A Street in Miami

For tourists visiting Florida, Miami Beach represents one of the best seaside resorts. The city, linked to the mainland by a causeway in 1913, was but an island of sand. Developed by wealthy real estate ventures, Miami Beach quickly became the new American "Riveria". In the 1930's hundreds of Art Deco buildings were erected throughout the city. The architectural style went on to define the character of South Beach, located at the southern end of Miami Beach. Today, this district is home to the largest concentration of Art Deco style constriction world wide. South Beach alone accounts for some 800 buildings from the Art Deco era. there are now heritage sites. The architectural design of the buildings that line Ocean Drive is deeply influenced by the sea. Facades with rounded corners, porthole- style windows and observation "decks" conspire to give certain buildings the look of ocean liners. Other properties, ablaze in colors and pink flamingo motifs, or sun and palm trees, evoke the region's tropical vegetation. Flat roof accented with vertical bands adorned with stripes, neon lights or borders featuring Aztec or Mayan abstract themes often top thee magnificent three story buildings.