Sunday 1/17/16

After my shower I was faced with a great dilemma. What do I wear today? I was already in my jeans and long sleeved shirt. But the sun was shining and the warmest weather I have felt  in weeks and I was breaking a sweat. I had been prepared for what the forecast called for, overcast, raining and 35 mile hour winds. I think this small break in weather is due to a conversation I had with God about an hour before. I reminded him that He was the only one who could change the weather and if he would do that, I would be very grateful.

As I walked back to our campsite from the bath house, I saw a man talking to Sean. At first glance, I thought it was a fellow camper. He then walked over to me and extended his hand. He introduced himself as Joey, and explained that he’s been reading my blog for about six months. We have a mutual friend, Micheal Elliott. I have read wonderful things about Joey in several Micheal’s blogs. Micheal tends to bend the truth from time to time, um… for the sake of a good story. But I can attest to the great things he has written about Joey. He lives in Key West and just wanted to come over to meet us and give us some suggestions of things to do before we left. What a pleasure to meet such a nice person!

The sun continued to bless us with its presence through most of the day, and I savored every moment of it.

Fort Zachary Taylor was our first attraction for the day. We took the self guided tour and enjoyed the views from the top deck of the fort. The girls enjoyed spotting different colored iguanas in the trees that surrounded the moat. The fort is very similar to our own Fort Pulaski, just off of Tybee Island.

Ironically every time we went to the historic district, we parked in the same exact spot. Which is located next to a Chinese restaurant. By two o’clock, all of us were ready to eat so Chinese it was.

We took our time after lunch and, just meandered through the Key West tourist shops till we came to our next scheduled stop, which was the Shipwreck Museum. This was a excellent experience. I highly recommend for anyone visiting either with or without kids. I had no idea of the history lesson we would learn before entering. We are not typical tourists and are not drawn to the overpriced commercialized establishments or amusement park feel in most vacation spots.  But this was not that. There were actors that began the tour and set the time period establishing what the wreckers and their families did. The whole family enjoyed learning about this era that we knew little about.

About an hour prior to sunset, we walked over to Mallory Square, the spot in Key West most famous for celebrating the end of a day as the sun slips into the ocean. Artists and street performers filled the square as tourists and onlookers stood shoulder to shoulder taking in the entertainment. We first watched a man named Will who juggled fire sticks and performed on a tightrope, in the unseasonable high winds. He was truly a performer and kept us all laughing.

When he was finished with his act we turned our attention to a crazy little guy named Mason who was just behind us. Hollering and cracking a whip to draw people to his corner of the square. Soon several people gathered around him. Within minutes he asked for a volunteer and Ava was the first to step up to the plate. She takes after Sean when it comes enjoying the spotlight. We later spent some time with Mason and learned that he travels the world on his bicycle paying his way as a street performer. In a few months he will be cycling from Anchorage Alaska to Cape Horn, South America. Talk about seeing the world one pedal at a time! You can read more about him on his Facebook page. Again… I just love meeting the most interesting people when we travel.

On our way back to the car, the girls and I stopped into the Key Lime Pie Company for a slice of the famous dessert.

Since we had a big lunch and dessert, we opted for a quick snack at taco bell before heading back to camp.

God blessed us with a beautiful day, and I held up my end of the deal too..I am so grateful!

Our unanimous decision was that we will pack up and find another place to camp, maybe not so windy…after some research we decided to check out the  Everglades National Park.

Not sure about cell service from there, so you might not hear from me for a couple days…either that or the alligators may have eaten my phone. Till then… be happy!