Things To Do
Your guide to doing Miami on the Cheap - Nov. 4-6
What do soaring planes, a Haitian festival, blues and jazz concerts, a group bike ride and a scuba dive for people with disabilities all have in common? They’re all free and happening this weekend in Miami. You’re welcome, cheapskates!
Soaring planes
They’re baaaack!
After a four year absence, the roar of the United States Air Force Thunderbird’s F-16 demonstration team will tear through the skies during the Wings Over Homestead Air Show on Nov. 5 and 6. Admission is free and tickets are not required for general admission.
I have fond memories watching these planes soar with my late stepfather-pilot. It’s an event suitable for the whole family, from grandparents to little kids. Try not to miss the U.S. parachute team. This year’s event is appropriately themed: “Spirit of Flight, Celebrating Superior Air Power.”
Haitian festival
Speaking of a comeback, The Rhythm Foundation and Rasin Festival announce the return of Big Night in Little Haiti as an annual festival and the show will go on Nov. 5. Admission is free, but donations at the door are encouraged. The festival features legendary voudou rock ‘n’ roots band RAM, the US debut of Symbi Roots (Rara Fanm) direct from Port-au-Prince, and more. There will be a culinary village, activities for kids and DJ Mack will play between sets.
Two free concerts in Miami Beach
It’s too bad these performances are on the same night at the same time in different venues.
Blues singer and guitarist Rachelle Coba performs at the Normandy Fountain on Nov. 4. With riffs that can bring down the house and a voice to shake hearts, Coba is a torrential force that sweeps away every audience. Coba met blues legend Buddy Guy in Miami and said it was a life changing encounter for her.
At the Lord Balfour hotel, Ominé Kali Eager, the daughter of the late great 1940s jazz tenor saxophonist Allen Eager, will perform also on Nov. 4. Ominé is a Miami singer, songwriter and guitarist and her debut album “Whiskey & Chocolate” was released in 2011. The concert is free and open to the public. Happy hour cocktails will be available for purchase.
Bike ride
Explore the future Underline and Ludlam Trail connection with a free group bike ride on Nov. 6 for ages 10 and older. When connected, The Underline’s 10 miles and the Ludlam Trail’s 6 miles will create 16 miles of the 22-mile Miami Loop, a bicycle and pedestrian network of off-road trails in the urban core. If you’re familiar with New York’s High Line, well, let’s just say this is one instance where we go low.
Pool dive
People with disabilities ages 10 and older will have an opportunity to scuba dive with a certified volunteer as part of the free Diveheart Scuba Experience on Nov. 5 at A.D. Barnes Pool. The activity is being presented by the Miami-Dade Parks, Recreation and Open Spaces Department’s Disability Services Aquatic Division in partnership with the Diveheart Foundation and its underwriter Ortho Pro Associates. Advance registration and medical clearance are required to participate. The Diveheart Scuba Experience aims to use scuba as a tool to help build confidence and independence in people with disabilities that have mobility challenges on land, to experience the liberating buoyancy of immersion in water. It is a program of the Diveheart Foundation, founded in 2001 by Chicago media executive Jim Elliott. In recent years, the group has expanded its operation to South Florida, where it is led by Wi
lhelmina Stanton.
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