New Year's Day

Greetings Trailblaze enthusiasts! As a fellow blog reader over the past 6 weeks, I have been eagerly anticipating getting involved with the boys. So far, Miami has not disappointed!

New Years was a memorable one and a number of us were battling heavy heads to kick start 2009, but that was soon fixed by a quick swim and lunch at TGI Friday’s. Before hitting the sand I debated whether to wear my AUSTRALIA speedos, but soon felt at ease when I saw Jez had no problems walking around in public with his outrageous hair.

After a thorough summary of the previous nights exploits, Cleland and Jez decided an afternoon kip would best prepare them for the fun to come. Carl, Wonders and I went the other way, meeting a couple of my American mates from college and following them down a long and windy road to what they promised would be “a good scene.” What a massive understatement!

Hot tip#1: the pool at Shore Club is phenomenal. After producing our Aussie passports and walking through the gates, we were soon embraced by a wide array of really, really, really good looking people. The pool was about 25 metres long, surrounded by beds and couches, absolutely chock-a-block with scantily clad women. Tough times! A deejay made sure the vibe was right, the Heinekens ensured our thirst was quenched, and the sunnies ensured our stares were hidden. Good fun – even Busta Rimes came round for a bevvie!

A late afternoon shower and multiple calls from a now raging Jez and Cleland brought things to a blinding halt, so we decided to say goodbye to the models and made our way back to the hostel, referenced only as “a cool place down the road” to the high end revellers at poolside.

Multiple cases of America’s finest seemed to cheer the boys up and soon enough we were soon back on the wagon in preparation for another big night.

Hot tip #2: The bar at the Delano Hotel is every bit as cool as we had been told, and then some. Talk about opulence! Nothing is done in small measures at the Delano, and it didn’t take long for any of us to begin sampling the cocktail menu and mingle amongst the lively crowd.

What came next was even more outrageous than the setting – a ridiculously elaborate thirty minute tall story from Jez about his javelin exploits for the Australian track and field team at the Beijing Olympics! “Trajectory, wind tunnels, release point, rotational core strength”… nothing was spared! The poor girls fell hook line and sinker for his utter jibberish, and will now return to Cincinatti with tales of fortune and fame after meeting one of Down Under’s finest athletes.

Hot tip #3: Mango’s Bar on Ocean Drive is not a good idea when you have been actively participating in the Miami party scene for days on end. As the night wound down, one by one we retreated back to the hotel, some faster than others. Fortunately, Carl was around long enough to wake me up and call it quits .

Next stop, Key West. Until then,

Dave