If life gives you limes, make Margaritas

My sister is very lucky to live in Florida and I am very lucky to be able to visit her and use her spare bedroom.  On my recent trip she persuaded me to go on a 2 night Bahamas cruise despite the fact that both of us suffer from sea sickness and do not like sailing.  We survived the experience by taking more than the recommended dosage of travel sickness pills, drinking Margaritas and a cocktail known as Bahama Breeze. 




She also persuaded me to do a solo trip to Key West.  Before I could finish my cocktail, I had booked the Tri-Rail to Miami and my seat on the Greyhound bus to Key West.  I did think about staying at a hostel but sobered up enough to book a Bed and Breakfast place in the Old Town. 






The Tri-Rail fare cost under $10 (return trip) and the Greyhound cost $70 (return trip).  I was very disappointed by the customer service and facilities offered by the Greyhound Bus.  My impression of travel in the USA has always been one of really good service but the staff were rude and unhelpful plus only one vending machine was available at the bus station.  The bus made a stop at a Burger King which was a little underwhelming. 





Key West was fun.  It oozes history, quirkiness and charm.  I took the Conch Tour Train which was a great way to explore and see the main attractions.  You can feel the strong connection between history and culture and I loved seeing and hearing about it all.  The architecture is amazing with wooden houses built on posts. 




The one mile famous Duval Street felt safe and welcoming to a solo traveller.  I ate and drank at Jimmy Buffet's Margaritaville, popped into Sloppy Joe's for a cocktail then gate-crashed a drag queen's rehearsal at Aqua.  It was either Happy Hour or the drinks were very cheap but either way, I was made to feel very welcome.



No trip to Key West is complete without joining the crowd at Mallory Square for the Sunset Celebration.  Legend has it that Tennessee Williams initiated the ritual of celebrating the sunset with a gin and tonic in his hand however, even with my Starbucks, I appreciated the view. 

I do not know what happens to me when I leave home.  I appear to leave all sense and reason at the airport and do things I would not normally do.  I do not go to bars on my own at home, I do not swim in hotel pools alone at midnight and I do not sing with drag queens.  Actually, I would sing with a drag queen given any opportunity whether home or away but I definitely don't do the other stuff.
On my own, away from home I do it all and Key West was the best of places to do it in.