in the summertime warmth. The season was a plus, as far as we were concerned. Fewer crowds, better prices. And the sea breeze feels especially delicious on sultry summer nights in South Florida. There’s also that thing I’ve written about before, the “off-season” friendliness that accompanies the more languid weather here.
My tourist eyes are slowly becoming refocused to see things once more as a resident. I appreciate and love this part of the world. But it’s hard to look at Broward County with quite that same fresh, admiring view that visitors bring with them. That’s ok. It’s one of the reasons I write this blog – to force me to seek out things I might miss otherwise. And I know that, one way or another, I’ll do the local-out-of-towner thing at a Broward hotel again before long. Even when you live here, it’s always delightful to play the tourist in South Florida.
Tuesday, June 20, 2006
June 20: Franco, Vinny & Me
As you might imagine, I had some good meals while “away” from home on my vacation recently. Yes, I’m still writing about this trip because I keep thinking about it a lot. And there’s so much to tell. I always enjoy a good meal, especially when it’s Italian food. And my friend is very much a foodie. Loves cooking great food, and though you would never know it to look at her slim figure, she loves eating it too. So, yep, I’m going to tell you about an Italian restaurant I “discovered” on my trip. What makes this discovery so … well, sorta strange really, is that the restaurant has been right there all along. In fact, Franco & Vinny’s has been on Sunrise Boulevard, a block from the ocean in Fort Lauderdale, for 35 years.
But there’s a reason for that longevity. The food is really great! The exterior is so non-descript and hidden that I’ve driven by Franco & Vinny’s hundreds of times, literally, and hardly noticed. When I did catch a glimpse of an Italian joint there, I thought, “Eh, forget it! Looks like some place for tourists.” I dunno why I thought that exactly – just the location and modest appearance of the building or something. I was wrong. Actually, I now suspect more locals than tourists go to Franco & Vinny’s.
Ok, so what’s so special? Aficionados of Italian cuisine know it comes in many forms in South Florida – often good, rarely bad, but too often indifferent. A truly fine Italian place is a find. Franco & Vinny’s is such a place. They offer homemade pasta, for starters. That always impresses me if the pasta is firm and flavorful. It is at Franco & Vinny’s. On our first night there, I ordered classic spaghetti and meatballs. A large portion arrived – and I couldn’t keep myself from scarfing it all down. Loved it. Can’t wait to go back for more. She had the fish of the day, grouper as I recall, and it was excellent too.
A couple days later, we returned for takeout to bring to the room. We ordered a pizza, partly to give that Italian staple a try at Franco & Vinny’s – and yes, it was as good as the meal earlier in the week. The crust was cooked just right. The ingredients were fresh and generously distributed on the pie. Fine sauce, terrific cheese. As we ate, we both kept saying one thing over and over: “Mmmmm!”
We ate at some fancier-looking places on our vacation. And we sure ate at some much more expensive places. The meals at these upscale restaurants were very good. But Franco & Vinny’s was really memorable to me, the kind of quiet restaurant that attracts little attention and causes little stir. It does one thing only and does it well, for decades. It makes wonderful meals at affordable prices.
I plan on driving over for some takeout pasta one evening this week – a nice bachelor meal at home alone, enjoyed with a good wine or beer. Sounds delightful to me. If you’re up for it, you also might want to think about giving my “discovery” a try. But be warned. As their menu says, “Please be patient. All our food is cooked to order.” So call ahead for takeout: 954-564-9522. Franco & Vinny’s is located at 2884 East Sunrise Boulevard, across from Birch State Park, open daily from 4 to 11pm. Mmmmm!
Monday, June 19, 2006
June 19: Artists and Wild Monkeys-Part Two
So where was I? Oh yes – Sunday, right? I left off during the latest installment about my near-home-vacation in Fort Lauderdale on the first Sunday of my trip. That was the day of our visit to the Bonnet House museum. But my friend and I didn’t have time enough before the 4 pm closing to see much of the grounds. Or the monkeys. We promised ourselves that we would return before the week was out.
We did. That alone says something about how much she and I both enjoyed ourselves on Sunday, I suppose. You don’t go back to the same attraction twice in a week if you don’t think it’s something pretty special. Bonnet House is, for sure. So, yes, we frequently mentioned the Bonnet House during the week and by Thursday we found the right time to return.
