So for the last weekend of Matt's Florida visit, we decided to go to the Fort Lauderdale area to check out a few of Matt's old stomping grounds.
Oddly enough, the first thing we did when we got to the area was go to a New York style, Jewish-owned diner called Flakowitz's. As can be expected from such an establishment, breakfast is served all day, the portions are gigantic, and the service provided is done so in a fashion to turn over tables as quickly as possible.
We enjoyed some breakfast and coffee and were back on our way in what seemed like mere moments.
Next on the agenda was trying to find the hostel we'd be staying at. It turned out that when I entered the address into our GPS, I forgot to include the direction of the street we were headed to. Not realizing this, we ended up in the Fort Lauderdale ghetto.
I'm not talking "North End Dartmouth" kind of ghetto, but the real deal, American popular representation "Compton" kind of ghetto.
The homes were ranged from run-down to decrepit, people were playing basketball in the middle of the street, and as two whiteys in a compact car, we definitely attracted some negative attention.
Upon closer inspection of the address we realized we were in the wrong quadrant of the city, so we entered the correct address into the GPS and got out of there STAT.
We arrive at the Chocolate Hostel and Crew House, finally, and checked into our apartment style semi-private suite. The hostel is a really cool concept that's different from others, because it's actually an apartment that was turned into a hostel.
Our suite had a fully furnished living room, kitchen, bathroom and dining area, and two fully furnished bedrooms. The bedrooms are private and are individually locked, but the common areas are shared. In the area, this type of accommodation is important for the cruise ship workers who are sometimes docked here for a few weeks or more in between jobs.
Once we got settled we cruised around the Greater Fort Lauderdale area that includes Matt's old 'hoods, Coral Springs, as well as Florida Atlantic University. Later in the evening we took a stroll down by the beach, caught a Pathers vs. Rangers game at the BankAtlantic Centre in Sunrise, and grabbed some thai food on the way back to the hostel for the night.
The next day was Saturday, we headed down Los Olas and onto the A1A to grab some beachside parking. We didn't have much change, so we decided to come back in a few minutes and top up the meter then. After refreshing our parking ticket and enjoying the Floridian sun for another couple of hours, we came back to the rental car and there was a scratch on the driver's side door.
At first we didn't think anything of it, then I realized my X-ring was missing. I opened my wallet to see if it got stuck in the bi-fold, and noticed that my credit cards and cash were gone, and so was my almost brand new digital camera (with all my pictures from Disney World on it). Matt checked his wallet and his cards were gone, too.
We were robbed.
Someone must have watched me take my purse from the trunk to top up the meter, then as soon as I went back to the beach, they went to work. They didn't even bother looking anywhere else for anything (they could have scored two iPods if they looked in the glove box!).
Getting robbed while you're on vacation is pretty much worst case scenario. We called the credit card companies and luckily we were able to cancel the cards before too much was taken, but those dirty rotten thieves still managed to get $90 in gas from Texaco and $130 in "pending" transactions elsewhere.
Once we got everything sorted out, filed a police report (unfortunately we didn't get on the show "Police Women of Broward County"), and finished grieving over our losses, we decided we weren't going to let those scumbags have our things and ruin our trip. And we didn't!
But, after crashing out on my bike and getting robbed, I couldn't help but think of the old says "trouble comes in threes". And it did, on the following Monday.
Just like everything else that happens in life, there's really not a lot you can do about it. So I did what was in my power to do and moved along.
All in all, during the 4 days we spent in Broward/Miami Dade County, we went to five different beaches, Butterfly World, the Miami Metro Zoo, South Beach, and Key Biscayne. We got fresh fruits from the local fruit stands, including the ripest, most delicious star fruit I've ever had. We tried as many different ethnicities of foods as we could think of, including Greek, Mexican, and Thai. I can't forget to mention the unreasonably overpriced seafood we had in SoBe either, $65 for the meal, plus they so kindly included an 18% gratuity for themselves, even though the service was bush league at best - thanks for that CJ's Crab Shack.
On our way out of the Miami Dade/Broward Co. area, we decided to stop for an Everglades tour. I've gotta say, for a relatively inexpensive price, you definitely get a bang for your buck. Our tour guide had an authentic down South accent and took us through the 'glades on an air-boat with about 15 other tourists. We started off slow, floating through the channels, catching glimpses of alligators, birds, turtles and fish.
Once we got into the open Everglade areas, though, he kicked it into high gear and whipped us in circles around the 'glades like a bat out of hell! He even stopped the air boat to give us a little ecological history lesson and let those who wanted to step out of the boat to stand in the Everglades. In case you were wondering, it's just about the slimiest thing I've ever felt.
I also learned that the portion of the Everglades that we were in was entirely man-made (previously man-destroyed). When settlers started developing the southern part of the state, they decided to build a nice little causeway across the whole stretch of the 'glades - ceasing the flow of fresh and salt water from the inter-tidal areas. The road is still there, but they've installed some technology to maintain the flow and keep the ecosystem alive.
