With colourful buildings, bags of sunshine
and turquoise waves lapping on white
sandy beaches, cities don’t get much
better than Miami! It’s an outdoorsy
place to be – made for speeding along
the sidewalks on rollerblades or driving
around town in a cool convertible. When
the sun goes down, Miami comes alive as
glamorous residents head to nightclubs
and salsa dancing hotspots.
THE MOTHER
OF MIAMI
Miami is the only
major city in the USA
to be founded by a
woman. Julia Tuttle
was the original owner
of the land upon
which the city was
built. She persuaded
rail chiefs to put in a
train line to transport
goods and people to
the area. Soon a city
was born, earning
Julia the nickname
‘Mother of Miami’.
TREASURE HUNT
Centuries ago, before the city was founded, gangs of pirates
– including Blackbeard and his crew – ruled the bays around
Miami. They would lurk in coves and inlets before setting sail to
attack passing boats. Sometimes the loot would be buried for
safekeeping, but if the pirate
died, the location of his or
her riches could be lost
forever. Over the years
many lucky treasure
hunters have found gold,
silver and gems in the
waters around Miami.
THE WILD
EVERGLADES
Miami is the gateway to the
Everglades National Park. This
vast wetland area provides a home
to all kinds of wildlife, including rare
animals such as manatees, sea turtles
and Florida panthers. Visitors to the park
can wander the boardwalks or whiz
across the water in an airboat,
keeping their eyes peeled
for the Everglades’
famous alligators.
THE MYSTERIES
OF CORAL CASTLE
Coral Castle is an amazing tribute to the hard
work and dedication of one man, Ed Leedskalnin.
From 1923, Ed spent 28 years carving 997 tonnes
(1,100 US tons) of rock into walls, sculptures,
furniture, a tower and much more. It is mind
-boggling to imagine one man making a castle
using only basic tools, without any help to lift the
heavy stones. Ed built Coral Castle in secret,
but to this day no one knows how he did it.
CRUISE
CAPITAL
Miami is the cruise ship capital
of the world, with more passengers
heading through its port than anywhere
else. Most of the boats are bound for the
nearby Caribbean, where holidaymakers
can hop off their luxury ships and explore
a different island each day.
MONKEYING AROUND
Ever wondered what it feels like
to be an animal in a zoo? At
Miami’s Monkey Jungle you’ll
be the one in the cage while
the animals are free to roam
the 30-acre (12-hectare) forest
around you. The park’s large
jungle spaces encourage a host
of little squirrel monkeys, giant
gorillas, noisy howler monkeys
and chilled-out orangutans to
live a similar life to their cousins
in the wild.
LITTLE HAVANA
There is a corner of the city which feels like a different country
entirely. The neighbourhood of Little Havana is home to a
large number of Cubans and it looks much the same as their
native country. The streets are full of colourful murals, Cuban
restaurants, cigar shops, salsa dancing clubs and locals
absorbed in games of dominoes – Cuba’s favourite pastime.