After being on the road from California for six months and not staying any more than a day or two in each place, I am ready for some R&R from this constant road trip. I'll be in Key West for an entire week. In one place. Margaritaville. Perfect.
My own personal Jimmy Buffett, Willow Glen friend, Bob, had shown me around Key West yesterday. Now I'm on my own to explore.
The Doodle is parked at Leo's Campground on the outskirts of town, which means I get to take public transportation into town each day.
Riding the bus is a great opportunity to meet people like this young couple from England who have been doing just what I'm doing, touring the US for an entire year.
Poking around town
I find the Museum of Art which was formerly the Custom House.
In front is a giant statue of a couple dancing which is a larger than life enactment
of a Renoir painting.
Was surprised to see a mounted police presence.
Hard to imagine things getting out of control in this tiny town.
Here they don't get rid of old cars, but decorate them and enter them in the Art Car contest
This is last year's winner. The sign on its side:
SOME ART ROCKS
SOME ART ROLLS
At Mel Fisher's Maritime Museum I oogled over the 3/4 of a billion dollars worth of treasures Mel's salvage diving company brought out of the water in 1985.
It was recovered from the Spanish galleon Atocha, that sank in a hurricane off Key West in 1622.
I was intrigued by the many strands of pure gold that were hanging like ropes in the cases.
The Spanish taxed bullion at a higher rate than jewelry so many people had their pure gold made into rope chains which were easier to transport from Mexico and South America to Spain.
Since gold is a soft metal, the pre-measured links could be twisted off as a form of payment. It would have taken a sailor aboard the Atocha 23 years to earn the value of the gold chain on the left.
In the Courtyard of the Museum sits the Mariana, one of the chugs which made it safely to Key West from Cuba in August bearing 23 men and one woman It is one of many that have made the trip since 1994 when Fidel Castro announced "those who wish to leave the country may do so".
The US government in 1996 responded with the "wet-foot, dry-foot" policy which allows those Cubans who set foot on dry land to stay and apply for legal residency after one year. Conditions in Cuba must be very bad for so many people to take such a chance with their lives on 90 miles of open sea to come to our country.
Near the museum is this water tower which is no longer used for water but is now used to mix martinis. The Orchid Inn has 100 different kinds of martinis.
Key West is known as a great party town with over 800 bars on the island, most of which are open until 4 a.m.
Captain Tony's Saloon is the original bar where Hemingway drank, just a few blocks from his home.
When the rent was raised $1, it was moved one block away to Duval Street and named Sloppy Joe's where Ernest continued to drink with friends until Pauline threw him out and he moved to Cuba.
As you wander down Duval, the main street, it seems every bar has live entertainment, even during the day. There are 200 bars on Duval.
That would seem like every other building.
Each evening the Duval Crawl begins. The idea is to have one drink in each bar until you are crawling or your friends are carrying you home.
I probably won't do this (the crawling part) since my self imposed limit is one.
Saturday
Dec 5
Friends Bob and Nancy agreed to accompany me for the Crawl to keep me out of trouble. Darn it!
We headed toward Mallory Square to watch the sunset and see some entertainment first.
A lot happens waiting for the sunset. We caught
Dominique's act with his trained cats and agreed he would have been a
lot funnier if we had more to drink but it was too early in the evening so it was mildly entertaining. The cats were good.
But
Key West isn't only about bars and booze. There is art. I had to get a
closer look at this installation behind Mallory Square. And I'm not the
only one getting a better look.
The Key West version of Rubens.
Nancy and me
We stopped for a snack of conch fritters, a new food for me.
Yummy.
They are pronounced conk,
unless you want to be known as a tourist.
Bob explained how the meat is extracted by cutting off the tip of the conch, then the empty shell is sold to tourists.
Finally the sunset.
Not much cheering for the sunset tonight as there was a heavy cloud cover.
Rain has been more frequent than normal here lately. El Nino?
Now we start the Duval Crawl. You haven't been here unless you've done it.
Or maybe it's like the 60s. If you remember the 60s you weren't really there.
Tonight also happens to be the annual Christmas parade when the entire town turns out. It was packed with spectators.
Wandering down Duval we met some of the more interesting locals. This guy was so beautiful I just had to let him know and he responded with a hug.
It was 93 degrees at Christmas 3 years ago.
Tonite only about 75.
This is the famous Bourbon Street Bar where Anderson Cooper and Kathy
Griffith drop a high heeled shoe at midnight on New Year's Eve
signaling the beginning of the new year.
