Author: rlh

Today was our last full day here and we decided to make it a day at the beach.

Had a light breakfast at the condo then suited up and drove to Sombrero Beach. This is a very nice city park with everything you need handy. The water was warm and calm with minimal seaweed. Maewyn really enjoyed her snorkel gear. Whole family had a great day. Right on verge of too much beach, but not quite. Just about perfect.

Back to the condo to get clean. Dinner at the Tiki bar for the third time. Condo. Girls had a night swim. Sleep.

Shopping. End of story. For a place that doesn’t appear to have much in the way of shopping, we managed to spend pretty much all day in stores.

Started the day with a very nice breakfast at the Wooden Spoon. This is a little diner with ten tables and a counter. Simple food but done well and another friendly server. Friendly service has been a common theme everywhere.

First stop was a Kmart for some toiletries, etc. Then we hit a string of clothing, shoe, souvineer stores. Rinse and repeat.

About 4:00 we decided that a full lunch was pointless and went on a snack quest. I’m sorry to say thar the best we could find was Wendy’s for a frosty. Marathon has sit down restaurants and fast food, but no snack type places that we could find.

With a second wind, the girls found a few more shops, then we went back to the condo for a little down time before dinner.

For the record, Maewyn got a snorkle set, a watch, and a Vera pencil pouch. Kinnamon scored a new Vera lunch box. Maria was the big winner with a tumbler, a shirt, and a handmade dress. They also got a puzzle for the group.

Oh, and a new table clock for the condo. The original met it’s demise when it slipped from Maria’s hand to the tile floor.

Since we first saw Chappy’s, Maewyn has been plotting for a swim in the restaurant’s pool. We finally relented and made a return trip. While we were waiting for a table I ordered an appetizer from the bar and Maria supervised the swim.

I finally got to see a sunset over the water. No green flash, but still pretty impressive.

Our table was ready and Maewyn’s swim ended. Dinner was uneventful. It was hot.

Condo. Shower. Bed.

The day of the only scheduled activity had arrived. It was Maria’s birthday and she was going to swim with the dolphins.

We didn’t really know what to expect. We knew the location of the Dolphin Research Center and we knew Maria had a 12:00 reservation. We ate breakfast in the condo, packed the sunscreen and cameras, and off we went.

The DRC is a really nice place for being up close to the dolphins. All of the staff seemed truly excited with their jobs. Maria was the only one in the family to actually touch a dolphin, but all of us had a good day there.

The layout has a Tiki-covered spectator penisula surrounded by several interconnected habitats with two to six dolphins each. So the visitors who aren’t participating can observe any and all of the activities. We all had a good time and stayed longer than we expected.

On the advice of a staffer, we had lunch at The Wreck on the other side of the lot. Once again, great food and very friendly service. The girls went back to the gift shop while I finished the pie and my beer.

Hot and tired (again) we went back to the condo. I crashed in the AC and the girls went for a swim in the pool. Eventually we all got clean and went to a late dinner. We returned to the scene of the thunderstorm and ate light. A classic margarita and peel-n-eat shrimp for me.

Back to the condo and bed.

This has been a long day. We decided that today would be a daytrip to Key West. First time for all us.

We started with a return to the Stuffed Pig for breakfast. Crab cake and eggs today. Still good and more than I could eat. After a quick family photo op with Willy B. Bacon, we headed south on US1. Very pleasant drive down to Key West with some great scenery.

Just as we hit mile marker 5 it started to rain. Didn’t think too much about it at the time. We made our way around the west side of the city to Caroline St. and on to Duval. At this point the pedestrians were extra aggressive due to the rain. Somehow we managed to get ourselves on a dead end alley behind the Westin parking garage. One five-point turn later and we got into a small parking lot to get our bearings.

It was still raining and a bit of a mad house, so we decided to head east to the southernmost point marker. The closer we got, the more it rained. We parked within sight of the marker and tried to wait out the storm. After about 30 minutes, and seeing a trash can float past us in the street. We went back west to get in the parking deck and just do something.

