I am currently studying international business with a major in finance, in a business school in Bordeaux. This is how I knew Dragonfly Expeditions, as Pauline a previous intern in the company, was from my school.

During my studies, I had the opportunity to work in an ecolodge in Hluhluwe, South Africa. That was an amazing experience since I learnt a lot about sustainable tourism but also about the astonishing Zulu culture. Working with people from different cultures and believes was truly challenging and rewarding. I enjoyed learning from my colleagues and also volunteering in my supervisors’ NGO which was helping children from the surrounding community.

In July 2010, I went to Auckland University of Technologies in New Zealand in order to have a different perspective of business. I liked the fact that in New Zealand, people are more focused on human relationships and are really concerned about ethics in business. These are the main reasons why I chose to work in sustainable development and especially tourism, since I love travelling and meeting people with different cultures and ways of life.

I visited different countries such as European countries, Madagascar, Australia, Rodrigues Island, Mauritius, Ivory Coast and so on, and each travel was an incredible experience, so I am working hard to keep on travelling and learn as much as I can.

So far, I did not have time to visit Florida and Miami, but I have the feeling that it is an amazing place, with so many things to see, do and learn, and I am certain that 5 months will not be enough to discover even a third of it.

Next year, I will start a 2^nd-year Master degree in sustainable development in order to, either start my own business in any country or, get into a company which shares my values and can give me more than financial benefit. I am pretty sure that working at Dragonfly Expeditions is a good start for that!

The event was filmed by Carl Hersh of Close-Up Productions to record for posterity a remarkable era in the history of South Beach.  The sometimes humorous, sometimes melancholic, warm recollections from this phenomenal group of cultural trendsetters was a delight for the audience to witness and in some cases, to remember themselves.

South Beach: Stories of a Renaissance, written by Charles J. Kropke, was chosen by the Miami Design Preservation League as the official book for their inaugural “MDPL Reads” program, a community-based effort to encourage everyone to discover the intricacies and eccentricities of South Beach.

A walk through the Montgomery Botanical Center led by its Executive Director,  Dr. Patrick Griffith, offered an exclusive exploration of one of the world’s foremost horticultural institutions.

Armed with walking sticks and a new found courage, two waves of participants waded through the Big Cypress on swamp-walks learning about the flora and fauna of this primeval preserve.  Their experience came full circle when they were introduced to the stunning photography of Clyde Butcher in his Big Cypress Gallery.

Cultural discoveries through South Beach on a program designed after Charles J. Kropke’s book, South Beach: Stories of a Renaissance, led to witnessing an impromptu private performance at The Miami City Ballet.

These are the kind of uncommon adventures that only Dragonfly Expeditions can create. In the months to come and through the end of the year lucky participants will immerse themselves in Road Scholar travel learning adventures led by our unique and experienced guides.  Road Scholar, the world’s leader in educational and lifelong travel has entrusted Dragonfly Expeditions with showing their savvy travelers the greatness that is South Florida.

If you are interested in participating in any of Road Scholar programs please call 1-800-454-5768 or visit www.roadscholar.org.

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At no other time of the year do we reflect as much on our shared condition, how much we miss each other, how much we care for each other; even how much we care for total strangers (i.e. the whole world). Then we lament that, if only this feeling could be made to last.  Here is a little clue. It can.

All around us are small and large opportunities for kindness.  We only need to condition ourselves to be open to these opportunities when they arise.  For me personally, this is a reminder to only pursue win/win situations in my business endeavors. I give my solemn promise to do so in this year to come.

For all who are experiencing a great holiday season, we rejoice with you.  We are happy that things are well.  For anyone who is hurting or facing more challenging circumstances, we want you to know that there are many of us out here who care.  Hang in there.

Finally, our most urgent message as 2011 comes to a close is…gratitude.  So many people have been so good to us over the last year that we don’t even know where to start.  To our inspiring guides, our loyal customers, our trustworthy vendors and our supportive friends, we wish you the most blessed and prosperous holiday and New Year to come.  You, are the “love” that this season is all about.

~ The Team at Dragonfly Expeditions

For the first time in seven years, Uwe was able to escape the desk setting that condemned him to sit across from me with all my interruptions and restlessness.  To escape the office’s raucous noise, Megan even got a separate office with a door and all.  Now, poor Bernardo is in the center of all of the activity of the main office floor while Trish has staked out a great location by the residential-facing window.

The greatest change, however, is that we finally have a much needed conference room. This room is alternately known as the aquarium for its blue walls, nautical paintings and large glass window facing the main office floor, or the Captain’s Quarters. The Captain’s Quarters moniker is related to a long-held dream of mine.  That dream started when Uwe informed me of an auction of the assets of Windjammer Barefoot Cruises in September of 2008.  As a huge fan of that legendary company and its idyllic way of travel, one of my prized purchases was the large, round wooden nautical table from Captain Mike Burke’s office (the founder of Windjammer).  I was told that it used to be the family dinner table in the early years of the company.  Because of space considerations, we were unable to put the table in our previous office.  So, it went into a three year hibernation at our company storage facility.

The table is gigantic and it weighs a ton, so we were worried that it would not fit through the doors and alternatively that we would kill ourselves getting it into the office.  Miracle of all miracles, it transported perfectly and is now “at home” in our office.  Meanwhile, our launching of Windjammer Sailing Adventures is underway with new partners in route to Miami (shout out to Cindy and Sly).  But that’s another story for another time.

