Chockoloskee > Key West

We got up at a decent hour, went down to the lobby for the free breakfast and to check email.

Breakfast consisted of toast, jelly packets and coffee. No frills!

We set out on our journey back across US 41 thru the Everglades once again. This would be our 3rd attempt to cross the state in less than 24 hours.

Things went well. There was some slow downs for road construction on the east side, but all in all, we were making good time.

Key West is far! We rarely bother going down there anymore just because it takes forever to get there. Plus it's not what it once was. It’s too commercial now days.

But the views along the way are amazing!

Plus mom wanted to take a boat trip to the Dry Tortugas – it’s a reef about 70 miles off from Key West. She has always wanted to go there and dad has never taken her.

We got down to Key West in the early afternoon. Got settled into our room at The Doubletree.

The hotel was on the east side – so no where near the hustle & bustle. But that actually is a good thing. Plus there was a free shuttle that left and returned every hour that stopped at a few of the prime spots. So we never had to drive after arriving. Which is great because parking and traffic can get nutty.


We checked out the pool for awhile

Ate a snack and had a few drinks.

We were FINALLY on Spring Break!





Afterwards, we stopped by the concierge desk to purchase a trip to the Dry Tortugas.

Well, things were right on track…. All the tours are sold out until the weekend!
So we opted for a snorkel trip a few miles out. We would meet the boat at 1pm on Wednesday.

That evening we took the shuttle down to the sunset celebration. Every night, there is a celebration of the sun setting on Mallory Square. It was about an hour before the sun was to set and it was just plain packed!

There are all sort of street vendors and performers. Basically, a freak show!

Since we had both been there and seen it before, we decided to keep on walking and find a place for dinner. If we waited until after sunset, it would take an hour or so for a table. If we went now, we knew we could get seated right away.

So we walked around until we came upon Carolines’s Café.

It was average. Nothing special.






Afterwards, we walked Duval St. for a while and stopped at a few bars. We had a few drinks, but I knew mom wasn’t having a good time. She is not accustomed to sitting at bars watching bands play like I am.

So we headed back to the shuttle stop.

Spring Break 2010 is now somewhat back on track.