Miami, Florida 21.07

Guantanamera, Guajira guantanamera, guantanameeeeeeera, Gujira Gunatanamera 

Kuna hommikusöök algas alles suhteliselt hilja ja hommikul ärkamisega enam probleeme ei olnud, siis tegime emaga kõigepealt ühe umbes tunnise geotuuri. Pettumust tekitas ainult see, et kui esimese leidsin kohe, siis järgmisi mitte. Sellest hoolimata oli huvitav praktiliselt inimtühjadel tänavatel jalutada. Leidsime suure aaloe-laadse taime ja banaanipuu.

Shepley South Beach Hotelli hommikusöögi ruum oli huvitavalt kitsas. Alguses vaatasin, et valik on äärmiselt piiratud aga tegelikult oli kõik vajalik olemas. Ehk siis väikesed pakid erinevaid helbeid, jogurtit saime, erinevad saiakesed, röstsai, munaputru, puuvilju ja isegi vorstiviil.

Süüa sai söögiruumis või õues, kuhu meie suundusimegi. Heh, selles majutuses olid ukseavajad. Ja siis oli nii imelik süüa juurde võtta, kui keegi sulle uksed lahti teeb. Ja siis, kui korra tegelikult vaja oli, ei olnud uksel kedagi.

Mida tehakse 500m ookeanist? Minnakse lainetesse hõljuma. Natuke seedisime enne. Seekord võtsime kaasa hotelli rätikud. Aaa. Miamis, kus üle poole rahvastikust on latiinod, räägitakse loomulikult hispaania keelt. Meie hotellis rääkisid inglise keelt kaks töötajat, kes olid erinevas vahetuses tööl.

Siis Uber, mis viis meid Little Havana linnaossa, mis nagu nimigi ütleb, saab inspiratsiooni Kuuba pagulastelt, kes saabusid Miamisse Castro režiimi eest ajutiselt 1960ndatel. Ma ei teadnud ülitäpselt, kust alustada aga kuna kaheksas tänav, Calle Ocho, on Little Havana keskpunkt, siis leidsin kaardilt loogilisema koha ja auto viis meid sinna.

Kirkavärvilised majad, Kuuba riigi kaardid ja palju kukkesid. 1.8m kukkede paigaldamise algupära pärineb Šveitsist, kus 1998 propageeriti linnaruumi loomade kujude püstitamist. See trend levis aasta hiljem Chicagosse ja 2002. aastal leidsid viis esimest kukke tee Miamisse. Autoriks kohalik skulptor Tony Lopez, keda inspireeris tõenäoliselt tema kukk Pepe, kes oli Lopezi suhtes väga kaitsev. Aga nii lihtne see ei ole, sest teine kohalik skulptor, Pedro Damian väitis, et Lopezi töö aluseks on Damiani visand.

Kui levisid kuuldused, et politsei paigaldas kukkede silmadesse kaameraid, toimus rünnak kukkede silmadele. Kukkesid on varastatud ja 2011 kadus kõige ikoonilisem isend, keda "laenasid" üliõpilased.

Lisaks värvilistele majadele ja kuuba toidukohadele on Calle Ochol 1961. aasta Bay of Pigs mälestusmärk, umbes 1500 Castro-vastase kuuba pagulase ebaõnnestunud sissetung Kuubale, mida toetas USA valitsus. Ja kohalike seas populaarne Kuuba revolutsionäärile, Maximo Gomezile, pühendatud Domino park. Ja sarnaselt Hollywoodile, tähtede allee kohalike kuulsuste nimedega.

Kella 1.40ks oli meil vaja olla LoanDeopt pargis ja kuna aega hakkas väheseks jäämas tegime kiire lõunaka Mäkis. Muuks ei jäänud aega.

Ja siis juba sammud LoanDepot pargi poole, kui taevaluugid avanesid ja tuli hetkega ämber kaela. Seoses sellega. Olime teel Miami Marlinsi ja New York Metsi pesapallimängule. Sest üks õige pesapall pidi kavva tulema, korvpalli hooaeg on pausil.

Piletid olid ammu ostetud aga millele ma enne seda hommikut tähelepanu ei pööranud, oli märkus, et kaasas võib olla ainult tilluke kott (mõõtmed antud, tõesti väike käekott) või suurem läbipaistev kott. Kuna läbipaistvat ei olnud meil kuskilt võtta, siis olin pannud kaamerale lainurga (sest see mahtus ääri-veeri kotti) ja muud kaasa ei võtnud. Vihmavari oli tilluke ja emal kotis. Istusime paar minutit vihmavarjus ja see lõppes nagu lõigatult. Heh, tänaval kanad ja kuked. Mitte aias, vaid päris tänaval.

Jõudsime staadionile, esimesena proovisime valest sissepääsust sisse tungida. Kui see ei õnnestunud, leidsime lõpuks õige värava üles. Turvakontrollis tegeleti minu kotiga väga põhjalikult aga kuna kaamera oli kotis (telefon sellel hetkel korraks tagataskus) ja koti lukk läks kinni, siis lasti meid sisse.

Keegid proovisid meiega ebaõnnestunult hispaania-inglise segakeeles rääkida. Kuna ühel maskotil oli sünnipäev, jagati tasuta sünnipäeva särke. Leidsime oma kohad. Park oli üllatavalt katuse all. Mänguga käib kaasas popkorn, siis tõin karbi seda. Kõige kallim popkorn, mida ostnud olen. Ja.. Ja tellida tuli iseteenindusaparaadist. Mis. Ootas. Tippi.

Mäng ise kestis peaaegu neli tundi. Natuke vähem aga palju puudu ei jäänud. No nii aeglast pallimängu annab otsida, kuigi võistkonnad on nagu korralikud. Suur rõhk šõul, vaheklippidel ja melul. Inimesi vooris pidevalt treppidest üles-alla. Täiesti omaette kogemus.

