| On recent trip to Fort Lauderdale a friend and I were | | | | crisscrossed by 300 miles of navigable waterways. |
| really impressed with how the city has grown up. | | | | We went up and down the canals looking at all the |
| When we were younger we used to come down | | | | magnificent architecture of the homes in the area and |
| here for Spring Break and really enjoyed the area; an | | | | all the yachts. So to say that it's great area if you love |
| area that is now quite cultural but still fun. | | | | the water is an understatement. If you own a yacht or |
| We've always liked the Fort Lauderdale area because | | | | any kind of boat, which many people here do, it's a |
| its tropical climate makes it warm in summer and the | | | | perfect place to go sailing either on the intracoastal or, |
| winters are so mild that many of our friends from up | | | | as we did, through the canals. |
| north come down for a visit too. The Fort Lauderdale | | | | Every year, usually in the fall, Fort Lauderdale has this |
| Hollywood International Airport is a great place for | | | | great boat show called the Fort Lauderdale |
| friends and family who are visiting South Florida to fly | | | | International Boat Show. It's is the largest in water boat |
| into and be conveniently picked up. One of the world's | | | | show in the world and shows off over three billion |
| busiest cruise departure ports, Port Everglades, is just | | | | dollars worth of boats, yachts and super yachts as |
| miles away from the airport. This is convenient for the | | | | well as electronics, engines and thousands of boating |
| four million cruise passengers that pass through each | | | | accessories. The Boat Show occupies more than |
| year to get to the ships that will take them all over the | | | | three million square feet of space, both on land and in |
| Caribbean, Europe and the rest of the world. | | | | water, but don't worry they provide a network of |
| A great day trip if you're spending some time in the | | | | water taxis, riverboats and bus shuttles to help people |
| area is the Everglades National Park. The Everglades | | | | get around. Maybe we'll came back for that, it sounds |
| is pretty much a swamp that has many birds and | | | | like fun. |
| animals living in it. Its really beautiful and a great place | | | | The next day we decided to just relax and go to the |
| to take an air boat ride especially if you've never been | | | | beach. The Fort Lauderdale area has 23 miles of |
| on an air boat before. | | | | beautiful beaches so we knew we'd find one we |
| My friend and I stayed in Fort Lauderdale and decided | | | | liked.These are some of the ones we visited. Deerfield |
| to go down to Las Olas Blvd to the Riverwalk area. | | | | Beach is a cove beach and is great for a calm quiet |
| This is the Art and Entertainment district and also | | | | day at the beach. Then there's Hillsboro Beach that |
| where the Broward Center for the Performing Arts is | | | | has the Hillsboro Lighthouse. This is the perfect beach |
| located. We didn't want to see a play or modern | | | | to sit on and watch all the yachts and other boats |
| dance recital but we did go to the Sunrise Cinemas. | | | | come in because it's right at the inlet. Pompano Beach |
| This is a great place to see a movie with a unique | | | | was named for the Pompano fish found in the area, |
| twist. After the latest blockbuster, or Indy film, you can | | | | every year they host the Pompano Seafood festival |
| go relax in the beer and wine bar in the lobby and | | | | and a Fishing Rodeo. There is a bend in the Gulf |
| discuss what you've just seen, which we did with | | | | Stream here that makes this some of the warmest, |
| some people whose table we asked to share, it was | | | | clearest water in South Florida. |
| crowded, they were gracious and we made new | | | | Lauderdale-By-The-Sea is one of the only places in |
| friends. | | | | Florida where the three-tier natural coral reef system |
| The next day we went back to Riverwalk to catch a | | | | is close enough to the beach for you to swim out and |
| boat tour of the area. You see, Fort Lauderdale is | | | | go snorkeling or diving which we did, it was |
| known as the "Venice of America" because it's | | | | spectacular. |