We have now officially doubled our space for the second time in our seven years at the Biltmore Hotel.  New associates are coming into the office and I am spying the adjacent vacant space whereby we will break down a wall and keep expanding.  Mark this letter as an open invitation to all of our friends and associates to come by and see the new headquarters.  We always enjoy catching up with you.

Currently residing in Estero, the proximity to the Estero Bay Aquatic Preserve allows her to spend her free time kayaking, hiking, photographing, bird watching and playing with her black lab Margee.  As an activist, she shares these passions by volunteering with Lovers Key State Park as an interpretive guide for beach walks, birding tours, dolphin and manatee talks, as well as wading and photography trips.  In addition, she also volunteers with the Labrador Retriever Rescue of Florida where she oversees the “Senior Dogs for Senior Citizens” program.

Pam loves the variety of habitats and wildlife that are her fortune to experience on a daily basis, both through guiding, volunteering and in her spare time.  What a lot of people don’t know about her is that she is also a certified High Ropes instructor, but these days stays closer to “terra firma” by guiding multi-day excursions on our Estero River History Paddle!

Starting on November 25, 2011, the Wolfsonian/FIU at 1001 Washington Avenue on Miami Beach will offer an ‘opportunité magnifique’ to visit this venerable, local institution.  This date kicks off ‘Liberty, Equality and Fraternity,’ an exhibition exploring French cultural identity through design produced from the mid-twentieth century to the present. Before continuing on to the subject of the exhibition, I would like to suggest that just about any time of the year is a great time to visit the collection created by Mitchell “Micky” Wolfson, Jr. and the institution that houses it.

Wolfson started collecting in childhood.  Young Wolfson’s keen eye for visual imagery fueled his passion until he totally dedicated himself to the assembly of his collection.  As his collection grew, he would send everything to an ornate and impressive fortress called the Washington Storage Company at 1001 Washington Avenue.  The “fortress” was an institution of a slowly disappearing era in Miami Beach history, the era when wealthy families would pack up their entire houses at the end of the “season” (usually around Easter) and head back north.  The Washington Storage Company would send crews to the departing family’s home and empty them of their contents bringing everything to the storage facility.  There, furnishings would be cleaned, repaired, serviced and stored until the family’s return the following season.  Mr. Wolfson took fair advantage of this convenient facility and sent a growing stream of his purchases there.  As the demographics of Miami Beach changed and fewer and fewer families stored their furnishings, Micky Wolfson’s collection began to take over.  By the 1980’s, Wolfson was being encouraged to buy the building.  Thus the Wolfsonian/FIU was born.

The ‘Liberty, Equality and Fraternity’ exhibition runs from November 25, 2011 through March 26, 2012 and is organized by Wolfsonian/FIU from the collection of France’s Centre National des Arts Plastiques (National Center for Visual Arts or CNAP). The opening of the exhibition will coincide with the celebration of Art Basel Miami Beach/Design Miami 2011. The Wolfsonian/FIU took an entirely new approach to curating the exhibition by engaging in a dynamic dialogue with French designers and design historians who collaborated with the museum on the project: matali crasset, Michael Amzalag and Mathias Augustyniak of M/M (Paris), and Alexandra Midal. Together they shaped a unique presentation of French design objects from the collection of the CNAP that express ideas about French national identity.”

Approximately one hundred and fifty objects will be exhibited, including furniture, industrial design, and craft, created by some of the most celebrated French designers of the past and present, including Pierre Paulin, Roger Tallon, Philippe Starck, and the Bouroullec Brothers, as well as others lesser known in the United States. Presented in nine narrative clusters, the exhibition is displayed within a network of related, yet unique, settings, and joined by viewing rooms for related films. The nine sections focus attention on individual designers, such as Roger Tallon and Philippe Starck; on important episodes in French industrial design history, for example, the seminal work of the research and development division of Thomson electronics in the 1990s; and on the influence of les villes nouvelles (new towns) built during the 1960s and 1970s.

This exhibition fits well with the Wolfsonian/FIU’s established reputation as a world-class collection of decorative and propaganda arts.  Although Wolfsonian/FIU focuses its collection exclusively on the period between 1885 and 1945, ‘Liberty, Equality and Fraternity’ is a natural extension to the museum’s focus on decorative arts and design with a more contemporary timeframe.

The five tours that were offered throughout the weekend featured Miami’s Cuban Heritage, the historic Miami City Cemetery, Kayaking on Biscayne Bay, and two Miccosukee Indian Heritage airboat tours.

The goal of the partnership between the University of Miami and Dragonfly Expeditions is to showcase Miami as a metropolis with historical, ecological and cultural treasures beyond its usual party reputation. Here are some quotes from participants:

“Very interesting information. Loved it!” – Xavier, Cuban Heritage Tour

“Very informative and a beautiful way to see the bay” – Ann, Great Discoveries on the Bay – A Kayak Tour

“Fabulous trip, tour guide was superb. Airboat was so relaxing. Great way to see nature at it’s best!” – Sheila, Miccosukee Indian Heritage Tour

Dragonfly Expeditions would like to send a special thank you to the University of Miami Family Weekend staff (Brian Orefice, Danielle Howard, and Carrie Whiteside) for their amazing work and dedication in ensuring that our partnership was again a success. We are looking forward to Family Weekend 2012.