Day 26 - South Beach, Miami (bang bang)

We seem to be stuck in an endless cycle of rain and shine.

In the morning the sun comes along, allowing Rachel and I to jog up the beach and back. It's the first regular exercise we've had for three weeks. It hurts, but it feels good.

It's soon followed by the humidity. It increases slowly until you can almost the droplets materialise in the air. Fish start to have problems working out where the sea ends.

Then comes the storm. Furious and tropical, it spews forth torrents of water that gush down roofs and windows. Tourists shelter in shop doors and under awnings, stranded. Eventually, the gutters overflow and water covers the pavements. It's like the weather equivalent of a close quarters chat with Jonathan Ross at a loud party.

Then, thirty minutes later, it all stops and the cycle starts again.

Miami is the first place we've stayed in a hostel. The Deco Walk Hostel is literally a drunken stumble from South Beach, right in the thick of the action. It has it's own bar, rooftop jacuzzi, cable TV and everything else you could possibly need.

The day we arrived - Sunday - there was a fug hanging over everyone though. Turned out it was the detrious from a big Saturday night. Alas, it failed to lift. I'm told hostels are all about who you meet, and hence very hit and miss. This one looked great, but had all excitement of Mark Farina at 4am.

So, what have we actually done? Not much. We'd considered visiting the Everglades, but they're five hours away. Same goes for the Kennedy Space Center. That's three hours north. Key West is a good six hours south. So, instead we've taken the time to relax and soak it all up. After the 24/7 of New York, we both needed it. We've just hung around listening to everyone speaking Spanish more often than English, marvelling at the 50s art deco decor and doing the usual people/ peacock watching thing

The good news is the weather came good. We've spent time getting acquainted with the beach, which is a magnificent stretch of sand that stretches as far as the eye can see. We hired a scooter and went exploring. I'm happy to report that Rachel's Gourmet Tour has begun in earnest.

As a generalisation, America is not a place known for its' food (Samuel's home cooking aside). The Urth Cafe in LA was very tasty indeed, and we had some good scran in NY. However, generally the standard fare has been poor.

Miami has redressed that. On Monday, we had a set lunch at an Argentinian restaurant. Two fat, juicy steaks packed with more flavour than the Public Enemy back catalogue. There's nothing like eating your first steak in a while to kick start the digestive system.

Last night, we took a recommendation and headed to a Cuban Diner called Puerto Sagua. It was the first time I've had Cuban food, but it won't be the last. Lots of slow cooked meats and strangely cooked fruit that look kinda familiar, but not really.

In between the endless downtime, we've had a chance to think about our next stop. The USA has been amazing, but we both know it's not indicative of how we'll be travelling over the next 11 months. Hotels in the middle of town and eating out more often that not is not backpacking. Mexico City marks the beginning of 'proper' travelling.

It's a little bit scary. A big, big city with a reputation for rawness. A language we don't really speak well. A unknown road ahead - all we know is we need to be in Guatemala City in 12 months, the rest is up to us.

But then again, that's the whole point of the exercise, right?

Click here for all the Miami photos