AND SAIL AWAY TO KEY LARGO

There are places that you become aware of at some point in your life.  You are drawn to and you know that some day you must go there. So you put them on a list somewhere tucked in your mind.  And there may come a time that you actually go to these places. And it was oh so wonderful or maybe not so wonderful at all.  Or maybe it was not at all like you envisioned but it was still  an  experience in your life that shapes you and you go on.

Then there are other places that are nowhere on the radar of you mind,  but circumstances and life (which is not always as planned), will take and deposit you where you never expected to be.  In my case the  “circumstances and life” was my son’s wedding and the reason for my destination to Key Largo, Florida for five days in the middle of March.

I’m not surprised if the Florida Keys are on your list.  The weather in the keys couldn’t be more perfect than in March, especially if you are leaving behind  several months of winter.  There is everything to do if you are into sun and water: kayaking, deep sea fishing, snorkeling,  parasailing, island cruises.  I, however, lived in Florida for many years and never had the intention of going back.  Even so, I have to confess that every time I go back to Florida to visit my son, I get a twinge of nostalgia. Nostalgia for the blue skies with billowy clouds, the lushness of the vegetation by the water and for the ocean, never too far away.    

Make your reservations early and keep in mind that depending on the time of year, Key Largo can get pricey.  I changed our reservations a couple times.  At the end it got so tense it was like closing my eyes and letting my finger fall on whatever hotel came up as available.  This happened to be the Tarpon Flats, the perfect place for us in the end.  It was pure Florida, nothing to fancy but we couldn’t have been happier.  The reasons:  It was in at the end of the road, far from the main strip that cuts through the key.  And it was in a true Floridian neighborhood.  This is always our goal to feel like we are a part of the place we are visiting.

We were right on the water,  with a balcony outside our doors  and with a view.  Our side of the building faced a canal, lined with house boats and a center for marine biology that took boats filled with young students out on the water.  The green lushness that I mentioned before was everywhere.  At the end of the property there was a hammock and chairs that looked out over the water.  With all of the people I knew were around it was still quiet.  In the morning the voices came up more like reassuring murmurs that life was good.

Some mornings we had time to ourselves before the wedding and family activities began.  It was nice to wander around the neighborhoods, so Floridian, and into John Pennekemp Park. too. http://pennekamppark.com/

Two recommended restaurants for seafood:  Skippers Dockside with my family.  This was our first night in Key Largo and as the name implies we were dockside under a thatched roof.  The first morning after arriving in Key Largo Michael got up at 6 a.m. The plan: to meet my sister and her husband and another brother-in-law to go deep sea fishing.

 They got back at 12:00 with three large fish in tow: a black fin tuna and two king fish.  The crew cleaned the fish for us and gave us a good portion to feed eight expectant and hungry sisters and husbands.  The rest they were keeping for sushi, eaten right there by the docks.  Following their directions we took our fish to  The Fish House.  The restaurant prepared them Cajun style, blackened and the third portion with a tomato caper sauce.   Right out of the ocean, freshly caught, heavenly.

In the mornings I watched the sun come up over the water and in the evenings I spent on the other side of the key with my son and family watching the sun go down  over the water.  A beautiful wedding, a beautiful place.

 

Post note:  The African Queen, the very African Queen that took Humphrey Bogart and Katherine Hepburn through the rapids in Africa now calls Key Largo home.  I almost took a ride but ended up with no time.  I did go check her out, though. A little heroic boat from a big heroic movie. http://www.africanqueenflkeys.com/