We parked and set off in the light rain. Next door is the art museum where we stopped briefly to come up with some sort of plan. It was time for lunch so we asked a hostess at the museum for a suggestion and she pointed us to the Roof Top Cafe. Excellent choice. We had a tasty, fun lunch. Girls even hsd virgin cocktails By the time we were done the rain had stopped and the urban flood waters had begun to recede. We started walking east on the south side of Duval.

I’ve never been to New Orleans, but Maria the veteran traveller says that Duval St. is an island version of the French Quarter.

We walked, we got hot, we bought a few trinkets. By 7:00 we had made our way back to Mallory Square. That was enough for one day and we decided to leave Key West and head back to Marathon. I may write more about my impression of Key West in another post.

Maria found a restaurant on the south end of Marathon for us. I can’t recall the name at the moment (I’ll update the post later), but it had good reviews. When we walked up, all we could see was a shack, a half dozen picnic tables, a 10-seat bar, and a hostess stand. We waited. And waited. No employees in sight. Waited. Near the end of our patience an apologetic hostess emerged from the shack. It turns out that the shack was hiding a fairly large, air conitioned dining room. I know this because we had to walk through it to get to our crappy table on the dock. Actually it was more of a covered storage area with four tables next to the canal. Kinnamon picked the table and it was her birthday so … As a bonus there was an industrial fan on high sitting six feet behind my chair. What? Speak up, I can’t hear you over the gale. The food was bland too. Finish eating, drive to condo, shower, bed.

The plan Sunday night was to go to Key West Monday. Didn’t happen. We slept in a bit, then had to wash a few dishes. We were going to have cereal for breakfast, but I didn’t pack it. This despite my insistence that I did pack it when asked during yesterday’s shopping. I paid the dumbass tax of going back to the grocery store before breakfast.

We had promised the girls a morning swim, so we applied sunscreen and made for the pool. By now it was approaching 11:00 and Key West seemed unlikely for the day. We decided to have sandwiches and go to Bahia Honda State Park for an afternoon at the beach.

Went south on US1 and crossed the 7-mile bridge for the first time. The park is really nice. A good time was had by all. The water was still very warm, actually too warm. The beach had a seaweed barrier about 8 to 10 inches deep and 20 feet wide that you had to cross to get to the water. The water was pretty clear and very calm. The kids really enjoyed being able to go so far from shore.

Had a nice chat with an older couple from New Jersey, did a little more swimming, then packed up and made our way back to the condo to get clean.

Dinner at Chappy’s with the highlight being the Tiki Chips. Essentially nachos with crab meat. Still haven’t seen a sunset. Tonight was close, but haze and a few clouds moved in during the last half hour.

We were all stuffed when we left the restaurant. As a side note, I had Key West Sunset Ale for the third night in a row. The beer selection has been limited thus far.

Back to the condo and the girls had a late night swim. All is well.

Okay, now for our first full day in the Keys we’re going to… Uh… Hmm. Well let’s start with breakfast. After a little research with the iPhone, we decided to try the Stuffed Pig. (I’m planning a blog post dedicated to the iPhone as a travel aid. In a word, awesome.) Took a couple of tries to find the place. It looks like nothing from the street, since most of the seating is outdoors in the back. Food was excellent. Blueberry banana pancakes were perfect. We all loved it and I’m sure we’ll be back sometime this week.

After breakfast we did a recon mission to Sombrero Beach. It’s a nice family rec area. Park, shelters, grills, plenty of beach with shade generating palms, and a good swimming area. I think this will be our “day at the beach” spot.

On the same street is Marathon High School, home of the Dolphins. How many high schools are oceanfront?

So now it was time for the grocery chore. We knew we had seen a Publix on the main road so away we went. After a bit of driving and chatting, I realized that I had not only missed the Publix, I had passed the end of the island. Turned around and started paying attention. Found the Publix at our starting point. It’s at the intersection of Sombrero Beach Rd. Doh.

Grocery shopping is a chore at home or on vacation. Let’s just leave it at that. Back to the condo and unloaded.

At this point Maria’s back pain had her in tears. She took some ibuprofen and had a nap. The kids and I had some sandwiches.

