North Miami Beach became a city in 1926, but one of the buildings within its limits today was first erected almost eight centuries before the city existed. Construction on the Monastery of St. Bernard de Clairvaux, also known as the Ancient Spanish Monastery, began in Sacramenia, Spain, in 1133 and was completed in 1141. Cistercian monks occupied it for nearly seven centuries. Nineteenth- and 20th-Century media giant William Randolph Hearst purchased the monastery, which was then dismantled stone-by-stone and shipped to the United States, where it lay in wait inside a New York warehouse for another quarter-century before being rebuilt in South Florida in the mid-'50s. Today the ancient structure serves many roles, as an Episcopal church, a unique tourist attraction, and a venue for special occasions such as wedding receptions. Tours of the monastery are available most days from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. (admission costs $10, with $5 discounts for students and seniors). Availability is dependent upon whether the venue is booked for a special event. Updated hours can be found on the Ancient Spanish Monastery's website.

It's been tough to be a Miami Dolphins fan over the past decade or so, but there's one unquestionably bright spot in Davie: Tom Garfinkel. He was promoted to vice chairman only a couple of months ago, but he should be lauded for the strides the organization has made since he arrived in Miami in 2013. Under Garfinkel's watch, the Dolphins undertook a $500 million renovation of their Miami Gardens stadium, secured a $250 million naming-rights deal for the venue with Hard Rock, boosted ticket sales that had been lagging since Stephen Ross purchased the team in 2009, and lured high-profile events, such as the El Clásico soccer match, to the stadium. Garfinkel is also accessible to fans on social media and routinely posts beautiful photos of the game-day environment.