And yes, those people on the top balcony are probably nude.
A bar we didn't investigate on the top floor of the Bull.
They say those who should, don't go,
and those who shouldn't, do.
If you are into nudity, the time to come is during
Fantasy Fest
the last week in October when you will see some sights you wish you hadn't.
Bob and Nancy
Jimmy Buffet's Margaritaville, of course, is here where he got his
start at Captain Tony's and still maintains a recording studio on Lazy
Way Lane.
I was disappointed not to be able to connect with one of his Parrotheads concerts while on the road. Next time.
"Hi sailor, new in town?"
The Green Parrot has been here since 1890 and is both the first and the last bar
on Hwy 1 since it sits near the Mile 0 marker for the highway
Many well known musicians play here with customers hanging out on the
sidewalks that surround the place to avoid the cover charge. No one
seems to mind.
The Green Parrot was the only place I had to have a t-shirt from since it is in my fav green and purple colors.
My laptop has gone wonky for formatting.
Bear with me, it should go back to normal shortly.
Mile marker 0 is either the beginning or the end of Hwy 1 depending upon which direction you are headed.
Like California's Highway 1 which travels the length of
the Pacific Coast,
the East coast version of Highway 1 travels
2,450
miles from Maine to Florida thru small towns and big cities like New
York and past some of the best historic sites in the country.
After the Christmas parade which started off our Duval Crawl, we had a night cap, Senior style, stopping at DQ for a Blizzard.
The next morning, a bike ride two miles into town for sightseeing.
Past beautiful beaches. There are no waves for surfing because of coral reefs.
Sorry, Tyler and Dyl.
Where a music video was being produced on the pier.
Had the best Key Lime pie in Key West at Blue Heaven for breakfast. Why not?!
Washed it down with a rum drink and half an hour later thought what was I thinking?!
Toured Truman's Little White House. Harry loved it here, Bess not so much.
Pan Am had their first office here in 1927 where they sold tickets to Havana for $525,
a lot of money then. A lot of money now.
Southern most point in the US with the southernmost tourists.
It is 90 miles from Havana and 137 miles from Walmart.
Had to have a tattoo here in front of Hemingway's bar,
Sloppy Joe's.
After stopping to watch a 9er game at a bar, I rode down Duval end to end in about 20 minutes, crossing the entire island from Atlantic to Gulf coast
All of Key West is only 2 by 4 miles. It's impossible to get lost.
Chickens everywhere, leftover some say,
from the days when cockfighting was legal here.
They can be very noisy in the morning after a night of hard partying.
I imagine.
Beautiful Key Lime colors on the homes.
As expected real estate is high here. Saw a cottage that just sold for $800K.
Home of Oscar de la Renta
The average home price here is $1.5M, average rent $1500
Out at the Navy yard there is a Coast Guard destroyer that was a battleship and won awards for sinking Japanese U boats.
I was more interested in Sunset Key, the large private island to the right where Oprah lives. I wonder if I knocked on her door she would give me a car.
There are 800 Florida key islands, some I imagine only barely big enough to stand on.
Had a drink called Guarpo from a street vendor.
It's made from sugar cane pieces that are fed into a device that squeezes the juice out
when a wheel is turned by hand.
It took awhile. She earned her $6, and it was delicious.
Tennessee Williams holed up here while writing
The Rose Tattoo and Cat on a Hot Tin Roof.
After many fires officials declared all the roofs be made of tin
which inspired the title of the play.
When I first arrived I did not know I was on foreign soil until Bob told me about the Conch Republic, a story that could have taken place in Berkeley.
Apparently in 1982 the Feds set up a roadblock checking cars leaving the islands for illegals and drugs. After much furor by the citizenry, the mayor declared a Proclamation of Secession from the union and to show they were serious, attacked a naval officer with a loaf of Cuban bread.
They then surrendered and demanded foreign aid from the United States. They are still waiting for the aid.
And they are still flying their Conch Republic flag which states:
"We seceded where others failed"
To see another dimension of Key West,
Bob took me to Blue Hole,
a wildlife refuge where we saw tiny deer,
a crocodile
and group of young German tourists
who looked like they could have been the wildest of all.
Sitting on the porch at Bob's thinking about the best week of my trip while I do laundry.
So I sent this text to Lisa and Bobbie:
"Send $2M ASAP!
I'm buying a small bar on Key West and staying!"
stayed at the best little privately owned RV Park near Palm Beach where there was a Bocce court, the first I've seen.
Didn't play tho as you had to have your own balls and I didn't bring any.
