Ryan has been going to the Keys for all of his life and so you can imagine how incredibly sad my life was by comparison because I had only been once, for 5 hours (between 7 am-12pm) on a cruise stop. So very sad.
This weekend changed that! We made the 9 hour drive in our rental Yaris (our way of prolonging the inevitable breakdown of one of our high mileage cars) and made it to Marathon, FL just in time for a beautiful sunset right next to the 7 mile bridge at Sunset Grille and Raw Bar. The food was okay but I probably wouldn't eat there again. The view was unbelievable though and is great for a drink on the waterfront deck!
After the sunset, we made the final hour drive to Key West and checked in to the Southwinds Motel which was the perfect place for our weekend. The room was only $100/night during the boat races, it was clean, the service was friendly and we were within walking distance of Duval Street...I was quite impressed! (Many other places in the vicinity were either uber expensive or had bad ratings)
After checking in, we wasted no time and headed straight for Duval Street where we were met with hundreds (if not thousands) of people crowding the street to view the powerful racing boats on display from massive hydraulic lifts on semis.
The next morning, we decided to finally test out the inflatable boat that Ryan has been repairing for the past few weeks. Ryan thought it would be a good opportunity to take me lobstering for the first time ever. The photos below depict the series of events that followed:
Hey Brandy! Doesn't this folded up boat look safe?
I just have to blow it up....like water wings with an engine!
Here we go! She's going in the water!
Brandy: Oh dear, why is all that water in there?
Ryan: Well, we both knew this was going to happen.
Brandy: No. No we did not know this was going to happen.
Brandy being forced to get in the boat against her will and all reason.
That's ankle deep water! I'm getting out...
Good luck Ryan! Hope you don't sink!
Ryan: "Maybe there is too much water coming in..."
Moral of the story?: It is difficult to patch inflatable boats with holes in them. Test your repair work BEFORE lugging a boat, giant gas can, diving gear, and engine 9 hours to the Keys.
Quick recap of the rest of the trip:
-Stopped by Kino Sandal Factory, a must for a Key West trip to replenish our Kino supply.
-Walked for miles and miles...the most exercise I've had in years...that is pretty unfortunate.
-Found a neat little coffee shop called Cuban Coffee Queen....delicious cafe con leche!
-Attended the wedding of our friends, then promptly fell asleep at 8:30 pm when we stopped back at the motel to change to go out with everyone on Duval...it started off as a 10 minute nap to rest our feet and ended at 3:40 am when we finally woke up...I want to blame it on the fact that we had been out and about all day and had a few drinks...but I think deep down we all know that Ryan and I are secretly 80 years old.
-Went to the Cuban place (we went when we had been in Key West on a stop for our honeymoon cruise) called Meson de Pepe...plantain nachos are delicious....AND there were baby chickens that stopped by to say hello/beg for food.
Overall, we had a great trip to the Keys and hope to sail there one day soon!
