I went to pick up my son from his camp. As my treat to him, I agreed to go to Miami. The hotel I stayed in, Epic, was just alongside the river. It was near the Hyatt, the Marriot and a bustling economic center. Daily yachts were cruising. There were birds, people jogging, and lots of restaurants.
I even took pictures of the garbage cans. And of course I thought about the Pasig River — and thought of the day when one day we could look as nice as this.
The most striking thing about Miami for me is that (in my experience) 80 to 90 percent of the people spoke Spanish. There were even places where I talked to people and they could not understand me. I am in a major city of the United States of America — and I see more Latinos than English-speaking Americans. Many of the taxi cab drivers were from Haiti. Almost all of the people I interviewed except for one taxi cab driver voted for Obama. 
The next striking thing about Miami is that it is such a party place. In the evenings the streets are alive with people. The other striking thing is that the people love to eat. The restaurants I went to were jam-packed with people.
 I was still hurting from my bike accident so I was really happy to have a good acupuncturist in the hotel. She was a really lovely lady from Brazil.
I was impressed that they accepted pets in their hotel — especially since I had been very frustrated by the refusal of the hotel we were going to in December to allow my dog, Drake, inside. As far as I am concerned Drake is part of the family and now I have to leave him alone during Christmas. So sad. In contrast, this hotel had a page in their brochure at the hotel room that said, “Pets are allowed in this hotel. If you want a bed, or massage services or whatever please contact us.”
 I immediately called up the executive from the hotel in the Philippines and said, “See? This is an upscale hotel and very, very clean — and they allow pets!”
Oh, well. I was still healing from the accident so honestly I was not able to enjoy Miami like I should have. The air was fresh and the people were really nice. 
The best restaurant we went to in Miami was Michael’s Genuine. On his show No Reservations, Anthony Bourdain called it the best restaurant in Miami. It was so good my son, who is a foodie, decided to eat there twice. Of particular interest is their head chef — who, I was told, Bourdain called one of the 10 best chefs in the country. I found out he was only 27. And when I interviewed him, he told me he has been cooking since he was 13. You should have seen him cook. Very organized, focused and concise.
One of the highlights back in San Francisco was going to Chipotle, a Mexican fast-food restaurant. I was totally amazed. Food with integrity. Wow! And the line was so long. I heard McDonald’s had bought the chain. The food was so good and super reasonable. So, you see, integrity “sells” and health “sells.”
It was a good trip. I just gained a few pounds. Darn. Every time I go places I see more possibilities for our country.
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I can be reached at regina_lopez@abs-cbn.com.