An Art Deco Tour With Christine Michaels of Riverfront Cats
- Christine feeding two of her Riverfront cats – Leroy and Lion King
For many of you that know me, you know that Christine Michaels of Riverfront Cats, Miami, is a dear friend of mine. She is known in the cat blogosphere for being the caretaker of her twenty or so outdoor community cats in the Riverfront area as well as being the original source that exposed the inhumane trapping of the outdoor cats on the Loews Universal Resort properties in Orlando that spearheaded a nationwide movement to save them.
The Carlyle was one of the locations where the movie The Birdcage was filmed.
What you might not know, is that Christine is also a well versed individual on the history of Miami Beach, in particular, the Art Deco area of Ocean Drive which is known for such classic favorites as the Miami Vice television series and the acclaimed movie, the Birdcage with Robin Williams and Nathan Lane. Christine has taken her trademarked dedication and passion she shares with her outdoor cats to her love of the history of the vibrant city she calls home and has created a boutique business called “Art Deco Tours by Christine & Company” where she treats tour goers by appointment to an informed and entertaining stroll through this engaging stretch of Miami Beach.
While the cats could be up to heavens knows what when we leave the house, this is what I imagine (hope) they are doing...
Rated the number one Miami Beach tour by Trip Advisor, we decided to take advantage of her expertise and take the tour while the “kids” were visiting last week . It was a win-win for everyone – the cats got a mini break from all the upheaval in the household, we got a hands on tour of this amazing and beautiful city, and I got to introduce my family to someone who is very important in my life and my crusade to help educate the public about the plight of outdoor cats.
Here we are with a penthouse view atop the Carlyle overlooking Miami Beach. You will notice Christine being ever the professional, teaching us about the history of the city.
No surprise, Christine and her contagiously upbeat personality keeps you engaged from start to finish as she walks you through the area and discusses everything from the architecture, the influence of the fashion industry, how the Miami Vice television series introduced the concept of pastel painted buildings, and even the role of the mafia as she describes each classic building you pass, such as the Versace mansion, The Carlyle Hotel, and The Cardozo which is owned by singer, Gloria Estefan. We were even treated to a private birds-eye view atop The Carlyle and the city scape was amazing, despite the scorching heat. July is definitely not season in Miami – even though we took a late day tour, the temperature was brutal and we were grateful to see a sign beckoning us from The Tides hotel inviting us in for a very refreshing mojito special.
The moment you walk into The Tides your breath is taken away - the interior design is spectacular and wonderfully unique.
This decadent bar is part of The Tides - we enjoyed our refreshing mojitos as we stepped back in time. Looking forward to the deco theme, I veered away from my typical leopard garb and wore a sundress in a wash of sherbet colors that was complimented by a stylish straw hat!
The great thing about these interactive types of tours is that even though you are learning, you are doing it in an informal and enjoyable format. The only thing we did not see, quite surprising, was a single cat lurking about. Naturally, Christine and I did our share of “cat talk” and I had to remind myself to reel it in a bit, as not all of the family is equally enthralled with our feline escapades as we are. Christine and I mention her outdoor cats by name as if everyone knows who Romeo is, or Cosette, or Leroy, or Lion King….
This quaint and picturesque area of Miami Beach is tucked away on a charming side street and legend has it Capone ran his gambling syndicate from the 2nd floor of a small hotel here that was also used in filming the movie "The Specialist" starring Sylvester Stallone and Sharon Stone.
Despite the lack of cats, all in all we had a great time – if any of you plan on taking a trip to South Florida anytime soon, please be sure to look Christine up!!
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She is sooooooo darn cool, she makes me smile! I’ve been voting for you every single day.
MOL Brian – your comment made me smile!! But you are right, even with the hot temperatures outside, she is one cool lady!!!!!!!!!!!
Looks like Christine does a super job with her tours. Loved seeing two of the feral kitties. Have a great week end.
That’s cool that she has a boutique business like that! We wish her loads of success!!
Thank you Ryker’s Boyz ‘n’ Allie! I wish her tons of success too!!
How fun is that? I wish I lived closer so that I could meet Christine, you and visit all the beautiful places you’ve mentioned. It’s so important to take a break from all the seriousness of life and indulge in beauty and fun.
Oh…. we sure would love to have your Mom close by Sele and Miss Bella – we would love to meet her too!
Loved this tour! I’m a big architecture/design buff (art history major). Thanks for sharing another slice of Florida life and Christine sounds like we’d get on instantly!
You would no doubt love Christine, Layla! The door is open any time for an invite!
Oh Layla
I love your website and the work you do and would love to meet you as well!
Come on down!
I’ll personally host your tour. What amazed me are the number of women who were responsible for the growth of Miami in the early years. Did you know it was a woman who founded Miami?
