Key West to Biscayene

I had a Bon Jovi moment as I went to go get the luggage cart.

This hotel gets the BEST pool award. It had fountains :)

We had breakfast at Blue Heaven, my favorite breakfast place in Key West. It has a rather "granola" vibe and their are chickens and roosters walking around. This guy was snackin' on some pancake pieces the slobs next to us were dropping.

Feeling utter sadness about leaving Key West, Jay stopped at this place called "Boardwalk Pizza" in Key Largo. They had parkway and turnpike signs all over the place. The pizza was not too shabby, the service was definitely not fast enough for Jersey, but the waitresses' attitude was just about right!

We got to Biscayene kinda late because we found a nail in our tire. Unfortunately this meant missing the boat ride and more snorkeling. This may have been a blessing b/c I was resembling a lobster from the Dry Tortugas. Anyway we were only able to do about 1 mile boardwalk trail. Definitely going to have to get back here!

Key West Day 2: Dry Tortugas and Bar Hopping

Woke up way early to take a two hour boat ride over to the Dry Tortugas. This may have been my favorite day of the trip. What you can't see from the photos below is the snorkeling expedition we were able to go on after the tour concluded. Note to self: invest in the underwater attachment for my camera as there will most definitely be future snorkeling trips! It was my first time and I cannot wait to do it again. We saw so many cool fish including a tarpon ( which is a giant, as in the length of my leg at least) fish. I almost drowned at this point so unfortunately we were not able to make it all the way around the fort. We also saw a school of parrot fish, some other little stripey guys, conch shells, and coral etc. When Jay saw the barricuda, I decided it was time to exit the sea. On our trip back we made a new friend who was a reporter for the Sarasota Herald tribune, he was doing a story about the oil spill. On one of the Keys a short distance from the Dry Tortugas, a group was already testing the water and trying to decide what to do with the thousands of birds that migrate their around this time of year. The Dry Tortugas is home to part of the only coral reef in the united states and their was a lot of conversation on the boat ride about what might happen to it... Below are photos from the day:

That night we had dinner at the Conch Republic and then visited Sloppy Joe's, Hogs Breath, Two Friends and a few other spots. When you make it to Key West and I hope you do, I suggest frequenting these places and chatting with the local bartenders. They have GREAT stories!

Key West Day 1

Greetings from the southern most point...

We made it! We arrived! Key West, heaven on earth, my happy place!!! The whole ride there I felt myself becoming more relaxed, looking forward to flip flops, Jimmy Buffett, Sloppy Joes, and all that Key West has to offer. If you have never been before, it is an absolute must! In Key West the sunset is celebrated, color is the new black, the locals act like they have known you their whole life, and street theater is alive, loved, and legal.

Having been to Key West once before with two of my closest friends, I knew Jay had to see two things, the Butterfly conservatory and Mallory Square. Below are the photos and the video from the day:

Everglades to Key Largo to Key West http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_FwSA9JHc19U/S_s7SEQvXnI/AAAAAAAAAK8/Mz2EVL9l-RY/s1600/IMG_0868.JPG

Rolled into the Key Largo hotel late Thursday night. This was the view from our room. We were greeted with chocolate chip cookies and water with oranges, lime, and lemons. I am working on a way for this to be available when I come home every day from work.

BMW, crystal clear water, and a beautiful day. We contemplated staying an extra day, but Key West was a callin'

IF I am not mistaking this is the bridge where they filmed that scene from "True Lies"(one of my favorite movies) with Jamie Lee Curtis smacking that woman with a wine bottle in the limo, while Arnold yells from his helicopter above "The bridge is out! The bridge is out". I decided not to yell this in Jay's ear as we were riding across, though it was tempting.

Who knew I was such the photographer!?

The sky and the water could not have been bluer.

Cocoa Beach to the Everglades

Woke up this morning with pillow lines across my face, not sure if I could handle more riding, but once on the bike I realized there is no better way to see the country. Some photos from the day:

The hotel at Cocoa Beach:

I am titling this :

The Bell boy and the hot tub.

The ride leaving Cocoa Beach...hope to go back and visit again.

Stopped for lunch at publix. Best fried chicken in Florida :)

The bike before we hit the love bugs.

The bike after we hit the "love bugs",. This was not even the worst of it.

Stopped at Robert Is Here for Mango Milkshakes before heading to the Everglades. Yes it was an amazing milkshake, but I don;t know if it was better then my mango ice cream :)

There were farm animals at Robert is here and I couldn't resist!

THE EVERGLADES:

From here we went to an AWESOME hotel in Key Largo. I am running a few days behind on getting things up, b/c we have been having such a great time and been totally zonked out at night. Coming soon... Key West, Dry Tortugas and more!