Miami 16-18th October

Friday: So, this morning we started our journey. After the goodbyes with the parents we boarded the jumbo. Pre-marriage Lynne always had bad luck with flights, and as a Henderson, not much has changed. Sat in the seat next to her was possibly the fattest teenager we have ever seen. The arm rest between Lynne and him was hidden amongst the bingo wings. After a swift complaint that “these people” should have to buy two seats, the only two tv screens on the plane that messed up were ours......in short, rubbish flight, but hopefully the complaints card put in might secure an upgrade on the return leg whenever that will be.

In Miami, we get to Cyrus's Miami Beach pad, the house is awesome! And Cyrus being the legend he is, has stocked up the fridge with groceries / juice and beers!! First job, a maple streaky bacon sarnie!

Once Cyrus turned up and awoke us from our Chort (Persian siesta), we headed into South Beach and grabbed pizza, a beer and people watched on Lincoln Drive. Just enough to ensure a restful night with the jet lag kicking in and to prepare for what Cyrus has said will be a chilled day! I should also add at this point that Cyrus arrived with his pug Kalua, she's adorable and so much fun.

Saturday: First stop, The Standard Spa.

The place is amazing, first order of the day is breakfast, Lynne & Cyrus opt for the Eggs Benedict whilst I sniff out the pancakes & maple syrup accompanied by Chicken apple sausages....all this washed down by a pitcher of Sangria.

Then a chill by the pool on the waterfront; the salt water pool is perfect in the heat of the day. In the afternoon, we head to the Turkish baths and relax for several hours between the incredible steam room, sauna, waterfall showers, and other facilities. All three of us leave feeling completely zen froom the medatitive environment of the hamam, the only thing needed now is food. Cyrus takes us to downtown to Garcias Fish Restaurant, situated right on the waterfront. It serves fresh fish caught that morning, we start with StoneCrab Claws to share, Lobster Chowder and then Grouper; the freshness is immediately obvious and it was so good we didn't quite realise how much we had eaten. Leaving that plaice (bad joke) we were looking forward to a quality chort.

The chort lasted somewhat longer than expected and it wasn't until until 10.45 that we all woke up! We got together and decided not to undo all the relaxation from the spa day, the decision was made to chill-ax and stay in. So after some tea and conversation, we headed back to bed.

Sunday: Lynne disappeared for a run at 8am as usual, I'll stick to my word and start running when we arrive in South America!!

We grabbed breakfast with Cyrus at a local Jewish Cafe, huge portions once more, breakfast is perhaps an understatement....It took us through to dinner!

After b'fast Cyrus took us on a tour of Miami, stopping off in Coral Gables for a much needed walk around the area; then on to Vizcaya, a stately home built to replicate a typical northern italian village..a beautiful spot right on Biscayne Bay with fantastic gardens and a maze much to Lynne's excitement.

After saying a goodbye to Cyrus & Kalua we walked the boardwalk from Miami Beach to South Beach, people watching and checking out the incredible hotels and the art deco area.

Monday: David's fitness regime started. We both felt very miami running down the boardwalk & the beach stopping off for bootcamp style exercises! Now we've done the exercise, Miami beach is calling us in beautiful sunshine...I think we'll spend the rest of the day there.