|
Boca Raton
Boca Raton
Book Now
BOCA RATON (literally "the mouth of the rat"), twenty miles
north of Fort Lauderdale, is noteworthy mostly for its abundance of
Mediterranean Revival architecture , a style prevalent here since
the 1920s and kept alive in the downtown area by strict building
codes. New structures must incorporate arched entranceways, fake bell
towers and red-tiled roofs whenever possible, ensuring a consistent and
distinctive "look." It all goes back to Addison Mizner , the
"Aladdin of architects", who swept in to Boca Raton on the tide of the
Florida property boom and bought up 1600 acres of farmland. Mizner's
vision of gondola-filled canals, luxury hotels and even a great
cathedral never came to fruition, but the few buildings he completed
left an indelible mark. In its legendary confines at Mizner Park
, off US-1 between Palmetto Park Road and Glades Road, the open-air
plaza is adorned with palm trees and waterfalls. The park is also home
to the International Museum of Cartoon Art , 201 Plaza Real (TuesSat
10am6pm, Sun noon6pm; $6; tel 561/391-2200), worth a stop for its
expensive collection of political cartoons and comic strip exhibits. The
collection has an interactive area geared toward kids.
A mile north of Hwy-798 (which links downtown with the beach) at 1801
N Ocean Blvd/Hwy-A1A, the Gumbo Limbo Nature Center (MonSat
9am4pm, Sun noon4pm; $2 donation) covers twenty acres inhabited by
osprey, brown pelicans and sea turtles. Night turtle-watching tours are
offered between May and July; book well in advance (tel 561/338-1473).
Boca Raton's most explorable beachside area is Spanish
River Park (daily 8amdusk; cars $8 MonFri, $10 Sat, Sun & hols,
pedestrians and cyclists free), a couple of miles north of downtown.
Most of these fifty acres of vivid vegetation and high-rise greenery are
only penetrable on trails through shady thickets.
|
