Please click on the link below ⬇️ to see my pictures for today:
After a quick breakfast of fresh fruit and cinnamon toast, we headed out to do a bit of sightseeing and shopping.
We first went to see the Lighthouse on the corner of Truman Street and Whitehead Street. In the mid-1800s the number of shipwrecks averaged one per week, so it was evident that a lighthouse was needed.
https://www.kwahs.org/museums/lighthouse-keepers-quarters/visit
The first lighthouse was constructed in 1825 and was washed out to sea by the 1846 Hurricane. The current lighthouse, first lit in 1848, stands half a mile inland, with the Keeper’s Quarters added in 1887.
Further down the road is Ernest Hemingway’s house. Home to 60 six-toed cats, this colonial house was in need of huge restoration when he bought it, but was restored to its former glory in the 1930s. This was somewhere I didn’t really fancy as there was a big queue, but I also am allergic to cats.
The temperature was getting hotter as we walked about, so we decided to have a walk along the Truman Waterfront. There was a sharp shower but I wasn’t going anywhere as I got up close to a pelican on the edge of the promenade. It sat watching me as I took a few pictures, I was in awe.
We walked through the Truman Annex, a gated area which had lots of condominium rentals. We also stumbled upon President Harry Truman’s Little White House. Truman used this house for 175 days during his administration of 1945 – 1953. He spent 11 working holidays here and the building became known as the Little White House. We also saw the now retired 1950 Lincoln Cosmopolitan stretch limo which was one of nine limousines staged at various cities throughout the United States for use by President Truman.
https://www.trumanlittlewhitehouse.org
After that, we headed to Mallory Square. We found an indoor/outdoor shop that sold the usual fridge magnets and key rings and we bought a couple to take home.
By this time it was bright sunshine so thought it was time for a spot of lunch, seeing as we were close to a nice eatery called Bistro 245. We were shown to a table close to the waterfront and we were immediately brought some ice cold water. I had a great chicken Caesar salad, and it was near here that I saw some more iguanas. So exciting!!
We then headed to Captain Tony’s Saloon Bar, for a nice drink of Pirate Punch that came in souvenir cup. We sat at the bar where names of famous people were painted on the stools. Their name was painted on after they’d sat there.
I sat on Al Pacino…There was a guy playing guitar singing who got chatting to us and asked us loads of questions about the sort of bands that came from our neck of the woods. So….the Spiders from Mars, Arctic Monkeys, Human League were all artists that he’d heard of. He asked us if we were anywhere near Newcastle as he likes Sting.
Above the sign outside the building is a large jewfish that Captain Tony caught and had preserved. It is said that if you throw a quarter into the mouth of the fish, good luck will follow you until you leave the island. We saw a homeless person succeed, after many attempts, by doing this.
We finished our drinks and then ventured further down Duval Street to The Bull and Whistle. This is another bar with live music and a great open front which was brilliant for people watching.
Our final bar, before heading back to our accommodation, was Bourbon Street Pub, which has been open since 1995. There is a plaque in the wall stating “On This Site In October of 1995 Joe Schroeder opened Bourbon Street Pub “Beads, Boys And Booze”. Time was running out so we only stayed for one and then headed back to our accommodation.
Once ready, we headed north down Duval Street, had a quick drink in Key West’s Smallest Bar, before heading to slip 29, near Front Street. This was to catch a boat to Sunset Key, where our meal was booked at Latitudes Restaurant, on the island. When I’d researched our visit to Key West, I found this restaurant purely because my search was for establishments with a sunset view. I liked the look of the Latitudes Restaurant due to good reviews so booked it for half an hour before the official sunset time. I got it spot on as we were escorted to our table, which was absolutely perfect timing. We watched the sun go down and it was one of the most beautiful things I’ve ever seen. The setting was perfect. The sunset was amazing, vivid oranges, purples and pinks. I was stunned by the whole experience. The service received from the staff of the restaurant made an absolutely wonderful night too. The food was exquisite. I can quite easily say it was one of the best dining experiences I’ve ever had. No wonder it was voted in the top 100 restaurants in America (OpenTable).
https://www.opalcollection.com/sunset-key-cottages/restaurants/latitudes/
Waiting for the boat to take us back to Key West, we saw small sharks swimming about in the water, another first for us.
We set off and an argument broke out between a woman, her husband and his mother. Seems that the woman was sending a text to someone saying that she (the mother) was being a right bitch (JC read her text as she was sat next to him, nosey bugger). The next thing, her husband grabbed her phone and threw it in to the water. It all kicked off much to everyone else’s amusement. When we got back to the mainland, it was clear she’d had too much to drink when we saw her staggering back to her hotel.
It was a total contrast to us walking back to the hotel, full to the brim and sober. We have to be up reasonably early to drive back to Miami on Friday.
jctraveller 
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