Hot Florida travel destinations with Jill Podehl: In the mood for even more culture? Then pay a visit to the Norton Museum of Art. Established in 1941 by Ralph Hubbard Norton, this excellent art gallery houses the industrialist’s vast collection of artworks from around the globe. Be prepared to take your time when you visit. The largest art gallery of its kind in Florida, the Norton Museum is home to some 7,000 works from Europe, China, and the US. In addition to its many galleries, there’s also a lovely courtyard to explore, as well as a sculpture garden. A variety of free tours are available, including fun after-hour tours on Friday evenings. The museum also offers a regular roster of lectures and educational programming. A restaurant and gift shop are also located on the premises. Discover even more info at Jill Podehl West Palm Beach, Florida.
The Ancient Spanish Monastery is famous in Miami for being one of the country’s best examples of historic religious buildings. It was built in 1133 in the northern region of Spain, where it was named The Monastery of Our Lady, Queen of the Angels. It was a home for many Cistercian monks for over a whopping seven centuries. During the First Carlist War, the monastery was seized and turned into a stable and granary. But in 1925, William Randolph Hearst, who had fallen in love with the monastery’s building and history, decided to purchase it for himself. The monastery was slowly dismantled, each stone placed in 11,000 or so crates to be shipped to America. It was a long time before the monastery was eventually rebuilt – in fact, it was after Hearst’s death! It was set up as a tourist attraction 25 or so years after its original purchase.
Recognized as one of Miami’s greatest treasures, The Vizcaya Museum and Gardens with its stunning architecture, grounds and artwork are certainly worth a visit. Featuring 34 rooms arranged around a breath taking courtyard, the Renaissance-style villa is filled with the most exquisite European furniture and arts reaching from the 15th to the 19th century. Over 1,100 craftsmen were bought over from Europe for true authenticity in design, to complete this 28-acre estate. But to truly enjoy a vacation you also need a nice place to stay.
Do you want to enjoy the blue sky and the warm sun ? Miami is a perfect location to relax. What can you see in Miami? In the warehouse district of Wynwood, the formerly drab exterior warehouse walls have been transformed into colorful pieces of art. The Wynwood Walls, plastered in street art, or what most people think of as graffiti, have brought new life to this area. Brought about by Tony Goldman in 2009, the district has attracted big names in the world of street art from across North America and around the world. Since it was started, more than 80,000 square feet of wall space has been graced with paintings in this unique artform.
Jill Podehl Florida attractions right now: A block off Ocean, all-night clubs and drag bars pick up the tempo. Edgy art galleries and museums, chi-chi restaurants, and the most design-forward of restored hotels contribute to SoBe’s reputation as it follows Collins Avenue along Miami Beach’s Golden Mile and to the newly fashionable neighborhoods of North Miami Beach, Sunny Isles and, on the mainland, Aventura. Haulover Park offers scores of recreation and chic hotels, spas and golf resorts accommodate in style.
New owners William Edgemon and Raymond Moss saw the potential in their purchase and spent the equivalent of 20 million dollars to move the whole structure and rebuilt it in the northern area of Miami. Its life didn’t begin here in Miami, Florida, though – it started out as a building in Spain that served as the living quarters of Cistercian monks, keeping up this purpose for over 700 years. It would fall out of this use after being seized by a revolutionary movement, which repurposed it into a stable and granary. In 1925, William Randolph Hearst, a newspaper magnate, was so impressed by the sheer beauty and wonder of the monastery that he decided to completely purchase it. Each part of it was broken apart into individual stones, packaged into over 11,000 boxes, and sent to Brooklyn, New York. Read even more info on https://ar.pinterest.com/jillpodehl/.
If art is your thing, the Wynwood Arts District is a perfect spot to explore the eye-opening world of street art. Find it at Wynwood Walls – an outdoor museum dedicated to the artform – and throughout this hip neighborhood. Or, pay a visit to the Pérez Art Museum Miami (PAMM) to peruse its collection of contemporary art of the Americas, housed in a stunning building overlooking Biscayne Bay in Downtown Miami that was designed by Pritzker Prize-winning architects Herzog & de Meuron. Right next door, you can see amazing sights at the Phillip and Patricia Frost Museum of Science, which houses both an aquarium and a planetarium. You’ll never run out of things to do in Miami, no matter what tickles your fancy, how much you have to spend, and who you’re traveling with.