The weather is very much like Hawaii. You know when you step off the plane and that warm air surrounds you and you just relax...
The weather is changeable tho. This was yesterday.
Today.
On to Miami for Thanksgiving.
I had always wanted to help serve Thanksgiving to needy people instead of having our traditional dinner where we all pig out.
So made a few calls and helped Jimmy, Diane and Larry to serve at Douglas Gardens in Miami Beach.
They were fun to work with serving the meal to 38 residents of this facility who had formerly been homeless.
Their 1938 building is in the midst of other Art Deco style buildings that have been renovated and are now high end hotels.
The city bought this one in the early 1980s when it was affordable and made it part of a program to get homeless people off the street. The residents are now working and paying a sliding scale rent in this great old building.
When we finished serving and cleaning up, I walked the two blocks to Miami Beach and did some people watching.
Couldn't help thinking how lucky those 38 residents are to live in such a place as this.
Did dip my toes in the Atlantic and found the water to be warmer than the Pacific around San Francisco.
Walking back to the open lot where I had stashed the Doodle, there were other not so lucky homeless sleeping under the roof of this
building.
Starting down the Keys
John Pennekamp
Coral Reef State Park
The aquarium at the park
Key Largo sunset
Now, THAT'S a lobster!
Islamorada Key
The Iguana Tiki Bar at
Knights Key RV Park waiting for the sunset.
Went to view the sunset with Mary who is also traveling solo and has a small RV like the Doodle and the best chocolate Lab.
The Seven Mile Bridge
where the water is three incredible shades of blue.
I'm driving across on top of the water!
The Keys are 113 miles long.and connected by 42 bridges. Speed limit: 45 mph
Key West has always had this mystique for me of what I don't know, but I was here to find out.
Former Willow Glen neighbor and now Keys resident, Bob, was my tour guide for the first day.
He drove me thru the town pointing out what he thought was worth seeing and a few things that might not be worth a visit. It's good to get the local point of view.
The rest I'll find out for myself. Or not.
Took in the wonderful sand carvings on
the Casa Marina Hotel beach front.
I think this one of Jimmy Hendrix won first place.
Am I the only one to notice Bob is a Jimmy Buffett look alike?
I thought I was with another celebrity.
The Casa Marina is the original hotel Henry Flagler built in 1925 to house his wealthy friends when he was developing Florida. The beachfront area is gorgeous.
We did some of this at
Turtle Kraals
Have you ever seen a Christmas tree
made out of lobster traps?
And some of this.
A Key Lime Margarita. I had to try it.
There is no bad Margarita.
A big hug from the giant Sponge Man
The next day, touring Key West on my own, my first stop was the Hemingway House.
It was built in the 1850s on an acre in the middle of Key West.
Ernest and his second wife, Pauline, were given the home as a wedding present by her rich uncle since Ernest was broke at the time.
He always managed to marry well.
They lived here from 1931-41, ten years during which Ernest wrote 70% of his best known works including For Whom the Bell Tolls and The Old Man and the Sea.
You know, that one you pretended to read in high school with all the symbolism.
They raised their two boys here, but when Ernest met reporter Martha Gellhorn at Sloppy Joe's, the local bar, and began an affair, Pauline had enough.
She threw him out and filed for divorce but continued to live here until the home was sold to a local woman whose family now runs tours for the public.
As much as the house and history, I was there to see those polydactyl
(six and seven toed) cats.
They are descendants of the original family pet, Snow White, who was a gift to Ernest from a sea captain.
All of the cats are named after movie stars or fantasy figures.
Betty Davis shows off her many toes.
We were allowed to pet but not pick up.
I miss Bogey and Princess so did a lot of petting to get my fur fix.
There are 43 cats on the property and they are everywhere, even on Ernest and Pauline's original bed.
This is Jane Russell's favorite place to nap.
Gary Cooper is asleep on the buffet in the dining room.
There are also two litters of kittens currently. All the cats are spayed or neutered with just a select few allowed to have a litter to replace those that die.
It had been possible in the past to adopt a Hemingway cat but no more.
They have their own Cat Cemetery and their own veterinarian, a full time job with 43 cats.
And also their own cat house which is a replica of the Hemingway House. This came about after a tourist lodged a complaint that the cats weren't being properly cared for with no shelter.
How much shelter does a cat need in Florida?
The cat house even has a cooling fan.
The Hemingway House itself only got air conditioning a few months ago.
So I drink a toast to one of my favorite macho men who also happens to be a great writer.
Here's to you, Ernest!
