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Paradox Museum Miami takes guests through a 21st century funhouse of mind-boggling illusions

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Paradox Museum Miami takes guests through a 21st century funhouse of mind-boggling illusions


MIAMI – Art gallery, science exhibition and 21st century funhouse, Paradox Museum Miami takes guests on a tour through optical illusions and other enigmas geared for the age of Instagram.

The 11,000 square-foot (1,000 square-meter) museum, housed in Miami’s trendy Wynwood arts and entertainment district, features more than 70 exhibits that challenge the imagination, executive director Samantha Impellizeri said.

“It ebbs and flows between periods of highly tactile and interactive exhibit pieces and fully immersive photo opportunities where you yourself become the paradox and walk away with some really fun and unique social media content,” Impellizeri said.

Paradox Museum has more than a dozen locations throughout North America, Europe and Asia. The Miami location, which opened in 2022, was the first in North America, followed by Las Vegas and New Jersey.

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“Each paradox is uniquely tied to its community,” Impellizeri said. ”So as you walk throughout the experience, you’ll notice different themes and art installations that directly reflect not only Miami but the Wynwood community specifically.”

Many of the exhibits at Paradox Museum harken back to old carnival funhouses, like the mirror maze, the spinning tunnel and the upside-down room. The difference is that Paradox Museum explains the math and science behind each illusion.

“We’re a top field trip destination for pre-K all the way up through college students,” Impellizeri said. “We have a full curriculum of educational activities to do before, during and after the visit to expand upon that educational scope.”

Like any museum, Paradox Museum plans to update its exhibits to keep visitors coming back.

“We’re not going to be the same space in a year to three years from now,” Impellizeri said. “We’ll be engaging with new technology and layering additional discoveries on top of it.”

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Paradox Museum Miami introduced a new Zero Gravity Room this past fall. Guests step into a giant, slowly moving vertical wheel designed to look like the interior of a space station after placing their camera phones on a spinning mount. The spinning camera is synced to the spinning wheel, so the video appears to show the guests walking up the wall and ceiling, like something out of “2001: A Space Odyssey.”

Paradox Museum is part of a large trend of immersive art experiences opening all over the world this past decade. Examples include a company called Meow Wolf with several locations in the western United States, as well as an immersive Van Gogh exhibit that has been touring North America, Europe and Asia since 2017. Superblue Miami opened in 2021, featuring interactive and experiential art.

“Immersive experiences around the world are increasing in popularity and popping up more and more,” Impellizeri said. ”And it’s exciting to see that this trend of interactive and immersive experiences taking off that allows guests to become part of the art, part of the installation itself.”

Visitors generally take 60 to 90 minutes to make through way through Paradox Museum. Tickets normally cost $26 for adults and teens and $20 for children.

Facundo Ildarraz, 17, and his family came to Miami from Argentina to catch a cruise and had a few days to check out the city. Ildarraz said his mom found Paradox Museum online, and it turned out to be a great chance to take fun photos with his family.

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“I’ve been laughing since I went inside,” Ildarraz said. “It’s really amazing.”

Dennis Speigel, head of a consulting company called International Theme Park Services, Inc., said immersive experiences are a natural progression of location-based entertainment, like go-cart tracks, laser tag, paint ball, indoor skydiving, escape rooms and trampoline parks. They are smaller scale attractions that take visitors a few hours to go through, rather than an all-day activity like visiting an amusement park.

“It’s a lot of little things that we’ve had in the industry for years, heightened by our new technology, like augmented reality and virtual reality, to make the experience new and something people haven’t seen,” Speigel said. “It’s kind of an evolution, everything that’s old is new again.”

Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.



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Miami, FL

Tokyo-style Neapolitan pizza is coming to Miami, led by legendary pizzaiolo chef Bun

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Tokyo-style Neapolitan pizza is coming to Miami, led by legendary pizzaiolo chef Bun


If you’re a diehard pizza fanatic in Miami, you’ll soon be able to check another renowned style off your list without leaving home. Arriving in October 2026, Royale Pizza Napoletana will debut at 1680 Meridian Avenue, introducing South Florida to the exceptionally precise world of Tokyo-style Neapolitan pizza. This highly anticipated opening marks the monumental stateside arrival of legendary Japanese pizzaiolo Chef Bun, the mastermind behind Tokyo’s genre-defining concept, Savoy.

