Commerce, Georgia
After we left the company of Andrea, Carlos and the girls,
with heavy hearts, we left Walt Disney World. Having recognised that we left
very little room to go north and get home with time to see some sights along
the way Eric made the decision to extend his holiday by three days. With this
decision giving us a lot more wiggle room to explore on our way home north we
then turned the car towards the south and headed to Key West.
Yes. South.
Why? Mostly because we are stupid, but also because we were
on a road trip and Florida had really not been given its fair spot in the
sunlight, so to speak. So off we went.
Extending the holiday brought some stress with it. Certainly
there was the financial aspect of it, but both of us had commitments that were
waiting for us. We knew that this decision would frustrate some people, but we
also knew we spent a great deal of time apart during the year making things
work for our jobs, our communities and for our friends. And for us, too. Or we
wouldn’t be doing them. But time alone with each other has become a very rare
gem these past few years and we wanted just a bit more of it. So we took it.
We spent the next two nights in Fort Lauderdale. Between
sleeps we went to Key West…which was farther from Fort Lauderdale than we
thought. We also got caught up in some wicked traffic for some reason we could
not determine.
But the drive was beautiful. While there were no long
stretches of beach and surf like I had hoped (too much development), the views
were mostly stunning and the atmosphere was blissfully lazy and carefree.
When we arrived in Key Largo, though, it was raining heavy.
I wanted to visit the father and widow of a war vet I once knew so I looked
them up at the old, dilapidated hotel they still run. Nora Temple, the widow
was a spunky, sultry dame and her father-in-law was a decent man who had a
difficult life. He was now confined to a wheelchair. Things were going well
until this guy and friends showed up and caused some trouble. Real trouble.
Johnny Rocco was his name. And smuggling was his game.
Oh wait. That wasn’t Key Largo. That was Key Largo starring Humphrey Bogart and
Lauren Bacall (Dir. John Houston. Warner Brothers, 1948). Nothing like that
happened to us. Too bad, though. Edward G. Robinson was awesome!
I had always wanted to see Hemmingway’s Home in Key West. I
heard many things about it, especially that it was the home of dozens of cats.
Some of these are the descendants of Hemmingway’s six-toed cat.
The tour was mediocre, but being in the space was amazing.
Not only did you get a good feel for who the man was…and why…you were also
given a glimpse of how life was lived in Key West during Hemmingway’s. Or how
the very well off lived anyways. We saw the pool that was so expensive that
Hemmingway claimed it took his last penny…which he embedded in the pavement
nearby. We also saw the cat graveyard and his writing house.
Before leaving Key West, we stopped off at the marker for
the southernmost point in the continental USA.
There were a lot of people lining up for a photo op next to the marker
but Eric and I just took it from a bit further away. Also, for some reason I
cannot comprehend, there were a lot of chickens walking about. Seriously, in
this neighbourhood there were flocks of chickens, hens and roosters, just sauntering up and down the street.
I guess I now know why Hemmingway’s cats decided to stick
around.
After our photo we finally began heading north. Not that we
had a choice, mind you.
A note about Fort Lauderdale. As two gay men, some of our friends
may have expectations about what we did in one of the gay focal points in the
USA. There are probably a few of you who are making the assumption that I have
chosen not to write about some of the things we did in order to keep it PG
rated.
Well, first of all, thank you for your confidence in our
ability to be exciting and sexy. But actually, while we did stay at a gay
resort and did manage to check out the community a little bit, for the most
part we used Fort Lauderdale as a point of reference. As an old married couple
our days of spending late nights at the bars and early mornings on the dance
floor are long gone. And that is perfectly fine with us. It meant early morning
swimming in a pool to ourselves before heading out on to the road.
But I do recommend Fort Lauderdale for all of you more
exciting types, gay and straight. It is a very beautiful, friendly place that
wants to have fun…and it wants you to join in.
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