My View of Life on the Dock
Vigil Lights in the Catholic church are lights that are lit in a certain area of the church by people that are usually asking for a favor from god.
Vigil Lights at The Basilica of The Immaculate Conception, originally uploaded by captjoe06.
Although we stayed up in Rodney Bay we took a taxi to the Port of Castries where the markets are and cruise ships pull in to dock. In the center of this crowded city is this beautiful church- Cathedral Basilica Of Immaculate Conception.
It is the largest church in the Carribean measuring 200×100 feet wide.
Here are a couple of tugboats in the Port of Castries which are used to bring the cruise ships into port.
Yes it’s true friends. I had to check myself into rehab while on vacation. The treatment was top notch and included a vigorous regimen of vodka tonics and banana daiquiris.
Checked Into Rehab In Rodney Bay St Lucia, originally uploaded by captjoe06.
There was a rather large woman cooking something in a pot off to the right in the picture. A fire had been set using whatever scraps of wood that were around and the pot set right atop that fire. Under the fishing boats which were hailed up out omn the dock there were many small dogs playing with each other and some roosters roaming around. Obviously getting the dogs neutered was not high on the priority list.
Just across the bay were two cruise ships. Such a striking contrast between the big hulking and modern cruise ships and the very basic fishing boats.
Castries Fishermen’s Pier, originally uploaded by captjoe06.
Representing At The Fishing Port Of Dennery Bay St Lucia, originally uploaded by captjoe06.
Old School South Beach- The Winter Haven Hotel
Winter Haven Hotel, South Beach Miami, originally uploaded by captjoe06.
New School South Beach -Il Villagio
There were countless stores along Washington Street and around South beach selling this type of club wear fashion. Certain young guys can pull it off in the right setting but to me 99.9 percent of the guys wearing clothes like this are tragic fashion victims. The kind of fashion victims like the guys in the eighties that wore parachute pants and had flock of seagull haircuts.
The absolute worst though is when you see forty year old white guys trying to pull this look off. Every time we would walk by one I’d squeeze The Mrs’ hand and she would know exactly what I was thinking- “Fashion Victim”
Note to all you guys out there- Flaps on the back of your jeans pockets and rhinestones=bad. Don’t be another victim.
Fashion Victim Clothing, originally uploaded by captjoe06.
One Block From Some Of The Most beautiful Places To Be. I guess to some people it may be beautiful too, like the Birdseye Plant.
South Beach Alley, originally uploaded by captjoe06.
Click The Picture To View The Video
South Beach Homie, originally uploaded by captjoe06.
I love the architecture here. Probably because I’m a sucker for symmetry.
South Beach Miami, originally uploaded by captjoe06.
South Beach Miami, originally uploaded by captjoe06.
These hotels are old and have a rich history. When I was looking up and trying to frame this shot I couldn’t help but wonder what kind of mischief went on over the years on that rooftop balcony. I mean really, how much damage has been done up there? What kinds of parties? How many times did lovers have at it up there with the Atlantic lapping at the shore across the street and partygoers dining and drinking down below on Ocean Ave? If the walls could talk in some of these places and tell the stories of drug deals, romantic encounters, fights, the highs and lows of South Beach’s popularity what a story some of these buildings could tell.
Art Deco, South Beach, Miami, originally uploaded by captjoe06.
I had no idea that Peter and Vickie were living so large! Hey Pete, you’re buyin the pizza at the next Block Party meeting!
The Van Ness Hotel South Beach Miami, originally uploaded by captjoe06.
When I started to come here in the early 90s the renovation boom had just kicked off. I remember going through some open houses for hotel-condo conversions which were selling for $60,000. What I didn’t remember back then was the sheer number of hotels in the Art Deco district. There are probably twenty more going through revitilization as we speak and many many have already undergone transformations. I was reading a book about the early 90s revitilization and it was quoted as saying that rooms on Ocean Drive in 1976 could be had for $5. That was of course when you would not have wanted to be here and it was a dangerous place.
Penguin Hotel, originally uploaded by captjoe06.
The Whitelaw Hotel Lobby South Beach, Miami, originally uploaded by captjoe06.
it’s tough to get an idea of the scale of this sofa and chairs from this picture. I wish the Mrs was sitting in them so you could get an idea of hof massive they were.
This picture does not represent the proper light in the room but it really was beautiful in a funky eclectic sort of way.
The Whitelaw Hotel Lobby, originally uploaded by captjoe06.
I can’t attest for the rooms as I didn’t get past the lobby, but the decor was sexy as hell. Those Victorian style chairs were way oversized. I’ve never seen such bold statements in decor in person. The only thing that might have come close was Graceland as far as over the top design in a small space.
It’s not demure, it’s not understated, they went for it in a big way. This probably wouldn’t work in too many places but it works here in South Beach.
The Whitelaw Hotel, originally uploaded by captjoe06.
The Whitelaw Hotel looks pretty nondescript from the outside but once you step foot inside it’s a visual feast.
Good Morning Gloucester 