We've returned from America's penis
We've returned from a mostly lovely long weekend in Florida. We set out for SFO early Saturday morning. Our flight on Virgin America actually left early. SFO wasn't very busy, I think most folks left Thursday or Friday. We landed late in Fort Lauderdale due to the time difference. We picked up the rental car and drove to the gay guesthouse and... the manager had forgotten to leave the keys and wasn't there. So we grabbed something to eat and returned, anticipating the need to find another place to stay. Fortunately he had returned and we got our room. They have an electric vehicle shuttle service to the local bars and clubs. We went to Georgie's Alibi first, your basic hangout bar. The crowd was fairly mixed. We then went to Ramrod, more of a leather bar, but they were having a special event. It took half an hour just to get in and the place was packed. As in, could barely stand, let alone move. We did a fruit loop, then decided to go back to Georgie's. We stayed for a little while longer, then were shuttled back.
The next morning we slept late since we hadn't adjusted to the time difference. We stopped at the mall to pick up some things and headed to Sebastian Beach, where the gays hang out. It was pretty busy. I went into the ocean, and it was warm! Growing up on the west coast, this is a surprise. In the Pacific Northwest and even LA the Pacific is usually freezing cold, even when the weather is nice. This is why California surfers wear wetsuits. We returned, showered and changed and decided to go out again. Josh decided he wanted to drive. This was a mistake. Wilton Manors is like WeHo - parking is scarce. We tried Boom, but well, the music was really booming. We decided to go to the Manor. As we were walking, it started to rain. Really rain. We managed to make it to the Manor reasonably dry. The club is modeled somewhat on the Abbey in WeHo, but added a dance floor. It doesn't quite have the Abbey's charm or ambience. We stayed there for a while, then headed back, chatted with some of the other guests while watching the rain, and went to bed.
Unfortunately we go a late start the next morning, got in the car and drove north to Singer Island. I was told to go to MacArthur Beach State Park - one of the last undeveloped sections of the barrier islands. The route we took had us go through Palm Beach and surprisingly, it was like a ghost town. There was hardly anyone there. I guess everyone left for the long weekend too. We got there right as a thunderstorm was rolling in, so we didn't have time for the beach there. Mostly just enough time to snap some pictures. We went down the beach to one of the Marriott resorts for lunch and the rain cleared up a little. By the time we got back to Fort Lauderdale however, it was really coming down. We ran to the car and went to Whole Foods for provisions and spent the night indoors. This was the time my laptop decided that it didn't want to acknowledge clicks from the trackpad, rendering it useless (I'm using an external keyboard and mouse now, it's going to the Apple Store tomorrow).
This morning we drove down to Miami and went to Oleta River State Park. We rented a kayak and were going to go around and try to see some of the wildlife. We got caught in another rainstorm, but this one didn't last long. Unfortunately we had to drive back up north to catch the flight back, so we had to cut the trip short. We got back, showered and changed, packed and drove back to the airport and dropped off the car. Everyone arrived for the flight early and since the airport wasn't very busy, we left a bit early. However due to the weather in Texas, we had to fly around that and take an indirect route home. The flight ended up being mostly on time.
Now we're back in the city by the bay. Florida was nice. Josh didn't care for the heat or humidity, but surprisingly, it didn't bother me. Honestly, I think I prefer it over the dry heat of the desert. There were lots of lizards running around all over the place. The spiders in the parks were huge. We didn't encounter any snakes (thank Zeus). There was definitely some hot boys there. In some respects Florida reminded me a lot of LA. The guest house is located in one of the upper middle class neighborhoods in Fort Lauderdale. I saw two Bentley convertibles, two Audi R8s, several Porsche convertibles, a Lamborghini Gallardo and several Range Rovers. They love their automotive bling almost as much as Angelenos do. Other than the rain, the weather wasn't too bad and the beaches were gorgeous. I just wish we'd adjusted to the time difference better so we could have done more during the day. Now it's back here for a while. Unless we decide to go somewhere over the holidays.