Maia in South Beach, Redux

It was only 57 degrees our first day in South Beach! But we took a walk on the beach, and it was still beautiful. The sun was shining. 57 degrees was 40 degrees warmer than back home, so we were happy!

We came across a lovely starfish on our walk. Then we went to the room and watched our new president swear in on inauguration day. Exciting!

Our second day was warmer, if you stayed out of the wind. Felicia had her favorite things by her side: me (incognito, as dogs for some reason aren't allowed by the pool!), her friend Joanne, a piña colada, and the ocean. Bliss.

Then, the condo next door tested its hoses! Guess what. They worked!
Till tomorrow,
Love, Maia

Lincoln Avenue Parade of Dogs, Continued

I am a very large Pomeranian.

I love living in Miami.

And I love walking down Lincoln Avenue and meeting and greeting all my other canine friends even more.

I even like meeting dogs like this French poodle!
Till tomorrow,
Love, Maia

Lincoln Avenue Parade of Dogs

A really good comedian entertained the browsers walking along Lincoln Ave in Miami.

"I love living in Miami!"

"Me, too. I feel sorry for all those dogs in Michigan who have to brave a blizzard just to do their business!"

"And do they ever get any exercise? No! It's too cold to take a walk. Poor things." "Yeah, what a shame."
Till tomorrow,
Love, Maia

More Dog Parades on Lincoln Avenue

Here I am with Felicia and Joanne on our way to Lincoln Avenue for dinner.

Looks like a baby St. Bernard and a Chihuahua. Look at the paws on the baby Bernard!

This friendly fellow turned our way to say hello!

And a camera-shy Papillon?
Till tomorrow (and more Dogs of Miami),
Love, Maia

Doggie Parade in SoBe

Felicia and Joanne walked 16 blocks to World Resource Asian Fusion and Sushi restaurant. During dinner, they watched the doggie scene! Tout le monde des doggeurs were there!

Hefty-looking Bulldog, originally from the United Kingdom!

Ein Spitzhund Pomerainian from the part of Europe which is now Eastern Germany.

And le beau Papillon...which is French for "butterfly," so named because of the breed's large ears. It's one of the oldest of the toy spaniels.
All in all, we had a barking good time!
Till tomorrow,
Love, Maia

Meet the Guides at Casa Casuarina!

Meet Limor (love that name!) Weinberg, the lovely guide who escorted us around Casa Casuarina.

She pointed out all the details that Gianni Versaci so carefully planned in his 1992 renovation, such as the Medusa heads, even on the drains!

Do you know who has this solid gold toilet seat? Well, Gianni Versace used to, until he passed away and his sister reserved it in the sale, and sold it (for a lotta money!). (The one shown is "only" gold-plated.) The second person who owns it is an Arab sheik. And the third, according to our hostess, is America's very own Kimora Lee Simmons!

This is the Moroccan Room, where the Hookah was enjoyed! (But not by us!)

And here is the view of the hall between Elton's and Madonna's bedrooms, as seen from below.

The Denver-born, Quito-raised David showed us around Elton and Madonna's bedrooms. Every bedroom has a shower except Madonna's. She apparently preferred baths, so her bath features a shower. I'd show you what it looks like (think: sunken!), but we weren't allowed photos in the bedrooms!
We also had a most gourmet lunch in the courtyard, and all in all, even though I was in Felicia's purse most of the time, it was a wonderful way to spend a terrific day. Versace made South Beach a lot more interesting!
Till tomorrow,
Love, Maia

Maia at Casa Casuarina 3

Casa Casuarina showcases intricate stone and marble works, detailed renaissance-style mosaics and frescoes designed by creative artists such as Alden Freeman and Gianni Versace.

Versace renovated the property in 1992.

Casa Casuarina opened its doors to the public three months ago, for the first time.

Breakfast, lunch and dinner are available, as are tours, and spending the night! Felicia would rather spend her money pampering moi, but it sure was fun spending a day there and pretending to be the mansion's Alpha Dog!
Till tomorrow,
Love, Maia

Maia at Casa Casuarina 2

Here I am in the dining room of the Versace mansion that Gianni Versace renovated in 1992.
The fountain that the new owner, a telecommunications mogul, brought into the courtyard.

Detail of the handpainted ceiling in the dining room.

And here I am, in my home away from home, lapping it all up, enjoying the Florida sunshine!
Till tomorrow,
Love, Maia

Maia Visits Casa Casuarina: Versace Mansion

Felicia and Joanne decided to take a tour of the Versace Mansion, called Casa Casuarina. Here I am in Felicia's purse in front of the tile-bottomed pool.

