Aruba Part IV (Miami, actually)

Sunday morning was our last day in Aruba.  :o( 

We woke up early and enjoyed a nice breakfast before hitting the hotel's souvenir shop.  Normally I would not be interested in getting souvenirs from a hotel, but an odd thing happened on Saturday: the hotel's water shut off!!  Apparently a water pipe burst and the WHOLE HOTEL WAS OUT OF WATER, can you believe that??????  That is about the worst thing that can happen to a hotel (barring tragedy of course).  It didn't affect us since we were out all morning sightseeing.  But they struck a deal with Marcus' company and gave everyone a $200 hotel credit.  Since we still had enough food credit for breakfast, we used the whole bonus on hats, bags, and other gifts.  It was fun to have a shopping spree.

one last poolside session

a nice breakfast (buffet, just what I wanted!)

Driving to the airport: one of the cruise ships docked for
the day (it was massive!)

Bye bye Aruba!

Looking down on our corner of the island

We left Aruba at about 4 or 5pm in the afternoon, with the plan to stay the night in Miami and leave very early the next morning for Portland via Dallas/Fort Worth.  Marcus chose this arrangement because other itineraries had us flying through the east coast or midwest…not smart in February!

But…when we woke up early Monday morning (3am) Marcus found out that our flight to Dallas was cancelled.  Do you remember the big snow/ice storm Texas had in mid February?  (Patty, I'm sure you do!!!)  Well, that was it.  I was completely devastated.  The trip to Aruba was fun but I wanted to be home with my kids and my parents.  I had planned a full day on Tuesday of just putzing around outside with my dad and spending time with my mom as well, before they had to leave Wednesday morning.  Now, Marcus and I wouldn't leave for home until Tuesday mid-morning, and we would arrive in Portland in the evening.  This delay was NOT in my plans!

After being a miserable depressed wreck for a few hours (ok, half a day) we decided that since we were stuck in Miami for the whole day, we might as well do something.  My kind husband (probably scared of me at this point) said, "Whatever you want to do, sweetie."  I wanted to walk around a garden, and we found this fabulous place called Vizcaya just 15 minutes from our hotel.  Check out the link if you can--my pictures do NOT do it justice.

Viscaya was built in 1914 by James Deering of International Harvester (tractors) fame.  He wanted a summer home that was reminiscent of old Europe, especially 17th century Italy.  He and his designer took many trips to Europe to buy antiques, from furniture to paintings to whole walls (!).  Marcus and I took an audio tour and we were very glad we did.  Photos were not allowed in the house so all these are from the gardens:

Deering had this fake ship/pier built for parties.  Guests had
to take a gondola across the small stretch of water.

Looking out from one side of the house

Looking back at the house

A lot of local limestone was used, but it looked
like it was very old cobblestone.

A very popular spot for photographers.
We saw shoots for quinceaneras and weddings.

It wasn't all play--Marcus had to work a bit.

I'm really glad we took this little trip to Viscaya.  It lifted my spirits!  If you ever find yourself in Miami, consider a half-day trip to this wonderful museum and gardens.