Miami and Beyond

Driving across the Everglades on I-75, I wondered how early visitors traveled this route. The water table is so high I can't imagine anything besides boats. But since the population is mostly on the shores, people probably settled on the coast and moved inland slowly. The Miami suburban area was not impressive at first, but hopefully we will see some 'drop dead” views later.

Our most enjoyable time is this area has been Key West. The Keys are an interesting drive, although there were no alligators or deer on the road as advertised. And, at 45mph, the 165 miles felt more like 500 miles. Each little community has its own shops and businesses. Dive shops define Key Largo, T-shirt shops Marathon, and Bars and B & B's are all over Old Town Key West. All around, lapping at this civilization which is only 5 feet or so able sea level, is the most magnificent and undescribable blue water I have ever seen. Sadly no picture could do it justice. The locals explained that the light blue-green water is not the normal color, but that the 20 mph winds had stirred up the water adding more of a milky consistency to it.

Hemingway's home is a typical structure for a home: two stories with big windows (many patio-like doors in the living room), formal dining room, three bedrooms upsstairs. There was also a bath upstairs because there was a huge tank of water above the bathroom, supported by two huge beams. The master bedroom was large for the time—a king composed of two twins tied together and a huge gate for a headboard. His writing office behind the house was above a garage or pool house. Probably not the coolest building in the complex, but the office was large and very private.

And cats ruled. Supposedly there are 45 cats on the premise. There was a “cat house” that housed maybe 15 or 20 cats. At feeding time a gentleman ran around distributing canned food on paper plates.

Chuck and I laughed at the urinal from Sloppy Joe's that Hemingway turned into a drinking fountain for his cats.

After a little rest Chuck and I decided to “do the town.” We drove around the island, looking at sights like the Key West White House where Truman, Kennedy, and Eisenhower stayed. Finally we found a place to park in old town that didn't cost $20, (yea—it was free) and walked over to Duval street where most of the tourists were spending their money. Of course, first stop was Sloppy Joe's where Hemingway used to hang out. I can't imagine that he would like it now—very loud music, Biker crowd. Definitely not a “Clean Well Lighted Place.” We walked up and down the street, enjoyed the tourists, the shops we didn't enter, and examined the bars for a good place for drinks and a snack. Finally we went to Fogarties and their bar the Flying Monkeys. We sat outside under the trees and enjoyed a seafood platter and drinks. A perfect evening.