Wynwood Walls is a neighborhood and a park. Walk these streets. Go early. Eat lots of food.

Our approach to this art destination was simple because our goal was to notice things and be present. I want my kids and I to learn to be better at seeing what’s around us..the things that capture curiosity or could be unnoticed. It’s too easy to look at the things in a neighborhood that are labeled. You can learn to see the unseen in a dark room with your eyes closed and mind enlightened. You can learn to see the unseen on dirty streets with crazy people you love. We just need to learn to see something besides ourselves.

That’s how the baby got a confetti balloon. He excels at being present, curious, and magical…in a way that blesses strangers. And I’m trying to be more like him.

Next time, we’ll hit the labels.

We arrived earlier than the tour groups and way before the late night spots opened. The quiet streets made it easy to chart our course as we went and pay attention to the environment. The neighborhood is a little gritty and plenty friendly. We chose a few food destinations for motivation and a local moment. Then we experienced the murals that we happened on. There are murals everywhere and a few famous murals somewhere. We didn’t use a map. But we did make one or two turns to avoid some pictures we weren’t eager for our sons to see.

The official “Wynwood Walls” is a little park that has over 20 murals in one spot. It opened at 10am the day we visited and that is about the same time the tour groups arrive. It’s like being in a museum without a roof.