As you enter the grounds, you cross a wooden bridge near the boathouse built by the Bartletts, the original designers and owners of this amazing property. On Thursday, the water level was low and two night herons slowly stalked through the mud, darting their beaks into the mangrove swamp for small fish and crabs. Sometimes visitors find manatees here as well, though we didn’t this time. Just lots of fish and the birds that wanted seafood for lunch.
We caught a tram tour of the grounds next, a good way to get oriented. It costs just $1 and offers an overall view of what’s where around the 35-acre refuge. As you roll along in the open-air trolley, breeze cooling your face, the guide tells you about the xeriscaped garden planted by the Bartletts, the 1942 fountain built from materials recovered from a demolished Palm Beach estate and the chickee bridge, which features a thatched roof constructed by Seminoles.
After the tour, we walked around the lovely grounds on our own, then sat for a long time in the chickee, watching a variety of birds as they flitted by. Mostly, though, we were watching and listening for monkeys. We saw an anhinga drying its wings on a waterside log, and a turtle perched in the sunshine on that same log. On Sunday, we had even seen two red foxes eating something or other. But no monkeys. Yet. "They don’t like the heat and sometimes hide this time of year in the day," a volunteer told us. We kept looking. After we had strolled and lounged and looked and listened about all we wanted to, my friend and I were getting ready to leave. Still no monkeys. Oh well.
Until I asked an employee who worked with the Bonnet House animals. He told us to hop in his golf cart and then he drove us right to the tree where all the monkeys were having a ball that afternoon. More than a dozen squirrel monkeys from Brazil make the Bonnet House their permanent home. They feed off the mangoes and bananas and other vegetation, and the employees also put out food from time to time. These tiny primates are adorable, good-natured and friendly. And wow, can they jump!!
We saw some incredible leaps by the monkeys, as they ambled up wire-thin branches, nibbled the leaves, then launched themselves ten feet to another tree. They clearly love heights. It’s nothing for them to do a tightrope walk across a power line, then suddenly dive into a far away tree branch, either up or down. A couple of the monkeys let us approach within maybe six feet of them as they lazed about on lower tree limbs, small elbows leaning into the leaves.
There was something almost magical about seeing close-up these monkeys living naturally. Now, a week later, we’re still talking about the experience. Wild monkeys in Florida. Huh, who would have thought? The funny thing is, we were just at the Bonnet House twice a week ago … and now we both can’t wait to go back again. I guess that says something too.
Tuesday, June 13, 2006
June 13: Artists and Wild Monkeys - Part One
ARTISTS AND WILD MONKEYS: PART ONE
I’m back now from my week away on vay-k – a vacation, as you’ll remember, that I took just a short drive from my Fort Lauderdale home. But I packed so much into that week, that I’m still floating on a relaxed cloud of memories. And I want to share more of those experiences with you. So we’re going to travel back in time several days to the first of my two vacation visits to the Bonnet House.
Officially this place is called the Bonnet House Museum and Gardens. On 35 lush acres of South Florida foliage, Bonnet House lives up to its billing, as both a delightful museum and impressive garden. My friend and I really did have to go twice last week to get the full sense of it all. We began on a Sunday afternoon by touring the museum, which is mostly the main house designed by Frederic Clay Bartlett, a wonderful American artist of the early 20th Century. This was a man definitely ahead of his time, as was his third wife, Evelyn. The house is full of life and humor and the unexpected. Whimsy was a real part of their personalities and that rare quality is reflected throughout the house and grounds.
Let’s start by saying they had money. As in, lots and lots of money. But so do many other people who don’t know how to use it. The Bartletts did. They painted murals on ceilings. They collected exotic wood carvings from around the world. They built their home with an outdoor courtyard as the living room and they ate dinner there together every evening. They constructed a bamboo bar to serve their own house specialty drink, a Rangpur Lime cocktail. There’s a shell room, which showcases pairs of shells gathered everywhere. And there’s an Orchid House, where Evelyn could show off her many blooming orchids.
I said they were ahead of their time and let me offer you a bit of evidence to back that up. When Frederic was in Paris, he bought paintings created by some young upstarts few people had heard of – or liked. These struggling artists included Vincent Van Gogh, Pablo Picasso, Henri Matisse, Paul Gauguin and others. You would recognize many of these paintings, which Frederic donated to the Art Institute of Chicago in memory of his deceased second wife, Helen. But the Bartletts were advanced for their era, or even ours, in many other ways. They believed in a healthy outdoor lifestyle and built a path from their house to the ocean to swim twice daily. They believed in quality time as a couple and created their Shangri-la to accommodate shared nightly cocktail hours outside as well as in at the bar. They used natural local materials to construct the house and had a xeriscaped garden long before the word xeriscape existed. They were original, intelligent, warm and funny people, if we can judge by their home and work. I wish I had known them.
