Hi friends, welcome back! After spending a relaxing day in South Beach, it was time to head to Brickell for Jon’s conference the following day. Lucky for us the conference was at the Four Seasons. We don’t usually stay at 5-star hotels so this was a treat! We loved our room, especially all the space, fancy bathroom, and view of Brickell. The hotel also has access to the Equinox gym and a beautiful rooftop pool that I took advantage of.
Brickell is the financial center in Miami and full of skyscrapers, condos, and restaurants. It felt a little like home but with spacious, palm tree lined sidewalks and better smelling air. It also has an above ground public transportation system that made it easy for me to get around. Brickell is in Biscayne Bay and doesn’t have a beach, so if I was going to Miami for vacation, I’d opt to stay in South Beach instead of Brickell.
While Jon was in his meetings, I did some exploring on my own. On Monday I went to Vizcaya Museum & Gardens (future posts), and while I was there, a fellow traveler told me about a dog sculpture park I should check out. The following day I took the Metrorail north and enjoyed the views along the way. A ride only cost $2.25, a lot cheaper than an Uber. From the Metrorail I walked along the promenade near the cruise port on my way to the sculpture park. I passed by the Kaseya Center where the Heat play basketball.
The sculpture garden is located in Maruice A. Ferre Park next to the Perez Art Museum and Phillip and Patricia Frost Museum of Science. The art museum is closed Tuesdays or it would’ve been a good place to spend a few hours. The sculptures I was looking for was the Dogs & Cats Walkway & Sculpture Garden completed by fifty local artists. The collection includes colorful sculptures of 26 dogs and 26 cats along with a description and history of each breed. This display was controversial because the city awarded almost $1 million dollars of taxpayer money to the project without any other proposals or negotiations.
As a dog lover I enjoyed walking though the sculpture park. It was interesting to see each artists use of color and design.
I also enjoyed walking through the park. I need to make some friends with whoever owns those boats!
There’s a similar sculpture to this one in New Jersey by the same artist Jaume Plensa. This one is called “Awilda” and she watches over the Port of Miami.
Heading back I saw the Freedom Tower in Miami but it’s still under construction. This building was used to house Cuban refugees during the Cuban Revolution. It’s now a U.S. National Historic Landmark and home to an art gallery and offices of Miami Dade College.
I walked through Bayside Marketplace but it was very touristy, so I just did a quick lap before heading back to the Metrorail to go back to the hotel.
The rest of the day I took advantage of the pool and caught up on my book.
Stay tuned for a tour of Vizcaya!
I can see the attraction to living in such a lush area, but the heat would likely do me in. What a crazy big hotel room. Four Seasons knows luxury. Love the whimsical dog art display. Even though they did not solicit other proposals, I think they scored big with this one. Happy Monday Lyssy. Allan
The heat and humidity would do me in too, especially my hair. That was a nice hotel room, very hard to leave. I enjoyed the dog display too!
Loved the sculpture garden – taxpayers’ money well spent!
It was a fun sculpture garden to walk through!
I bet
Another side to Miami that many of us non-locals don’t know about! Brickell looks like a blend of urban city and nature, with its gleaming skyscrapers and palm trees/green spaces surrounding it. Looking forward to the next installment on Miami!
I’d never heard of Brickell until we had to stay there haha. It’s a nice neighborhood and I loved the blend of urban and nature too.
It was great that you could take time from work to accompany Jon on the Miami trip. An interesting read as Miami and Florida in general is somewhere I know little about. So nice to be pampered at the Four Seasons too!
It was a great little getaway for us! I’ve been to Florida quite a few times, there are lots of great places to visit. The Four Seasons can’t be beat!
That sounds like a wonderful couple of days! What a beautiful hotel.
It was hard to leave!
What a lovely break – that’s one fine sized room!!!!
We were spoiled there!!
This area looks so beautiful, and I love all the palm trees! Also, the sculpture park with the cats and dogs is very cool!
Brickell is really beautiful! I enjoyed seeing the sculpture park, the sculptures are so fun!
I stayed in Miami in the 80s and wasn’t too impressed. What a difference now.
It is really hopping now!
I’ve never stayed in a hotel that fancy! Looks like a fun little tour of the area. I weirdly like the cat and dog sculptures (I feel like that kind of thing is hit or miss).
We got spoiled with that room! The sculptures are entertaining and the colors are fun to see. I agree I think you either love it or hate it.
The promenade with the palm trees, marching down what appears to be a canal or reflecting pool on the left, looks totally inviting/peaceful for walking. So does the curving path through the area with the dog sculptures (though I’m not a fan of most of the art). Props to the hotel for the creative carpet design and spacious rooms. Access to an Equinox – ooooo – I’ve heard those are first-class-celebrity-hangout kinda workout facilities. Is the pool with the palm tree “islands” really a pool or just somewhere to cool your feet? Finally, I needed a new read so I downloaded a sample of “No One Can Know” – thanks. Let me know what you think so far 🙂
The park did a nice job with the paths and palm trees, very appealing looking. Equinox is very nice, although that one was a bit cramped/crowded. Luckily our apartment building has all the same equipment as Equinox without having to shell out 200+ a person. That little pool was maybe a foot deep at the most, but the other pool by the lounge chairs was normal. I enjoyed “No One Can Know” it was very unpredictable and not too intense for a thriller type book.
What a huge room!
Loved seeing the dogs and all of the palm trees- it looks so summery!
That room was a dream! It did feel so summery down there, a nice break from the long winter.
The dogs are so cool, they remind me a lot of the Berlin bears which are a similar thing. Your hotel room looks lovely, though that carpet is a whole lot to take in!! 🙂
That’s so funny I didn’t even notice the carpet haha! You’re right they do look a lot like the Berlin Bears.
Your hotel room looks massive! The sculpture garden looks like a nice place to go for a stroll.
The room looks great, but the rooftop pool sounds a lot better. Is it just me or is there a distinct lack of cat photos in this article ha ha. The sculpture garden looks like a great place to wander with all the colourful sculptures and palm trees.
Jaume Plensa always seems to produce the same head, I’ve seen the same works in Buffalo NY and in Bordeaux, France.
From the shores of South Beach and sparkling high-rises of Downtown Miami to quaint Coral Gables and even the lush farmland of Homestead, there’s no denying that Miami is a beautiful city. I love the many types of palm trees that make Florida unique as well as the climate which is perfect for enjoying the beaches all year round. I am glad you had a great time. Thanks for sharing, and have a good day 🙂 Aiva xx
I like the walkability of the sculpture park. Looks like a flat handicapped accessible area. Very cool looking neighborhoods.