RECOMMENDED: Where to find the best pizza in Miami

The restaurant is the brainchild of banking entrepreneur and restaurateur Jess Varughese, the innovator behind Miami’s ultra-exclusive, members-only hotspot, Haiku. After experiencing Chef Bun’s “perfect pizzas” during a trip to Japan, Varughese envisioned bringing this science-driven culinary movement to sunny South Florida. To ensure absolute authenticity, Varughese assembled an elite culinary team. Alongside Chef Bun, the kitchen features Haiku Executive Chef Albert Diaz and Chef Dalila Sabatino, a rising pizzaiola talent praised by Bun who previously trained at Los Angeles’ acclaimed Pizzeria Sei.

Photograph: Courtesy Royale Pizza NapoletanaRoyale Pizza Napoletana

What sets Tokyo-style Neapolitan pizza apart is its rigorous, chemistry-like execution. At Royale, the dough undergoes a meticulous 30+ hour fermentation process. Varughese and his team spent hundreds of hours adjusting the recipe, combining artisan flours with the Autolyse technique and even altering Miami’s water softness to match Japan’s famously soft water. Pizzas are then baked fresh in an 800-degree oven. The resulting crust achieves an ethereal balance of lightness, chewiness, char and crunch. As Varughese notes, having Chef Bun’s 20-plus years of innovation on board elevates the entire culinary game.

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Royale will be fast-casual, yet polished, with seating for 65 guests including a large community table at its center. Staying true to an accessible vibe, the restaurant will operate on a first-come, first-served walk-in basis with no reservations, though takeout and delivery will be available. You’ll order at a main counter from a carefully curated menu featuring antipasti, two pastas, two mains and seven distinct pizzas—including four traditional options and three specials. This is a pizza spot that deserves the hype, so stay up to date on their progress at @royalenapoletana ahead of the official October launch.





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Miami, FL

Girl, 12, shot while sitting in parked car in northwest Miami-Dade, deputies say

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Girl, 12, shot while sitting in parked car in northwest Miami-Dade, deputies say


MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, Fla. — A 12-year-old girl was shot in the arm after gunfire erupted in a northwest Miami-Dade neighborhood early Tuesday morning, according to the Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office.

Deputies said they responded just before 1 a.m. to the area of Northwest 64th Street and Northwest 21st Avenue in the county’s Gladeview area, where they found three vehicles struck by gunfire, including a silver Hyundai.

“The car was parked outside of the residence. It was occupied by three juveniles, so it was the girl and her two siblings that were in the vehicle. The mom was outside of the vehicle at the time, so this could have been a very different outcome,” MDSO Detective Samantha Choon said.

Authorities said Miami-Dade Fire Rescue medics transported the girl to a nearby hospital in stable condition.

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A family member of the victim told Local 10’s Jackie Pascale that the girl is now home and doing OK.

They said neither her siblings nor their mother was injured in the shooting.

According to investigators, no arrests have been made, and detectives have not released any suspect information at this time.

Neighbor Marie Grimes said she was shaken after hearing multiple gunshots.

“I heard the booms — boom, boom, boom, boom — and I said, ‘Oh my God, what’s happening?’” she said. “Maybe five or six, ’cause look at that right there. I’m just glad the little girl is OK.”

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Investigators asked neighbors to check their surveillance or Ring camera footage from around 1 a.m. and contact authorities with any information.

Anyone with information on the shooting is urged to contact Miami-Dade Crime Stoppers at 305-471-8477. Anonymous tips are accepted.

Copyright 2026 by WPLG Local10.com – All rights reserved.





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South Florida mother arrested for leaving daughter chained to fence, police say

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South Florida mother arrested for leaving daughter chained to fence, police say


A Hialeah woman was arrested and charged with child neglect for leaving her 13-year-old daughter chained to her great-grandmother’s fence in the heat with no shoes or water. CBS News Miami’s Abby Dodge reports from the neighborhood where it all happened.



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