Key West

For a whopping $1.50 each (senior discount), you can catch a bus from Marathon to Key West!  A 1 1/2 hour ride, but what the heck!  Key West for a $6 round trip total for both of us....you couldn't even park there for that!  So, off we went, in company of Wendy and Warwick and Anita and Charlie, plus a few other cruisers. It's much easier than finding a weather window to sail there (easterly winds, prevalent) and another to sail back (westerly winds, uncommon).

We passed the long, original bridges built by Henry Flagler for his railroad to Key West in the early 1900's, connecting the Keys together. Many segments are still intact, often used as fishing bridges.  The Keys still depend on long bridge spans to bring in the tourists and outside world, but they are newer ones.

Ahhhh, Key West.  The beautiful homes are about the only elegant parts of the island!

This is the oldest house on Key West.  Very beautiful, with nice, cool gardens.

You are much more likely to notice the roosters everywhere.

Of course, where there are roosters, what else do you have?  Chickies, of course!

 

Chickies of a different sort are here, too.  Street performers.

 

 

Luke especially liked this chick - Marilyn Monroe!

 

Wishful thinking...wishing that was MY game fish!  Oh, well, you can pretend.

 

 

As dusk began to slip into Mallory Square in Key West, the street performers began to slip out.

 

 

If one fire juggler is good, two must be better, right?

 

 

Only, this fellow also had a pet pig that somewhat reluctantly participated by sort of running through rings.

 

 

And speaking of pigs....careful, the next picture will burn your eyeballs out!

 

The only bad part of the trip was that I somehow managed to lose my clear glasses.  sigh, I've resorted to wearing my sunglasses all of the time until new ones come in on Tuesday.  That's not much fun after dark.

 

Those glasses will also delay our departure eastward and northward.  It looks like a good weather window will come through on Tuesday, but I guess we will have to wait for the next one.  Oh, well --- getting those glasses will make it all worthwhile!