If Marie Antoinette were a Miami resident, she would have ditched her famed cake proclamation and instead gone with Let them eat pastelitos. Its clear from the dulce de leche menu items at McDonalds, and the fact that in some areas of the city, the E in ESL stands for español, that much of the Magic Citys charm comes from its diversity. Not only does it mean our friends are a virtual rainbow coalition of rad people, but also it means our entire community is injected with more culture than most gringos across the country even know existed. Take Carnaval on the Mile, an annual three-day celebration of art, jazz, food, and wine that takes 11 blocks of Coral Gables hostage.
This Friday through Sunday, the kiddies can dig through the oversize Bank of America in search of colored coins while you check out the Artists Village, where more than 100 local creative types will show off their artful goodies or jam to the sounds of Latin jazz from 7 to 11 p.m. But this is about family, so be sure to take the whole crew to one of the paella stations dotting the area. And get a big spoonful for us, amigo. The event is free for all. Visit carnavalmiami.com.
Fri., March 6, 2009