Key West - The Conch Republic

Key West, FL was by the far the most interesting place of all of our ports. It would have been nice to have another day to explore and tour. Key West has some great history attached to it and some beautiful homes. The gates above are called the Presidential Gates and are only opened for Presidents. Behind those gates is the vacation home of President Truman. He spent many days during his Presidency there, as much as 150 days at a time. These gates have only been opened for four Presidents. You can tour the home, but we did not have time. I heard it was lovely, from a couple we met that took the tour.

Key West is also the Southernmost point of the United States. There are all sorts of establishments with the name "Southernmost"...like the Southernmost House, the Southernmost Coffee Shop, etc. They also have a Sunset party everyday at Mallory Square. Ken West is known as the Conch Republic and this link gives you history on that. Back in 1982, the United States put up Border Patrol on Highway 1 because of drug running. This did not sit well with the Key West residence because it made them feel less than citizens of the U.S. They had to prove their residency to travel in and out of the Key. The Mayor, who is still currently the mayor announced that Key West was going to secede from the U.S. Of course everything was resolved quickly, but they do have their own flag, passport, and motto. "We Seceded Where Others Failed."

There are chickens and roosters everywhere, just roaming around. When I asked about it, I was told that Key West is a Bird Sanctuary - chickens are welcome!

When we arrived at the Key, we took a Trolley Ride/Tour. It lasted about 1 1/2 hours, but you could also get off and on at the 14 or so different stops. I had read about and someone had told me about a gravestone at an old cemetery, so I looked on the map and decided we were going to find it. It was hot, and we walked up hill and through a neighborhood until we found the cemetery. Once we got in the cemetery, I found out the gravestone I was looking for was at the far corner, opposite of where we were. I was ready to turn back, but Terry said, we came this far, we are going to find it......and we did!

This isn't it.....but I thought it was cute. "Just resting my eyes"

This is it! The story goes that Bertha was the town hypocondriac, she would walk through town telling everyone how sick she was and no one believed her. Obviously, she was right - only 50 years old!

The cemetery reminded me of the ones here in New Orleans, above ground. Not because they are below sea level like we are, but because the Key is built on a Coral Reef and it is too hard to dig into. Many of the family plots had these "Car Ports", as I called them built over their burial sites.

The only Highway in and out of the Key's is Highway 1. Highway 1 runs along the coast all the way to Maine. This is the end/or beginning of the Highway.

Why did the chicken cross the road?

Of course who could go to Key West and not get Key Lime Pie?? I DO NOT like Lemon anything, but I do enjoy a slice of Key Lime Pie...and I really enjoyed this slice, it was dipped in CHOCOLATE!!! Oh my goodness.

There are several...."Famous" Key Lime places, factories, stores, etc....but supposedly Kermit's Key Lime Pie is the best. I don't know, since I only had one piece - but it was really, really good. This is Kermit - who stands outside his store and taunts those going by with his fresh pie.

Sloppy Joe's is a popular eatery....and yes, they serve Sloppy Joe's. We shared Fish and Chips!! Sloppy Joe's are okay, but I certainly didn't want to pay $10.00 for one! When I eat out, I want something that I can't or don't usually make at home.

This is the Audubon House, where John Audubon wrote the bird watching book. Ernest Hemmingway's house is also on the Key and I don't know how I missed a picture of it. You can tour his house as well. I heard it is overrun with Cats...some of the cats of decendants of Hemmingway's cats. I'm not a fan of the cat!

Before we got back on the Ship, we were just hanging around Mallory Square, near the docks and enjoying the weather. Then one of the boat captains that was getting ready to take a group parasailing, said hey - there is a manatee! I was so excited. For years I have looked for Manatee's when we have visited Florida. I was on the upper deck of the dock and shot some pictures and he wasn't going anywhere fast, so I went down to the dock and took several more shots.

It was amazing! He was very gentle, slow and ugly. He was all nicked up on his body and tail from boat propellers. One of the captains pulled out a water hose and the manatee put it in his mouth and enjoyed the fresh water. I was thrilled to have finally gotten to see a manatee in the wild.

I would love to go back to Key West someday. Maybe a trip to Miami and then drive down Highway 1 and hit all of the Keys.