Miami Beach

The Florida Chapter had its 2007 reunion in February in Miami Beach, Florida. The reunion welcomes all Bank retirees and we had retirees from as far away as Washington DC and Europe (some people have yet to discover the Florida paradise)!

On a balmy Tuesday evening, after some drinks at the bar of our South Beach hotel (our hotel was one of the refurbished Art Deco hotels), we strolled down Ocean Avenue in Miami Beach to our dinner at Quinn's Restaurant. The food was good and the company was great!

The next morning it was early rise for a drive to the Big Cyprus Seminole Reservation where we toured the Ah-Tah-Thi-Ki Museum. The museum features the nation's largest display of the life and culture of the unconquered Florida Seminoles through exhibits, rare artifacts and cultural displays. We also got a lecture on medicinal plants as we walked to the ceremonial grounds and the Seminole village.

From there it was a short drive to Billie Swamp Safari which opens 2,200 lush acres of its Big Cypress Everglades Reservation to the public. We took an airboat tour into reservation wetlands and sloughs where wildlife abounded, sighting deer, water buffalo, bison, wild hogs, hawks, eagles and other birds and, to our delight, several alligators. We also attended a lecture on Floridian poisonous snakes and got to see them up close. The colors and rattles were amazing.

On Thursday morning we visited the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Miami Hurricane Center. We learned about the airplanes that fly into hurricanes, we got information about FEMA, and we got lots of details about the work that goes on at the Center when a hurricane approaches the coast of the United States and how such hurricane is tracked.

A good-bye dinner at Grazie Restaurant was another occasion to taste wonderful dishes and to spend some good time together. The next morning, after some of us took the guided art deco tour of South Beach, we all returned to our home towns all over Florida and further away.

Want to see the pictures we all took? Then go to:

http://picasaweb.google.com/knordlander/MiamiBeachReunion