I visited Miami once about 10 years ago. I really enjoyed the area and loved the art deco architecture. I would have loved to take a tour on the history of the area. Maybe if I ever go back….
I hope you can come back Jessica – the city is just so vibrant and alive!!
Love you guys and the post! I especially love the color and artsyness of Miami! Gonna hafta visit yo So Fla Crazy Cat Ladies one of these days!
Oh boy, BZTAT!! That sure would be a visit we would love to have happen!!! You can never have too many So Fla Crazy Cat Ladies!!!
It does sound like a great tour! Are dogs allowed?
That’s a great question, Rumpy!! I did see quite a few dogs in the city (one in a stroller) and Christine has a dog herself. Regardless, we will make an exception for you!!
Hi Rumpy!
As a matter of fact we do allow pets! I would need to know the type and size of pet as we happily modify the tour to accommodate your furry family members. Small dogs are permitted inside some hotels. some can be on leash, other hotels may require a carrier.
I had one client bring large dog and a bird so in those cases, the customer pays an extra fee for a pet sitter to watch the pet or pets while we go inside the buildings. Usually that’s me while my tour guide escorts you into the buildings. We are mostly outdoors though.
Would love to have you join with your dog! http://Www.artdecotours.com
http://Www.artdecotours.com
That looks like a super special tour! Thank you for sharing this with us. We love that Christine takes care of those ferals. 🙂
Hello!
As a cat lady, my friends and clients are amazed when I spot a black cat at the dark of night. My radar is always activated so as I’m walking daily throughout South Beach, if I spot a cat I check for ear tip. I always have a trap,towels, cat food and bowls and bottles of water in my trunk to trap or rescue an injured cat. I need a cat mobile! Hey there’s an idea!
My pleasure to share, meowmeowmans! Glad you enjoyed the post!
My mom love art deco ! If she go there, I’m pretty sure she will look for Christine !
xox
Hi Mr. Puddy!! So nice to have you back in the kitty blogosphere!! I sure Christine would love to meet your human! xoxo
The cats doing Fibonacci is a great picture. Christine is amazing. Would love to meet her (and you, of course!!) We have quite a lot of history over here, which I love to research 🙂
CATachresis – it seems that many of us cat lovers also share a love for history! Please drop by any time!!
Deb,
I’m so flattered that you shared this experience with your audience. I truly love my job as I love to meet people from around the world and they appreciate history, art, and culture. Even in nonstop rain, clients still want to take the tour. There are varied fascinating stories about the origins, pioneers, landscape and the fabulous Art Deco buildings. Even locals are surprised to learn about Miami Beach’s colorful history!
However Miami Beach does face one of the highest rates of homeless cats in the county. The good news, thanks to countless volunteers of The Cat Network and the County Commissioner who sponsored several free spay/neuter events, we’ve made progress. Now when I walk down the alleys in-between these famed Art Deco buildings there are less cats and kittens. The goal now is education and prevention. Most cats are dumped there so we are working on alerting and educating the public that relocating or dumping stray cats is harmful to them and therefore illegal. My business has allowed me to build close relationships with key businesses on Ocean Drive to have this dialogue and work together.
Deb, you and Dan will have to return for my new cocktail tour! http://Www.artdecococktailtour.com
Cheers!
Christine
Christine – It was my pleasure and I hope that your new cocktail tour will be a wonderful success!! I think it is important to educate people on all aspects of history, and that certainly includes the outdoor cat population.
Great photos and post! That tour sounds like a blast. And I am SURE the kitties just sleep when you are gone, hehe.
Sigh… just as I suspected, Julia!! Hehe indeed!! 🙂
that is good to know…Mom and Dad will be going that way sometime in next year or so…will keep her information in their travel files. And I vote everyday for you guys too! paw pats, Savannah
Thank you for the votes Savannah – we are so overwhelmed by all the generous support. And I do hope that your humans look up Christine when they travel, they will really enjoy themselves!
Oh, my goodness, I’d have to bring extra memory cards! Not only would I run out of room with photos of your cats, but I also love to photograph cities. It looks lovely!
Not to mention all the beautiful tropical flowers, Bernadette. And the lovely ocean… And the birds…. hmmmm…. you will need lots of memory cards!!!
Believe it or not, I completely forgot about the ocean…once I get in water, you can’t get me out. And then I’d have to paint too…is there a reason no one really likes to travel with me?! Thanks for the virtual tour!
Hi! We came by to let you know that Peanut, Mia and Rolz made it to the finals of the 2012 Olympic Synchronized Snoozing competition!! Voting has started and will go until Aug. 7. Medals will be awarded Aug. 8!
Oh yeah…and good luck with the Petities! We’ve been voting for you!!
Yippeeeee!!!! As soon as those sleepy heads wake up, I will give them the good news, Island Cats!! The competition is fierce and we are proud to be selected as a finalist!! Thank you also for the Petties support – we very much appreciate it!!