Returning To The Riverwalk! In the Sunshine!

My sister Susan and I returned to the Riverwalk in Fort Lauderdale this past Saturday afternoon, and I must say, it looks a lot better in the sunshine than in a downpour, which happened to us last week. Plus, this time I actually knew where I was going, and we started our walk at the same spot we always did over 15 years ago, when we came here for the day from Stuart, Florida, while visiting our mother, Mary. And it was very similar to what we experienced back then, with lots of trees and landscaping along the way and boats docked parallel to the piers, as seen in the photograph on the left.

But there were differences. Years ago, we would park on the street right next to Stranahan House, built in 1901 and the oldest surviving structure in Fort Lauderdale. This time, we found ourselves in a canyon between several massive high-rises, one of which fortunately had public parking available. It wasn't until we returned and had a drink at an outdoor bar along the New River called Salt 7, which I was amazed to find had an extremely reasonable happy hour ($5 beers and $7 wines, with a wonderful view), that I figured out Stranahan House was located right next door, hidden from view by, of course, a massive high rise.

I also figured out where Las Olas Riverfront, an outdoor shopping mall, used to stand. This was a very fun place to visit in its day, with upscale shops and restaurants, with great peoplewatching. During the Great Recession it lost all its tenants and was eventually bulldozed. Once when we visited there, we had lunch at a restaurant called Cafe Tutu Tango, and as we were leaving, my sister Susan, who really loved the restaurant's funky napkins, helped herself to several packages of them from the waitress station. My mother and I walked a little distance behind Susan, in case she got pinched, in which case we would deny any knowledge of her and come back the next day, assuming she was released on her own recognizance. But happily, that wasn't necessary, and we all drove back to Stuart together. 

That site is now occupied by several high-rise condo buildings, as well as an office tower. A narrow section of the Riverwalk goes past those buildings, with a small marina in front, with no pretty landscaping like the rest of the walkway. Sadly, no one hired me as a design consultant for the project. In any case, it was great to get back there and enjoy that ambiance on a nice sunny day, as opposed to last week, when the only people out and about in the pouring rain seemed to be homeless people taking cover under shelters. A much better experience, to say the least.