The Bonnet House is open Tuesday through Saturday from 10 to 4, Sunday from noon to 4. It is an oasis located just south of Sunrise Boulevard and just west of the A1A beach road. Call 954-563-5393 for more info. And in my next blog, I’ll tell you about our second trip to the Bonnet House, which we spent mostly outdoors. And, yep, there really are wild monkeys. This place is way cool.
Friday, June 09, 2006
June 9: An Evening With...
I’m in the last couple days now of my local vacation. It’s been so good that I hope to take another like it before the end of summer. There’s something refreshing about going to a nice hotel close to home, playing tourist in your backyard. But last night was one of the week’s highlights – an evening with Dolly Parton, Tina Turner, Gretchen Wilson, Diana Ross, Catherine Zeta-Jones. Oh and a few other divas.
Actually, of course, it was an evening at Jimmy’s Cabaret on Las Olas, and both my date and I laughed or at least smiled really really hard for an hour and a half, pretty much non-stop. Jimmy’s is a female impersonation club, my first ever. Yes, I was an FI virgin until last night. It was a total hoot, funny and risque and charming and relaxing all at once. I’ll be back and my friend says she wants to come back with me.
We were seated at a front row table beneath a stage that itself is almost worth the trip inside. I write plays but I’ve never seen a proscenium quite like this one. At each end of the stage stood a painted pair of very shapely legs in black stockings and high heels, with red panty-like ruffles connecting the two sets of legs. A classic rotating mirrored disco ball cast a continuous spray of lights across the stage and a crystal-clear stereo system kicked out some of the great old standards by Gershwin, Porter and the rest.
When the show started, they began with a number from “The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas,” with a Dolly Parton impersonator lip-synching the lead. Three other “girls” were onstage with Dolly and, as a heterosexual man, I can tell you there was something unsettling about this at first. Some of these men-babes were, well … babes. One of them in particular had won three major female impersonator contests and she/he was stunningly beautiful. Honest, guys, if you saw this person across a bar, you would tell the bartender to send her a cocktail of anything she wanted. That thought was the unsettling part.
Ok, so it’s not real, which the Dolly-impersonator/MC reminds you often by way of a funny, raunchy patter with the audience. It seems wrong to refer to these performers as males so I’ll call them what I think they’d like to be called here – ladies. And the parade of ladies after the big Dolly number began with a hot set by “Tina Turner.” She wowed us with all the manic, twitchy energy and sexy appearance of Tina herself, including one very, very short dress. All the performers were, as you would expect, in some way or other over-the-top and, very honestly, seductive. And they were all delightful.
Among other memorable acts was the lady who sang the country tunes, one of them being Gretchen Wilson’s “Redneck Woman,” with believable enthusiasm and spot-on lip-synching. And then there was the contest-winning, hot-body lady who did a terrific version of “All That Jazz,” from the movie “Chicago,” complete with rolled-down stockings, spangly skirt and black Zeta-Jones wig. She was impressive – and scary good-looking. Sheesh …
If you want to see for yourself, call Jimmy’s for a reservation at 954-523-9393. The club is at 1103 East Las Olas in downtown Fort Lauderdale, near Stork’s, open for two shows nightly from Wednesday through Saturday. I don’t care if you’re gay, straight, male or female – if you can’t lighten up, loosen up and laugh in this club, you’re the one who needs a vacation.
Tuesday, June 06, 2006
June 6: A View Under the Bridge
I’m away on my vacation, which is being extended to a full week now. And by “away,” I mean right here in greater Fort Lauderdale. In the next few blogs, I’m going to be talking a lot about what it’s like to be a tourist in the area where I live. So far, it’s been amazing.
For the moment, I’ll concentrate on Monday, because that was when I hopped around Fort Lauderdale with the other tourists by boat – a view, not from the bridge, but from under it. I’ve always felt that this is a different city when observed from its waterways and Monday’s tour only confirmed this for me. Appealing and exotic from land, Fort Lauderdale is even more impressive from the water. The wealth is more conspicuous, yes, but multi-million dollar homes are only part of the attraction. Slipping through the canals, you see a shimmering beauty that can’t be appreciated fully by walking or driving.
