Santa Came Early

Christmas arrived nine days early at the Folly this year, with a visit from Florian and Arko. We hadn't seen each other in more than four years, and Thom was kind enough to lend them the cabana.  They were tickled to have escaped the frigid weather in Chicago.

We began the Palm Beach County Grand Tour on Worth Avenue.  Oddly, Tiffany's doesn't seem to decorate for the holidays, at least outside the building's elegant coquina exterior.

Christmas wreaths and alligators are about as asynchronous

. . . as decorated pine trees and palms.

At the Manatee Lagoon, Florian was lucky enough to spot one.  It took me three visits.

Next up, late-afternoon  'gator hunting at the Loxahatchee National Wildlife Refuge.

Florian did find a BIG one where we'd been told to look by a fisherman, but the poor creature had a floater embedded in the tip of its snout,  making it look like Rudolf the Red-Nosed Alligator.  I prefer photographing uninjured wildlife.

Visitors gathered on the viewing platform to watch the sunset over the Everglades.

Park signage conveys the diversity of Florida's fauna, although it doesn't necessarily protect those depicted.  I passed a tire-squashed snake on the opposite side of the road.

Florian struck a happy pose at the Norton Museum where we caught a traveling Rembrandt show.  He took almost as many pictures of the art as I did.

We dined at Oceano Kitchen where the coconut cream pie looked a little bit like a crab but tasted heavenly.

On Friday, we headed to MacArthur Park.

While Florian and Arko frolicked in the surf, I walked the length of the only undeveloped stretch of beachfront in the county.

Upon return, I retrieved Arko's stick from the ocean.

The boardwalk was much busier than during my last visit.

Florian took me to brunch at John G's, an "old Florida" restaurant now under new management, where we enjoyed delicious cranberry mimosas.  If the waitress hadn't screwed up my order, I would have taken a picture of my eggs Benedict with crab cakes. Afterward, we drove an hour to Wynwood, where Florian took a picture for his friend Uwe who gets a kick out of signs that don't make sense.

Wynwood Walls changes less each time I go.

Back at the Folly, we dined on fresh branzino, purchased the night before after checking out the Loggerhead Marine Life Center and perfectly prepared by Florian.

I'm sure he felt a little bit like this kid after I took him to the airport on Sunday.

 

The Folly Chariot's First Field Trip

I bought a Muskmobile (aka Tesla Model Y) after hemming and hawing for almost a year. Our new chariot will live at the Folly.  Herr Cucaracha taught me that owning a car in Manhattan is more headache than convenience, and it's only going to get more expensive with the imminence of congestion parking.

 

Up-to-four-passengers was a luxury only provided by Folly rental cars in the past so Chris and I picked up Paul and Linn in Boca en route to Miami.   We began our afternoon visit at the Holocaust Memorial.  None of us except me had seen it.

An engaging docent whose parents had survived the camps told us her father refused to paint all Germans with the Nazi brush.  She'd seen The Zone of Interest, too, and pointed to the little girl who hides apples for the prisoners as an example of humanity's capacity for kindness even under the most horrifying conditions. 

The nearby botanical garden offers relief from the grimness of the memorial.

We're in an ongoing discussion at the Folly about the meaning of "meta."  I think this mural qualifies as it X-rays the often illegal activity that first put Wynwood on the art map in 2009.

We parked just below Frida Kahlo's roller-painted visage while the friendly and talented artist worked to finish it.  He laughed when I pleaded with him not to get red paint on my new car.  Chris and I visited Kahlo's home on our trip to Mexico City last year.

Blank spaces are as rare as icebergs in the ever-gentrifying neighborhood, which I've visited almost annually since 2017.

Introducing Paul and Linn to the Wynwood mixed up my standard tour (which includes artisanal popsicles at Cielito and kosher babka at Zak the Baker, unfortunately closed on Saturdays).  They wanted to check out Walt Grace Vintage which specializes in strings and wheels.  Very cool.

Colorful guitar straps and books were on sale, too.

If anyone ever sculpts a rock Mt. Rushmore, Bowie and Lennon better be included.

Wynwood Walls, the pioneering art space that started it all, now charges $12 admission.  It may no longer be as edgy but it's just as much fun.  Too bad New York City didn't find a way to preserve 5 Pointz.

I love this fantastic take on Florida's flora and fauna.  Is that a unicorn or a roseate spoonbill?

We Work opened this space just about the time the company imploded.  I'd wager it's one of the bankrupt company's most valuable assets.  Hipsters only have to cross the street for delicious babka.

BTW, the Folly Chariot made it to Miami and back (~150 miles) with less than an 80% charge.  So far, home plugging it in at home has been more than adequate.