After the air-boat tour we went for a free wildlife show including such celebrity animals as the skunk who starred along side Brendan Fraser in Furry Vengeance (2010). That's right, my one-degree away from Brendan Fraser is a skunk. Suck on that.
We learned about alligators, and turtles, and toads and the like, then were feeling a little famished, so obviously we went for the deep fried platter, that included frogs legs, catfish, and gator tail.
Needless to say, even though we encountered some major disappointment, we still managed to keep our eyes on the prize and enjoy the rest of our time in the Miami Dade/Broward Co. area.
Note: I want to thank everyone who kindly and generously reached out to me with kind words and support when I was robbed. Even though nothing could be done about it, it was amazing to know that so many people out there were concerned and wanted to let me know how much they care. You guys ROCK! \m/
Once we got settled we cruised around the Greater Fort Lauderdale area that includes Matt's old 'hoods, Coral Springs, as well as Florida Atlantic University. Later in the evening we took a stroll down by the beach, caught a Pathers vs. Rangers game at the BankAtlantic Centre in Sunrise, and grabbed some thai food on the way back to the hostel for the night.
The next day was Saturday, we headed down Los Olas and onto the A1A to grab some beachside parking. We didn't have much change, so we decided to come back in a few minutes and top up the meter then. After refreshing our parking ticket and enjoying the Floridian sun for another couple of hours, we came back to the rental car and there was a scratch on the driver's side door.
At first we didn't think anything of it, then I realized my X-ring was missing. I opened my wallet to see if it got stuck in the bi-fold, and noticed that my credit cards and cash were gone, and so was my almost brand new digital camera (with all my pictures from Disney World on it). Matt checked his wallet and his cards were gone, too.
We were robbed.
Someone must have watched me take my purse from the trunk to top up the meter, then as soon as I went back to the beach, they went to work. They didn't even bother looking anywhere else for anything (they could have scored two iPods if they looked in the glove box!).
Getting robbed while you're on vacation is pretty much worst case scenario. We called the credit card companies and luckily we were able to cancel the cards before too much was taken, but those dirty rotten thieves still managed to get $90 in gas from Texaco and $130 in "pending" transactions elsewhere.
Once we got everything sorted out, filed a police report (unfortunately we didn't get on the show "Police Women of Broward County"), and finished grieving over our losses, we decided we weren't going to let those scumbags have our things and ruin our trip. And we didn't!
But, after crashing out on my bike and getting robbed, I couldn't help but think of the old says "trouble comes in threes". And it did, on the following Monday.
Just like everything else that happens in life, there's really not a lot you can do about it. So I did what was in my power to do and moved along.
All in all, during the 4 days we spent in Broward/Miami Dade County, we went to five different beaches, Butterfly World, the Miami Metro Zoo, South Beach, and Key Biscayne. We got fresh fruits from the local fruit stands, including the ripest, most delicious star fruit I've ever had. We tried as many different ethnicities of foods as we could think of, including Greek, Mexican, and Thai. I can't forget to mention the unreasonably overpriced seafood we had in SoBe either, $65 for the meal, plus they so kindly included an 18% gratuity for themselves, even though the service was bush league at best - thanks for that CJ's Crab Shack.
On our way out of the Miami Dade/Broward Co. area, we decided to stop for an Everglades tour. I've gotta say, for a relatively inexpensive price, you definitely get a bang for your buck. Our tour guide had an authentic down South accent and took us through the 'glades on an air-boat with about 15 other tourists. We started off slow, floating through the channels, catching glimpses of alligators, birds, turtles and fish.
Once we got into the open Everglade areas, though, he kicked it into high gear and whipped us in circles around the 'glades like a bat out of hell! He even stopped the air boat to give us a little ecological history lesson and let those who wanted to step out of the boat to stand in the Everglades. In case you were wondering, it's just about the slimiest thing I've ever felt.
I also learned that the portion of the Everglades that we were in was entirely man-made (previously man-destroyed). When settlers started developing the southern part of the state, they decided to build a nice little causeway across the whole stretch of the 'glades - ceasing the flow of fresh and salt water from the inter-tidal areas. The road is still there, but they've installed some technology to maintain the flow and keep the ecosystem alive.
After the air-boat tour we went for a free wildlife show including such celebrity animals as the skunk who starred along side Brendan Fraser in Furry Vengeance (2010). That's right, my one-degree away from Brendan Fraser is a skunk. Suck on that.
We learned about alligators, and turtles, and toads and the like, then were feeling a little famished, so obviously we went for the deep fried platter, that included frogs legs, catfish, and gator tail.
Needless to say, even though we encountered some major disappointment, we still managed to keep our eyes on the prize and enjoy the rest of our time in the Miami Dade/Broward Co. area.
Note: I want to thank everyone who kindly and generously reached out to me with kind words and support when I was robbed. Even though nothing could be done about it, it was amazing to know that so many people out there were concerned and wanted to let me know how much they care. You guys ROCK! \m/
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