Travel Guide:

When the Spanish came to Florida in the 16th Century tribes of Tequesta Indians populated the area that is today Miami. In the last decade of the 19th century wealthy pioneers, whose names are still on everything from neighborhood to roads and islands—Tuttle, Brickell, Flagler, bought land and built large estates. Henry M. Flagler’s railroad was what finally made South Florida the winter playground for the rich and famous that it remains today. The Florida East Coast Railway was finished all the way to Key West in 1912. Luxurious hotels were built along the way, alluring the likes of Rockefeller, Carnegie and Vanderbilt. At the turn of the century, Miami had evolved into a small, but rapidly growing, town. The drainage of the Everglades swamps made construction on a whole new scale possible, and the first real estate speculators came to Miami. In the 1920s a category 5 hurricane laid parts of downtown in ruins and killed hundreds. During World War II, military training facilities were abound in the area, especially for aviation. After the war, many soldiers who were trained in Miami had acquired a taste for the sun and sand and moved here permanently. The Miami International Airport was also established, making it possible to accommodate visitors from remote parts of the world.

In 1959 Castro took over Cuba. At this time, Miami was a small southern town with a population of about 200,000, many of them seasonal tourists. Freedom flights carried over 150,000 Cuban refugees to Miami during the course of eleven years. Cubans dominated the political and cultural life, and Miami became somewhat of a Latin American colony in the United States. Refugees from other Latin countries and the Caribbean added to the cultural medley. Today, Miami is a trade hub between the Americas, a land of dreams for those who managed to escape suppression in their home countries. More than half of Dade County’s residents are of Hispanic descent, which makes it the largest area in the country with a Hispanic majority. A new real estate boom is changing the face of Miami and its surrounding areas, but for now, it is still a big city with a small-town soul.

The temperature in Miami definitely tells of its subtropical location. Florida is a peninsula on the southeastern coast of the United States, and Miami is the southernmost big city. The southernmost point in the U.S. is in Key West, about three hours drive south of Miami. There you are closer to Cuba than Miami. Almost the entire South Florida was originally swampland, which is why it is one of the youngest areas in the nation. It was very hard to build anything here until the right techniques became available. Florida is very flat, you won’t see mountains anywhere, it’s all swamps and beaches.

The best time to come to Miami is in the winter or spring when the weather is a bit more pleasant. The summers here are really hot and steamy, temperatures in the nineties along with high humidity makes it hard to enjoy the outdoors. Later, in the fall, hurricane season threatens to destroy your stay. The official hurricane season lasts from June 1 to November 30, and almost every year a few major storms hit the area. During this period it also rains just about every day, only for about an hour or two, but usually around lunchtime or in the evening.

Politics in Miami revolve around two central issues, corruption and Latin America. The first issue has been the source of many scandals, the latest culminating in a gruesome suicide inside the lobby of the city’s largest newspaper at peak hour. The later issue has made Miami the refugee haven of choice not only for right-wing Cubans, but Latinos from every political direction and country including several ousted heads of states. Due to this it has happened that in some cases the person that drove many of its citizens to Miami has ended up here himself. Irony is the word.

Miami is the poorest city in the United States, but vacationing here you would never know. The beachfront mansions and yachts of the rich and the fancy places in tourist areas contrast sharply with the reality of most Miamians in the poor suburbs. The vicious circle of illegal immigration puts the city in a less than ideal situation to recover economically. The exact number of illegal immigrants is not known, but is thought to be well over the 700,000 estimated by the Migration Population Institute in 2000.

Because it is such a culturally diverse place, Miami has a very interesting art scene. Caribbean, Cuban, Mexican and Latin influences in general give flavor to all of the arts. There are many galleries, but the most interesting ones can be found in areas such as Little Haiti where culture snobbism still hasn’t driven prices up and originality down. The Miami Design District and the neighboring Wynwood Arts District both have an interesting mix of underground galleries with attitude and more established venues, and they both have monthly gallery walks where all the galleries stay open late at night for people to walk around. The Design District has theirs on the second Thursday and Wynwood on the second Saturday of each month. It’s all free and open to the public, and there are usually complimentary refreshments.

Miami has a large Jewish population, so don’t be surprised to see people dressed all in black walking in the scorching sun on Sundays. There are also many Catholics, who attend their Sunday services. But, in general, religion in Miami is as diverse as its people.

Miami has a very laid back attitude, probably thanks to the Latin influence. People get up late, dine late and stay out late—the perfect atmosphere for a vacationer. Miamians like their Cafe con Leche, their food, and their sunshine. Communal activities in parks and on beaches, such as dominoes, soccer, volleyball or BBQs are common for people to partake in on a regular basis.

Spanish is as common as English here, people may first try and address you in Español. Sometimes you will find that people don’t even know English, because you don’t have to, you would get along perfectly fine on Spanish alone. No matter how long you have lived in Miami, even if you were born here, you are looked upon as a tourist if you don’t know Spanish, and you are less likely to get a job.