Food and Art Deco...a fun combination

Today was our bonus day in Miami as we like to arrive at our debarkation point a day early in case we encounter any travel issues.
We opted for a walking food tour of South Beach.  The tour is offered by Miami Culinary Tours and not only visits various restaurants, but includes local history and lore.
Traffic over to South Beach was incredible, but I guess normal for Miami.  Unless you live around Chicago, most of us Midwesterners don't deal with this kind of traffic.
The tour started at Bolivar, a Columbian venue where we met a our guide Mirka.  She has lived in Miami for over 40 years and has a wealth of knowledge about not only the local restaurants, but different types of cusine and can recommend a place loved by the locals for almost any genre.
The second stop was to a restaurant owned by Gloria Estefan and her husband.  Of course, Cuban food was on the menu at Larios.  Our third stop was the Naked Taco, a Mexican themed venue owned by Ralph Pagano.
During the tour we discussed the history of South Beach and how it has changed since WWII when it was basically appropriated by the US government for GI use.  Since then, it has been a preferred location for speakeasies during prohibition, home to the Rat Pack and a favorite for fashion photo shoots.  We visited a roof top bar with a great view of the beach, heard about the history of the Versace Mansion, talked about the filming of the Birdcage at the Carlyle and learned which hotels are owned by the heirs of ther Jordache jeans empire.
Because transfers to port are included in our cruise, after the tour we dropped the car in thr parking garage at the port where it will remain until the conclusion of the cruise.  After returning to the hotel, we picked up our pre-cruise documents from the Regent rep set up in the lobby.

Link to photos:
May 22, 2017 Miami/South Beach