When friends from the Frozen North call and ask you about the weather, don’t you feel just a little bit guilty that the days here are so beautiful? OK, maybe not, but now is the time to start planning for their visits, as so many cornerstone events in our neighborhood will arrive soon. Better still… don’t invite them. You can have these weekends all to yourself.
The Life Time Miami Marathon runs down the Commodore Trail, past Greenstreet Café and heads back downtown just when the runners are ‘hitting the wall’ and need your support the most. You can cheer them from anywhere along the route, but you can join the Friends of the Commodore Trail and the Coconut Grove Run Club at a prime spot in Regatta Park and see the athletes both coming and going on Sunday 2/2. First runners reach Regatta Park at about 7:40 a.m. Free.
At a slower pace along the same route, the Coconut Grove Arts Festival and St. Stephen’s Art Festival dominate Presidents’ Day weekend in the Center Grove, Saturday-Monday 2/15-17 from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. Downtown Coconut Grove. CGAF has tickets. SSAF is free.
The Miami International Boat Show – the world’s biggest – can’t help but be an eye-popping attraction. No need to actually buy a boat – the fantasy alone is worth the price of admission. Wednesday-Sunday 2/12-2/26. Tickets.
The name says ‘Miami’ but it’s really Coconut Grove’s new music festival. Now in its second year, the Montreaux Jazz Festival Miami leads off with Jon Batiste. “Where?” you ask. In the historic hangars of the Dinner Key Marina. Friday-Sunday, 2/28-3/2. Tickets.
The Secret Garden Tour of Coconut Grove can give you an inside peak at the inspiring gardens of your neighbors. The tour is arranged so you can stroll between the chosen gardens, which this year are all in the North Grove. For the first time, the SGT will extend over two days through the generosity of the gardens’ owners. The Tour is the signature fundraising event of the Friends of the Commodore Trail and subscribers to their newsletter get first crack at always-quickly-sold-out tickets. Saturday-Sunday, 4/5-6. Gardens open at 2:00 p.m.
125 years of success are celebrated at George Washington Carver Elementary School’s Taste of Carver and Cultural Costume Contest. In addition to the foods, for the first time the public can see the recently unveiled History Wall honoring the many accomplishments of GW Carver’s graduates. Your questions about the event can be answered at [email protected] or WhatsApp text to 561-400-0539. The event happens at 238 Grand Ave. on Friday at 5:30 p.m. Voluntary-donation tickets can be found here.
The Many Faces of Dr. King! — the 31st Annual Dr. Martin Luther King Holiday Production of the Coconut Grove Ecumenical Network — brings culturally relevant talent together at the Sanctuary of the Arts. The moving result celebrates the heroes of the Civil Rights Movement. 136 Frow Avenue. Sunday 1/26 at 2:00 p.m. Free.