My friend and I jumped on the Water Bus near its most northerly stopping point and, as the sun dropped in and out of the high clouds, we headed toward Bahia Mar. The friendly crews on these ferries are usually chatty and Monday was no exception. It’s been a few years since my last ride on a Water Bus so I enjoyed hearing all about the mansions that line the Intracoastal and New River. I didn’t know that, for example, Jay Leno now owns a home in Fort Lauderdale. So do even more CEOs and well-known folks than I’d remembered. And I learned that one of the new kids on these super-expensive blocks is Nick Saban, the Dolphins’ head coach.
We got off the Water Bus at Bahia Mar, and walked over to one of the waterfront restaurants I’ve loved since moving here 17 years ago. Bahia Cabana is worth a blog all its own and I’ll be returning before long. But for now, let me just say it’s totally laidback, totally funky, with something of an island feel to it. And the conch chowder, shrimp, conch salad and chicken wings we inhaled were great. All washed down with beer and frozen margaritas.
After lunch, we climbed back on the Water Bus and floated with a collection of out-of-towners to the Las Olas Riverfront. We waited out a brief summer shower there by, what else? Eating more food! This time we ducked into the Haagen-Dazs ice cream shop at Riverfront, where I got a dish of mixed Belgian chocolate and mint chocolate chip. Hey, I’m on vacation here, all right? I’m supposed to overeat now. By the time we were done with the ice cream, the storm had passed and we returned to the boat for our trip north.
How often do you get to see the massive 17th Street Causeway bridge from below, listen to an Italian sailor sing “O Sole Mio” and watch two dudes on surfboards paddling across the Intracoastal Waterway, all within the space of half an hour? We experienced all this and more on the way back, as the breeze from our boat ride cooled our faces. Our smiling faces.
Yes, it really was a terrific day and I’ve got more planned for the rest of the week. So let me end this and return to what I’m supposed to be doing now anyway. Enjoying myself in Broward County, on vacation less than half an hour from home. Besides, I think there’s a margarita somewhere right now with my name on it.
Friday, June 02, 2006
June 2: Summer Seasonings
I was sitting by a pretty canal just yesterday, sipping an iced coffee, when it occurred to me. Yes, we’re officially into the summer here in South Florida, the traditional “off-season” for tourists. Locals like me welcome this time of year in many ways. Though it’s a lot less “off” than it used to be, I have to admit. Any tourist destination such as the Fort Lauderdale area has special pleasures that can be enjoyed only when there are fewer throngs of out-of-towners clogging restaurants, bars, clubs. And roads. And it’s these pleasures that residents such as me savor from now until the autumn. There’s a different pace to life somehow. It slows down, becomes more personal, a bit less driven, less competitive. With fewer visitors now, the need to fight for space in our best places is diminished.
I once wrote an essay for Arthur Frommer’s Budget Travel (I think it’s still available on their website) about the great joys of off-season travel. I’m a big believer in it. This started for me when I went to Greece for the Millennium, standing at the foot of the Acropolis for the spectacular celebration on a cold December night. I had visited Greece in the summer before this – and loved it of course. But my winter visit was a very different, and much better, experience. Waiters were a lot chattier and more interested in us. We didn’t have to battle long lines or crowds. In winter, we made friends of Athens residents who probably wouldn’t have even talked to tourists in summer. And then there was the big plus that prices were lower, a lot lower, in that slower period.
The same is true here. And you don’t have to be a tourist to appreciate it. I had a pleasant chat with a server at my coffee shop yesterday because he wasn’t too busy at that moment. If I had been drinking my coffee in the same spot four months ago, he wouldn’t have had the time or interest in talking. When people aren’t overly busy, they change. A sense of leisure tends to lead to more personal interaction.
So from time to time over Broward’s “second season,” as it’s been dubbed these days, I’ll be telling you about some of my personal moments and some of the pleasures of these more relaxed days. And some of the bargains I come across too. Hey, it’s summertime and the livin’ is easy around here. I hope if you’re visiting this area from out of town, you’ll say hello if you happen to spot me. Tell me about your own summer experiences. (You might recognize my face from the photos on my website. That web address is given in my Lauderblogger bio here at sunny.org.) Meanwhile, I’m going to be checking into a local hotel for a few days R&R. I really am, honest. You can’t beat the prices this time of year – or the relaxed “off-season” pace.
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