Chapter 28: Miami

West Indian Manatees are giant gentle marine mammals that just want to float around warm water and eat plants all day. Girls dig them because they have a face like a bulldog, a body like a big fat dolphin, a tail like a beaver, and whiskers. They also have extremely human-like eyes, which is why sailors used to mistake them for mermaids. Although, these animals have no natural enemies, they are in danger of disappearing completely. There are only about 3,000 left in the United States. It’s a shame.

A few weeks ago I went to Miami to attend Art Basel. Every night was spent getting into fabulous parties, drinking plenty of free booze and gawking at the ridiculousness of it all. It’s been seven years since I relocated myself from New York to a sleepy little hotel in the heart of South Beach in order to photograph its last remaining seniors. Funny how in only a few years a place can undergo such a transformation.

Lee Turcotte - scuba diving pioneer, world-class spear fisherman and global traveler, hails from Miami, Florida. Turcotte moved to Miami in 1947 when the city was just beginning to enjoy its first heyday as a world-class playground to the rich and famous. Friend to surfers and gangsters alike, Turcotte put Southern Florida on the map as a scuba diving destination before scuba diving was an industry.  One exotic diving excursion after the other, Turcotte built an industry from the bottom up. To this day he is one of the most sought after diving tour guides in the world.

When people think of Miami Bass they usually associate it with booty shaking girls, sunny weather and cars with booming systems. A lot of that is part of it, but growing up in Miami it was much more than that.