The first stop on my recent vacation was Key West, Florida. I've heard about it in Jimmy Buffett songs, everyone else I know has been there, and I've just always wanted to go. Needless to say, I was excited. I planned a walking tour for us from port to the Southernmost Point and back, since the touristy part of the island is fairly small and walkable if you plan a lot of stops in between and can handle the wet heat that is all of Florida, even the island parts.
Because we got into port at 1 p.m. and off the ship closer to 2, we immediately went to eat at Caroline's Cafe, a little open air restaurant not very far from the port at all, a little less than half a mile. It was everything you could want in a little Key West restaurant. Chickens and lizards wandered the porch, the menu was small but very tropical without being kitschy, and it had conch fritters, something I was determined to try while in the Conch Republic.
They were like slightly wetter on the inside hush puppies. I liked them, which surprised me more than anyone considering I nearly choked on a scallop the evening before at a fancy onboard French restaurant. It felt like wet, rubbery bread that wouldn't fall apart when I tried to chew it. But these conch fritters, I'd eat them again when in the Caribbean! There was a lot to see from the porch of Caroline's, which is right along Duval Street, the main drag there. The personalities of both the tourists and the locals shone through in their choices of transportation and clothing. And chickens really are everywhere in Key West, like squirrels, just hanging out by your table or in front of the courthouse.
From there we walked to the Truman Little White House, because there was also another president who wintered in Florida! We didn't take a tour, but it was fascinating to walk around the Truman Annex and see the gorgeous classic Key West homes. Anyone who loves architecture or dreaming about moving to Key West should walk around the annex and see the best that island life has to offer. After that, and a random trip to the post office, we were getting hot and soaking wet and I had just the place. We went down to Captain Tony's to get out of the heat, and it was in fact, a glorious dark, cool bar without much in the way of touristy overtures, and with lots of character from the thousands of dollars and bras stapled to the walls and ceilings. Framed news clippings on the wall gave insight into the actual Captain Tony. It is the original Sloppy Joe's and I'd venture to say is a little less known to the tourist hoards, which we appreciated. It was everything I wanted it to be and did not disappoint.
It was hard to leave there but we had so many other things to see. We walked down to another bar for cool respite and a drink, then stopped at Hemingway's House which was closed but hey, we saw it and a cat!, and continued the trek to the Southernmost Point. Ya'll. There was a line, which okay, was to be expected. What was not expected is that each jackoff in line took about 20 photos with different poses, knowing full well that a bunch of other people were standing in the sun waiting their turn. We got annoyed with it all and took a photo with the back of the stupid thing and called an Uber to take us back to our train pickup point.
We hung out near the pickup point and got a key lime pie before leaving and enjoyed more street chickens and made jokes when they crossed the road. We were starting to lose steam between the heat, the alcohol, and the walking, but I loved Key West and want to go back and stay for a few nights to get a better feel for the island and to get on island time without worrying about being left behind by a boat.