Gianni Versace bought the hotel next to the original home, built in 1924, tore it down, and built a beautiful pool. The bottom is tiled in ancient Roman and Greek tiles. Each real gold tile is $300 each.

We had lunch there and sat around the pool for a while afterward, sipping champagne. I was the center of attention.

This is the hallway between Elton John's bedroom and Madonna's bedroom. Elton's room rents for $1200 a night. We couldn't take photos in the bedrooms!

This is one of the beautiful corridors. Tonight we're heading up to 15th Street, called Lincoln Avenue, where sidewalk restaurants abound. The best thing about them is: all are dog friendly!
Till tomorrow,
Love, Maia

South Beach Babies

Meet Max.

Max was waiting for his owner in the South Beach Intermix store. Felicia thought we should meet. We said hello!

This is Audrey! Audrey belongs to Mark, Elana and Sean, of Coconut Grove. Audrey is 1-1/2 years old. According to her mom, Elana, Audrey "is sweet, a hugger and cuddler, and has a cute personality."
She also has the funny habit of "putting things in little piles around the house, and acts ashamed if she does something she knows is wrong."
I didn't meet Audrey tonight; I only saw her photos! But she looks almost as cute as another Pom I know! Poms are funny little dogs, all right! I wonder how Dolce is doing with Sacha, Max and Peaches. So far I've been having too much fun to miss her too much!
Till tomorrow...
Love, Maia

Meet Bronson & Captain

This is Bronson, left, 2-1/2, and Captain, 1-1/2, "brothers from a different mother." They are both terrier mixes, found at the Miami-Dade Humane Society. We chatted at Starbucks, next to our hotel. Starbucks has a doggie window where canines go for free doggie treats!

Captain was wearing a hand-knit sweater, because the high today in South Beach is only 57 degrees, the coldest it's been in 5 years here! I've been shivering every time I go outside to do my business. Felicia has to carry me inside her hoodie.

Bronson wore a cute top from American Apparel.

Their owner, Ryan the Wheelbarrow, is a performance artist whose specialty is "live fashion vandalism." He sets up his silkscreens and designs your T-shirt on the spot!

Here's an example of his design, "all chaotic and experimental." I'd like to wear one of his silkscreen creations, too!
Later on today we're having a tour of the famous Versace Mansion "Casa Casuarina," on Ocean Drive, just up the street. I like South Beach! I met alot of fun dogs today. I'm starting to think it might not be a bad idea to spend more time down here, just like Felicia says. Even the condos here are dog friendly, according to the many dog owners who bond over their animals. This part of town is Dog Central!
Till tomorrow (or maybe even later this afternoon),
Love, Maia

Maia in South Beach: Dogs Rule!

Here we are in South Beach again. It's been almost a month since Art Basel and after all the bad weather we've had in the Midwest, we were all happy to fly south. This time, Felicia went with her longtime friend Joanne, whose children grew up with Michael and India and Zara. Here I am, tired after a long trip, just off the plane to put my feet on Florida soil, in John-from-Spain's car, as he takes us to South Beach from the airport. Will we ever get there?

Here's Joanne at the hotel, holding me, just after we arrived. Hello warmth! Goodbye winter coats and mittens and scarves! Freedom from weather tyranny has arrived!

The next day, the most important task at hand for Joanne and Felicia was to watch our new President at his inauguration! Then, after President Obama was sworn in (feels so good to type his name--and loved all First Lady Michelle Obama's outfits!), we went to Nemo for lunch. We all sat outside and ate our food under a big tree. Felicia fed me meat from her Vietnamese Beef Salad, and I got to sit on Felicia's lap! These South Beachers really know how to live. Dogs rule in South Beach! Dogs are everywhere and people bring dogs to lunch! Felicia wants to move here.

After lunch, Felicia and Joanne went back to the hotel, and Felicia took a picture of my friends, the crows. When Felicia was ten years old, she put an ad in the newspaper. She wanted to buy a crow. No one responded. Felicia still loves crows. I like them too. They can count higher than I can!

After watching more television about the historic election a bit longer, we all took a long walk all the way up to Lincoln Road (another great President). Then we bought some magazines at the News Cafe, where Gianni Versace loved to have breakfast. Then we went to his Mansion. Tomorrow, we're all going to take a walk to the Versace Mansion once again, and have a tour and lunch. And I can't wait to tell you all about it!
Till tomorrow,
Love, Maia