Fort Lauderdale and Miami

We have neglected to update our Google map regularly, but I just added the point where we are now anchored.  As you can see, we are a hop, skip, and a jump away from the Keys!!!!

What can we say about Fort Lauderdale?  It was nothing like we expected, but what a cool city!  Some places called it the “Venice of Florida” - kind of cheesy, but remarkably true.  Here’s an unrelated map that shows the prevalence of waterways, which are lined, of course, with incredible homes and every size and shape yacht you can imagine.  

Hopefully the pictures below give you an idea of what it’s like from water level.  Some of the turns are so tricky and the currents so significant that the larger boats need to be guided by two tugs (one fore and one aft) to make it through unscathed.  The first picture below shows the double-tug procedure in progress.

We were lucky enough to get a spot at the Fort Lauderdale city piers where we spent a couple nights, right in the hub of all the downtown night life (view below is me lounging at our dockage).  

I took this picture from atop the closest bridge, and if you squint you can see our boat.  Find the large white boat in the center of the picture; behind that is a large sailboat (notice how tall the mast is!), and Quality Time is right behind that.  And yes, we do feel dwarfed most of the time!  : )

We even met up with some extended family (Mark’s sister’s husband’s sister and her husband).  They gave us a lot of great advice about where to go in the Keys - we believe they’ve chosen a very awesome place to live!

And me hanging out by a giant orb - just because…

Unfortunately, we had to vacate the city piers as they were preparing for their annual Christmas Boat Parade - it is apparently a massive undertaking and a giant city event.  Our very first full day of rain blessed us as we departed Fort Lauderdale, so the pics along the way look a bit gloomy.  We are anchored now off the south end of Miami Beach.  We dinghy-ed to shore yesterday to see some of the sights despite the weather.  The water is a beautiful shade of green, but I don't think the pictures show it well (I'll keep trying to capture it).  We decided to wait another day for the winds to die down before we venture into the Biscayne Bay (much more open water) and towards our adventures in the Keys!

And most importantly, HAPPY BIRTHDAY, DAD!!!!!  : )  Love you!