Rahvamassi sees väljapääsu poole liikudes oli vaja leida pargist piisavalt kaugel olev, kuhu oli võimalik Uber juhatada ja see reaalselt üles leida. Õnneks sellega probleemi ei olnud aga kuna pargist eemaldus massiliselt autosid, tekkisid arvestatavad ummikud.

Majutusest läbi käinud, läksime õhtusööki otsima. Pärast mõningast kaalumist leidsime Thai House South Beach, mille klienditeenindaja suurimaks tugevuseks ei olnud inglise keel. Kuidagi saime hakkama ja söönuks samuti.

Kui päev algab rannaga, siis on imeline, kui see ka lõppeb seal. Jätkuvalt soe, jätkuvalt lained.

Guantanamera, Guajira guantanamera, guantanameeeeeeera, Gujira Gunatanamera

Since breakfast started relatively late and waking up early was no longer an issue, my mum and I decided to take a roughly hour-long geocaching tour first. The only disappointment was that while I immediately found the first cache, the others were elusive. Despite that, it was interesting to stroll along the nearly deserted streets. We discovered a large aloe-like plant and a banana tree. The breakfast room at Shepley South Beach Hotel was intriguingly narrow. At first glance, the selection seemed extremely limited, but in reality, everything you needed was there: cereal, small packets of different kinds of cereal, yoghurt, various pastries, toast, scrambled eggs, fruit, and even slices of sausage. You could eat in the dining room or outside, and we opted for the latter. It was amusing, though – in this hotel, there were door openers. It felt strange to take more food when someone opened doors for you, but when I needed it, there was no one at the door.

What do you do when you're 500m from the ocean? You go and float in the waves, of course. We digested a bit first. This time, we brought along the hotel towels. Oh, and in Miami, where more than half the population is Latino, the majority speaks Spanish. At our hotel, only two staff members spoke English.

Afterwards, we took an Uber to the Little Havana district, which, as the name suggests, is inspired by Cuban exiles who temporarily fled to Miami in the 1960s during Castro's regime. I wasn’t entirely sure where to start, but since 8th Street, Calle Ocho, is the heart of Little Havana, I found the most logical spot on the map, and the car took us there.

Brightly coloured houses, maps of Cuba, and lots of roosters. The origin of the 1.8m tall rooster statues comes from Switzerland, where in 1998, they promoted the installation of animal sculptures in urban spaces. This trend spread to Chicago the following year, and in 2002, five roosters made their way to Miami. The artist was a local sculptor, Tony Lopez, who was likely inspired by his rooster Pepe, who was very protective of Lopez. But it's not that simple because another local sculptor, Pedro Damian, claimed that Lopez's work was based on Damian’s sketches.

When rumours spread that the police had installed cameras in the roosters' eyes, there were attacks on the roosters' eyes. Roosters have been stolen, and in 2011, the most iconic one was "borrowed" by some university students.

In addition to the colourful houses and Cuban restaurants, Calle Ocho has the 1961 Bay of Pigs Memorial, commemorating the failed invasion of Cuba by about 1,500 anti-Castro Cuban exiles, supported by the US government. There’s also the popular Domino Park, dedicated to Cuban revolutionary Maximo Gomez, and, similar to Hollywood, a Walk of Fame with the names of local celebrities.

By 1:40 pm, we needed to be at LoanDepot Park, and as time was running short, we quickly grabbed lunch at McDonald's. There was no time for anything else.

Then, we headed towards LoanDepot Park, just as the heavens opened, drenching us in moments. This was on our way to the Miami Marlins vs New York Mets baseball game. After all, a proper baseball match had to be part of the plan since the basketball season was on hold.

The tickets had been purchased ages ago, but what I hadn’t noticed until that morning was a note stating that you could only bring a tiny bag (with specific dimensions – minute) or a larger, transparent bag. Since we didn’t have a transparent bag, I’d packed a wide-angle lens on my camera (because it just about fit in my bag) and didn’t bring anything else. The umbrella was small and in my mum’s bag. We sat under the tiny umbrella for a few minutes, and just as suddenly as it started, the rain stopped. Heh, there were chickens and roosters in the street. Not in a garden, but right on the street.

We arrived at the stadium and first tried to enter through the wrong gate. When that didn’t work, we finally found the correct entrance. Security gave my bag a thorough inspection, but since the camera was in the bag (and my phone was temporarily in my back pocket), and the zip closed, we were let in.

Some people tried to speak to us unsuccessfully in a mix of Spanish and English. Since one of the mascots was having a birthday, free birthday shirts were handed out. We found our seats. The park was surprisingly under a roof. A baseball game wouldn’t be complete without popcorn, so I went to get a box. The most expensive popcorn I’ve ever bought. And... you had to order it through a self-service machine. Which. Expected. A tip.

The game itself lasted nearly four hours. A bit less, but not by much. I mean, you’d be hard-pressed to find a slower-paced ball game, although the teams were quite famous. There was a heavy emphasis on showmanship, video clips, and entertainment. People were constantly streaming up and down the stairs. A whole experience in itself.

While moving through the crowd towards the exit, we had to find a spot far enough from the park where an Uber could pick us up, and we could actually locate it. Luckily, that wasn’t a problem, but since so many cars were leaving the park, traffic jams were inevitable.

After a quick stop at the hotel, we went in search of dinner. After some deliberation, we settled on Thai House South Beach, where the server’s greatest strength was not their English. Somehow, we managed, and we got fed as well.

If a day starts at the beach, it’s wonderful when it also ends there. Still warm, still wonderful waves.