Sunday 13th May 2007...Mothers' Day, South Beach. Miami

Miami Factoid...Biscayne Bay is named after a Spanish explorer who took shelter here in hurricanes.


Today is my first day of leisure in I don't know how long and I will spend it exploring the art deco and spanish mission of South Beach.

But first, a call to my Mum in Scotland to wish her a Happy American Mothers' Day.

Wendy, Mark and I are heading out in Miami Beach and it strikes me again just how much my life veers from the sublime to the ridiculous. Here I am driving through condo land in luxury vehicles with the beautiful people...luxury cars, trendy homes, the silver spoon and then some...and yet I don't feel out of place. It is a world that for some reason I have belonged too for some years. This is what my life was like in the UK and here I am driving through the Beach in a turbo model (of which this is the only car in the whole state); I am experiencing the Miami mindset firsthand. This is a city where you need a named brand for everything from clothes to cars just to be; infact, just to survive.

Our destination is the exclusivity of the Delano where we dine by the pool and where I am drinking lemon-drop martini. It is so stylish the way Wendy and Mark communicate with each other on opposite sides of the pool by telephone. To give you an idea, this establishment has plasma televisions and works of art in the cabanas.

After my walk on the beach I find myself eating kobe beef which originates from the ancient province of Tajima in Japan, of which Kobe is the capital.

The going price for this beef is in excess of £100.00 per pound and in the USA, kobe style beef is produced using a crossbreed of Wagyu and American Angus cattle.

Food is on the agenda all day today and after our leisurely afternoon Wendy and I walk the streets of South Beach before heading over to dine with Miriam and Blythe at Tapas & Tintos on Española Way.

La Tapa originated when the Spanish king Alfonso X, the wise, was prescribed by his doctor to take small amounts of food with some wine between meals in order to prevent an upset stomach.

The wise king saw the benefits and ordered that all the inns of Castilla could only serve wine if it was accompanied by something to eat. As a result, in all taverns the glass or carafe of wine was served covered with either a slice of ham or cheese to avoid the impurities that could fall into the carafe and also the food would soak up the alcohol.

This royal providence avoided the alcoholic disturbances in the body that the poor peasants suffered as they were traditionally unable to afford a full meal and thus had tended just to drink wine.

Tapas is a fine representation of the wonders of Spanish cuisine that originate partly as a result of the Moorish occupation of the South and also because of the rich cultural and geographic diversity of the country.