Maria recovered somewhat and we all went to the pool. Hot. I’m talking about the water. I had to get out of the pool to cool off. Warmest pool I have ever been in. Walked the twenty feet from the pool to the ocean and guess what. Yep, hot.

We all got cleaned up and when to dinner. Chose the closest option, Island Fish Co. and Tiki Bar. Sat outside and raced the impending rain. Very tasty peel-n-eat shrimp Had to leave a couple of bites of Key lime pie and a little ale, but made it back to the condo dry. Good night.

After a fitful night (AC made it cool, but didn’t affect humidity) we had a better than average “free” breakfast at the hotel. Got back on the road, still I95, around 9:30.

After lunch at a deli, whose name escapes me, in Jupiter; the next item of note was a visit with family. We met up with Maria’s nephew Huck at an ice cream shop in Hollywood. He pulled some slight of hand on Maria and managed to pay. He’s the starving student and much too nice of a guy.

Back on the road for what turned out to be the final stint. Maria took us all the way to Marathon. Still hasn’t quite sunk in that we’re actually in the Keys. Unloaded the car and had a quick peek at the pool and beach. Ocean was amazingly calm. It’s quiet. Too quiet.

We then went on a dinner quest. We aborted our first choice. It was a seafood place (duh, we’re in the Keys) outdoors where you order at the counter and wait for them call your name, then sit where ever you can find. We were hot and tired so we moved on to choice two.

Food and service shifted between great and fair, but we were fed. Unfortunately the sun, heat, fatigue, etc. combined to give me a migraine. Once we were back in the condo, I had some ibuprofen, shower, and then to bed. I was down and that was the end of day two.

In case you couldn’t tell, as the drive wore on, our excitement waned. That was a long car trip, I don’t care who you are.

Spent an hour Friday morning packing the car. Managed not to obstruct the driver’s view out the back, but just barely. CK would be mocking me mercilessly after he put four adults, four kids, and their shoebox of luggage for a week into his minivan with room to spare.

We hit the road around 11:00 after a stop at the bank for some cash and at Bruegger’s for a bagel filled send off. Maria took the first stint and the girls settled in with their DVDs. An hour (well, maybe less) we passed Benson and expressed our sympathy for Kent. He has to make that drive everyday.

Moments later we merged onto I95 and the long stretch had begun. We were immediatly hit with the visual overload of I95’s collection of billboards. It wasn’t long until I spotted the first of the legendary South of the Border series. My personal favorite: Weather forecast, chili today, hot tamale.

When we hit the state line, we had to stop. We did need gas, but more importantly the kids needed the experience. They’ll need material for future stories afterall. By the way, Maewyn was particularly excited about the display of the Great White Shark (third largest ever caught) in the Myrtle Beach gift shop. Also, I don’t recall ever encountering urinals in individual private stalls with doors.

Back to the road and I took over driving. This stint was uneventful and we stopped for lunch at Zaxby’s. The girls had never been there and were skeptical, but they actually admitted to liking it. Two items to note. First, they had a poster of the 1994 NASCAR pole winners on the wall. I have no explanation as there were no other race related items to be seen. Second, the Men’s room had better tile, trim, and fixtures than half the houses in the Parade of Homes. Again, no explanation.

As a side note, I want to be clear that I’m not obsessed with public restrooms.

On we go for another segment till we stopped for a snack. Nothing special other than some dispute about one of the gas pumps that didn’t interest me enough to eavesdrop. Back on the road till dinner near the Florida line.

We picked Sonny’s Bar-B-Que since we don’t have them in NC and because they’re an Indycar sponser. Food was okay, about a B- if I’m generous.

However on the way in I met a little boy who sent me back to about third grade. He was on a bench with his grandmother and he had both arms in casts. He had a fall on the playground and had broken his wrists. That was me in the summer of 1970. Details were similar and I had both arms in casts and slings. FYI, you can’t zip your pants when you’re 8 years old and both arms are in casts.

Back to the highway for as long as we can go. That put us in St. Augustine. Found a nice hotel, hauled in half the stuff from the car, and that was the end of day one.