February 12, 2020
The problem with Key West is that it makes me hungry. And I have never been able to eat with impunity. Ever. Not even as a very active first grader with a serious Ding Dong habit.
First, let’s start with the fresh air. In February. When we arrived the day after the Super Bowl, the temp was about 68-69 degrees. By Thursday, it had resettled in the low 80’s. And old Key West is built around fresh air. Our hotel, the Casablanca, had a second story deck and an interior courtyard with open air seating that bridged to the dining provided by the restaurant next door. Up and down Duval Street (the main drag), both grand old buildings and not-so-grand buildings have been renovated and converted to take advantage of eating and drinking al fresco. It’s all about bare arms and legs, and the caress of that soft winter air when the temp rarely drops below 70 at night. Down at the harbor and along the wharves, restaurants and bars mix it up with the air coming off the gulf, and the “free range” chickens that roam and cluck at will underfoot.
Secondly, because old Key West has extremely limited parking, it is a walking town – which suited these two walkers just fine – with more opportunity to be out doors. Our car had to be parked several blocks away, which in the end worked out just fine. It made us walk appreciatively through the densely packed neighborhoods of tiny frame houses that are slowly being fixed up and, I suppose, gentrified. Small structures of 600 to 900n SF are now being sold for $700K+ if fully renovated. They often stand shoulder to should with one another, their walls within reaching distance, their only separation or privacy being various forms of palm and fern. Larger homes, such as Hemingway’s place or Harry Truman’s “Little White House” feature private walled courtyards that if imaginatively lit are magical at night.
While still on standard east coast time, sunset in Key West was after 6pm, and the tourists would congregate along the sea walls, wharves and Mallory Square to watch the sun disappear into the sea. Multiple ships and schooners sailed back and forth in lyrical silhouette. We walked daily the several blocks to partake in and photograph the event. Street vendors, buskers and entertainers kept the crowds amused while they waited. Then like doves roosting, everyone would disappear into the bars and restaurants.
So all of this walking (8-9 miles a day) in fresh air and sunshine worked up a significant appetite. And the sea-swept air of Key West bubbles over with delectable scents: roasting meats, sauces, spices and smoke fire. Forget the alcohol. Key West is about food and eating and conviviality.
And there is so much to eat! I forsook my usual diet of prison salad and plain chicken for fried hogfish and conch fritters. Otherwise what is the point? This is a long way to come and not partake. It was a good thing we had to walk everywhere, or this trip might have turned out like the ding dong debacle.
And dancing. Did I mention all of the music that emanates from so many open venues? Our first evening, a small Latin band excited a conga line of ladies who invited me to join them. I dare the most dedicated introvert not to feel the urge to move while listening to a live Latin beat as sunset light lingers in that delicious air.
It was enough to make me want a tattoo and an ankle bracelet! My hair had already lost all reason, insisting on drying in curls and waves that resisted any brush or comb. Even Tom was going native, wearing his few tropical shirts untucked. I was amazed at how quickly we adapted, like hot-house flowers, to the warmth and sun.
Despite an abundance of over-paving, Key West was much greener that I expected. Structures, including sidewalks, were often built to accommodate existing mature trees. The Keys you drive through to get here tend to be more modern in building code, with concrete bridges and squat stucco homes placed on heavy concrete columns. ( They make the outer banks look weedy and wasteful with their over reliance on lumber.) So it’s easy to see why Key West is the preferred destination as a place.
Because of cruise ships docking two at a time, and a local commercial airport, Key West stayed busy during daylight hours – but really came alive after dark. Oddly I found myself drawn to the nightlife and crowded streets. I love being anonymous in a crowd– something I learned to enjoy as a youngster at Disneyland. I loved being outside in the temperate air, loved the outdoor venues and fairy lights. Loved the feel of my unreasonable hair on my bare shoulders.
So, by day, we visited historic sites (Fort Zachary Taylor); the rare, small crescent-shaped beaches (since the Keys are all coral, there is very little sand); art galleries and a great local bookstore, unimaginatively called “Books And Books”. In the evening we sought a good place to settle, eat, people-watch and listen to enticing music. Some of the places we patronized included BO’s, Caroline’s Café, Hogfish Bar & Grille, Schooner Wharf Bar, Viva’s, and Garbo’s.
And did I forget to mention the color of the sea? Seafoam green, darkening to azure blue at the horizon. All my life I have wanted to see water this actual color. I tried my best to photograph it, but with varying results. Even on the day we left, the rain and overcast could not dilute that sea-glass color.
But all good things must come to an end. And I was surprised at how loathe I was to get back on a plane to fly north into the cold again. I love coziness as much as the next person (probably more so, given my snow-addiction), but I apparently love sunshine even more, preferably set high in the sky.
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