Day 5 – Key West

After a ridiculously long night’s sleep (not that i’m complaining) last night, we were up and ready to go this morning. We started out with Mona’s breakfast on the front porch

i didn't even realize what a lousy job i did of getting pix of this cute and cozy b&b

i didn't even realize what a lousy job i did of getting pix of this cute and cozy b&b

me in the 2nd floor balcony of the southernmost point guest house

me on the 2nd floor balcony of the southernmost point guest house

and then we went for an exploratory walk. We had to check out the beach that was just one property to our east. Key West is not known for its beaches so I wasn’t too surprised to find it nowhere up to competition with our backyard.

pelican and birds hangin out

pelican and gulls hanging out

you lookin' at me?!

you lookin' at me?!

turret!  i'd love to have walked through this mansion.  it looked amazing.

turret! i'd love to have walked through this mansion. it looked amazing.

We then had our obligatory photo opp at the southernmost point in the continental US, just a ninety mile swim to Cuba!

hubby and me playing tourists

hubby and me playing tourists

We spent the next hour or so walking up and down Duval Street and the marina and cruise port. Turns out, it’s a little bit like Kauai here.  While there aren’t nearly as many, the free-roaming chickens are a hoot.

hen and chicks

hen and chicks

roosters

roosters

Down by the waterfront, there is a red brick building that totally stands out among the more pastel palette around it.  It is the Arts and Historical Society building and it has slice-of-life type sculptures all around it. 

out of order since it was taken later in the day, on the way back from snorkeling, but you can see just how much this building stands out

out of order since it was taken later in the day, on the way back from snorkeling, but you can see just how much this building stands out

The one that amused me was this one of an artist painting a still-life of a sculpture across the way.  The name of it is ”Copyright Violation.”  It amused me.

so i guess i'm violating copyright violation?

so i guess i'm violating copyright violation?

A Wendy’s frosty and water on our way back saved us from spontaneous human combustion in that heat. When we made it back to the B&B, we changed and gathered up all of our snorkel gear and got ready for the walk back to the west end for our snorkeling trip out of the marina. We did the sunset snorkeling trip to get snorkel time and a sunset cruise all at once. This was our first snorkel trip on a sail boat so that was fun.

hubby on the upper deck

hubby on the upper deck

hoisting the sail

hoisting the sail

sailing away

sailing away

hubby's hair flies around more than mine now

hubby's hair flies around more than mine now

The snorkeling was… disappointing. We went to a reef on the seven mile ridge but the coral is all dead and bleached out as can be. We did see some large parrotfish and a few huge lobsters but not a whole lot more.

never seen blue/black parrots before

never seen the blue/black fishie before

the little pink-bellied guy looks dead there

the little pink-bellied guy looks dead there

giant lobster, not very photogenic

giant lobster, not very photogenic

it's a trap!

it's a trap!

kinda neat coral

kinda neat coral

this reminds me of the scene where forest gump meets his son and they sit in front of the tv and cock their heads the same way

this reminds me of the scene where forest gump meets his son and they sit in front of the tv and cock their heads the same way

he's bright, bold, beautiful, and blue!

he's bright, bold, beautiful, and blue!

polly want a coral!

love the little fishies surrounding his mouth looking for scraps

schooling

schooling

speckly loner

speckly loner

On the way back from snorkeling, we were served wine as the sun started to set.

spectacular sailboat sunset

spectacular sailboat sunset

me, hubby, and a sunset

me, hubby, and a sunset

We watched a boat similar to ours set anchor to enjoy the sunset,

just like us only stopped for the setting of the sun

just like us only stopped for the setting of the sun

which is what we thought we would be doing as well, but instead we kept right on sailing as the sun disappeared. So that too was a bit disappointing.

another, cooler looking, boat stopped for the sunset

another, cooler looking, boat stopped for the sunset

arrrr, matey

arrrr, matey

sun setting with the moon already shining

sun setting with the moon already shining

The walk back along Duval Street was loud, boisterous, and fun.