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10Best's Miami Attractions & Activities

In the face of Miami’s ocean vistas and lush landscapes, man-made attractions are hard-pressed to show deference to nature. Even so, the artistry exhibited at these created sites gives beaches and sun-worshiping a run for their money. Foremost among them is James Deering’s 1916 winter estate, Vizcaya, which was painstakingly designed to mimic authentic Italian villas. Another icon from the era, Denman Fink’s Venetian Pool, is a fantasy of grottos, waterfalls and Mediterranean architecture constructed around an abandoned rock quarry. Charting more recent history are the Holocaust Memorial, whose enormous bronze hand hints simultaneously at hope and despair, and the Wolfsonian, which tracks the contemporary relationship between design and civilization in terms of culture, commerce and politics. Another tension – that of nature versus human intervention – gets a measure of reconciliation at the Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden, where a rainforest and arboretum highlight gorgeous, warm-weather specimens. In addition, entertaining (but briefly disconcerting) Parrot Jungle Island delights visitors with its residents’ exotic plumage before surprising them with the birds’ carefully choreographed performances and raucous calls.