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© 2004 Bruce R. Bennett Introduction Essay for Florida 24/7 The Magic Kingdom By Elinor Brecher Since its earliest mosquito-infested, pre-air conditioner days, Florida has been an irresistible temptation and an implied promise. Juan Ponce de Leon landed on the east coast in 1513, seeking the mythical Fountain of Youth. In 2003, 12 Cubans in a 1951 Chevy truck, fitted with a propeller, chugged across the Florida Straits seeking the glories of democracy. By now, Florida is as much a rite of passage as a geographical location. The childhood visit to a fantasy kingdom of cartoon mice and fairy princess-es? Mandatory. The lure of wet T-shirts, beach volleyball, and margaritas? A spring break imperative. Balmy days and palm trees in February, when up North it's all ice storms and broken hips? Retirement paradise. Florida is sunshine, sand, fishing, and golf. It's South Beach models, Daytona racers, Ocala cowboys, Pensacola sailors, Cassadega psychics, Indian River citrus growers, Homestead orchid growers, Tarpon Springs sponge divers, Seminole alligator wrestlers, and Naples tennis pros. It's flamingos rising at dawn over the Everglades, the sunset over a Key West pier, and island-bound mega-cruise ships. Come to Florida and visit Cuba and Haiti without actually going there. Come to Florida and we give you the world: Disney World, Reptile World, SeaWorld. We lead you to South America's front door and greet you--buenos dias!--in the language of North America's future. What America hears about Florida is so often shaped by its disasters, natural and man-made. Hurricane Andrew's nuclear-blast devastation. The 2000 presidential election's hanging-chad chaos. Exploding space shuttles. Swampland development scams. Gator attacks in the suburbs and shark attacks in the surf. More people get hit by lightning here than anywhere else in the states. The extremes of wealth and poverty are on unguarded--if not unique--display in Florida. An hour apart, Belle Glade migrant laborers cut sugar cane while Rolls-driving Palm Beach millionaires set the American gold standard for luxury. In 2004, royalty moved to Fort Lauderdale: the Queen Mary 2, the world's largest passenger vessel. Twenty miles south, Miami remains the nation's poorest large city. Florida's national clout can't be overestimated. Cuban-exile politics influence foreign policy as if the Cold War never ended. Island culture weaves reggae and soca into mainstream pop music. "Floribbean" cuisine has made mangoes, guavas, and papayas recipe staples. On the pages of this book, you will see how America relaxes when it's on vacation--and how 17 million Floridians live when they aren't. A polyglot peninsula, Florida is Old South in the north, new Latin America in the south and Sunbelt expansion nearly everywhere else. It's a state growing so fast that it can't keep up with its own evolving identity. Which makes it a lot like a big, quirky, often fractious family: the immigrant, tradition-bound granny; sister's weird new boyfriend; the daffy old uncle; thoroughly modern Mom; mischievous little brother; and Dad, that lovable bumbler. There's no end to the dinner-table squabbling about politics, religion, music, education, sports, money, and sex. But when the next Category 5 storm hits, they'll all jam into the bathtub together with a mattress over their heads. Because this is Florida: One state, under the sun, with time-shares and theme parks for all. Browse    View All    The Magic Kingdom    Hearth & Home    Hard at Work    Florida at Play    Reason to Believe    Our Town Photos: 149 Photographers: 42 Towns: 72

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