MIAMI - “The Magic City” Reflections of a visit by Horst Cerni (June 26 to July 2, 2023)

Miami has been called by many names, like Gateway to the Americas, Little Cuba, Vice City and the Magic City. The city earned that name almost at the time it was incorporated in 1896, not so much because of some magical qualifications, but rather because of its rapid growth. TV series and movies helped promote this “Magic”.

I have been in Miami a few times, but never got to see much of it. My first stop-over was in December of 1958 when I continued to Cuba for the year’s end (while Fidel Castro assumed power) and I almost didn’t get back. The next time was with my family in 1982, and then some short UNICEF trips in 1990 and 1993. The “Magic” of Miami certainly hadn’t impressed me.

So, I was curious to find out what Miami has to offer and what its Magic was. I started planning the moment I learned that I needed to go to Miami for a medical procedure - to get my defibrillator-pacemaker upgraded to a CRT-D device. It wasn’t a vacation trip, but neither did I have to stay in the hospital for more than half a day. So I figured that within the week there should be some room for sightseeing. Not having traveled for seven years, I was apprehensive, since a trip like that would mean a change of routine with special medical and physical needs to consider.

I found a good hotel, the Hampton Inn, only ten minutes away from the South Miami Baptist Hospital and less to the Dadeland Mall which has several good restaurants. We tried to walk there, but a busy highway made it too dangerous. There was no pedestrian walkway. There was a small grass strip and a puddle in the parking lot which a group of ducks enjoyed.

I was very disappointed that there was no park nearby. As a matter of fact, I couldn’t find any parks on the Google map. Coming from the airport one drives for about half an hour on massive highways with only commercial buildings on either side and here and there a high rise.

There is a palm tree ever so often, and I got the impression that whenever there was a little space, a palm tree was planted. There are a lot of palms in the Miami area. Most are for decoration and provide no shade or benches. And in Downtown, where the buildings are close to each other, palms are planted even on roof tops.

My wife Isabel obviously traveled with me, and our granddaughter Nadia came from Boston, since her semester had just finished, I really needed their help after the operation, especially getting out of bed and putting on a shirt. It would take a month to heal, I was told, and my left arm was in a sling for the first few days.

We used Uber to go to the Mall, which worked very well and cost only seven dollars. Going to the hospital was $ 8, but when I had to go for my procedure at 6 am, they charged $ 35. Nadia only arrived on Tuesday, June 27, the day before the procedure, and so we took it easy and had a nice Peruvian ceviche dinner at CVI.CHE Restaurant.

So what could they (and maybe I) do in Miami once the medical issues were taken care of? It is said that Miami is a “Magical City” and so I tried to find the Magic - even just some. The last time I was in Miami was 30 years ago to meet with Julio Iglesias and Mario Kreutzberger. There was no time for sightseeing, but my colleague Ron Ginns insisted that we take a look at the Art Deco area of South Beach, which is now a National heritage site.

The Websites advertising sightseeing tours offer fun, adventure, and an exotic nightlife. Maybe the combination of these results in Magic. I would have liked to go again to the Everglades, but people with heart problems are discouraged. Besides, our time was too short. I checked Google Maps, but I couldn’t really find any attractions that interested me. I was looking for parks, and there weren’t any near-by. They are hidden. Miami is a city of big highways, lots of traffic (450,000 cars daily), enormous skyscrapers and apartment buildings, and lots of construction.

Giant pillars were sticking out from between the traffic lanes like petrified giants with their arms stretched out ready to receive more pavement. A small group here, another there, but nowhere did we see any massive construction going on. It seemed the project was on a hold.

New highways and access roads are being built - now four years behind schedule, and another four years to go. And a new symbol for Miami will result - a gigantic bridge with six arches. And yes, underneath there will be some public “enhancement” (to watch the traffic?)

Our last three days in Miami were reserved for sightseeing, but because of my limitations most of it had to be done from the car. Our son Paul and family arrived from New York for a little vacation and family reunion and drove us to the two landmarks I wanted to see: First, Little Havana - Calle Ocho.

One really needs to walk here to catch the atmosphere, and to visit the stores, bars and restaurants. I was disappointed not to get the feeling of Havana, but that is obviously unique to the Cuban capital.

Our next stop was Miami Beach and Lincoln Road. Here we walked and enjoyed the very active street scenes. There was no vehicular traffic, and one restaurant after another invited the tourists. There were giant sculptures in between, including an ice bear. Lincoln Road goes straight towards the wide beach, with hotel and apartment blocks on either side. Maybe here one could get a feeling of Magic.

We tried to go to South Beach to see the Art Deco district, but the street was hopelessly blocked with traffic. There was a pleasant park and a bicycle path next to the road.

One felt like being in a beach resort, but the massive apartment buildings and the heavy traffic made me anxious to go back home to our pristine St. Croix.

Horst Cerni can be reached at horst.cerni@gmail.com

You can read some of Horst Cerni's contributions to XUNICEF by clicking on the links below.

Isla Robinson Crusoe

Patagonia

"Old Love" and Walking to an Island

Travelling with the Stars

Book Review : Warrior Audrey Hepburn

A quick Chat with Horst and Isabel Cerni