A Trip to Key West – Day 1

4-5 December 2018

I was going a little stir crazy at home watching the iguanas poop on the pool deck.  It’s a losing battle.  I checked my calendar and I had a few open dates so I checked availability at the Equator Resort, my favorite place to stay in Key West.  I wanted the 4th, 5th and 6th for my stay (to return on the 7th) and as luck would have it, those dates were open for my favorite room at the resort, #25.

Twenty-five is at the top of the stairs in the original part of the guest house.  There is no one on either side of me and a single room behind me, so the noise level is pretty low.  The only time I had a problem with the room was years ago when you young people were running up and down the stairs.  These days, young people cannot afford the rates in Key West, so it is not an issue.

After scheduling my time at the Equator, I checked TripAdvisor for things to do and then checked on my favorite restaurants for reservations.  I made reservations via Open Table and the only thing left to do was pack.

One unusual aspect of packing was a predicted cold spell.  We were to be down in the high 50’s in Fort Lauderdale for the 6th.  I checked the weather for the Keys and Key West would be 10 degrees warmer. I did pack one pair of long pants just in case.

I needed to reach the resort around 3 pm for check in and decided to leave Fort Lauderdale around 11 am to make the 4 hour trip.  For some reason, it always takes me 4 hours, no matter how many stops, how many traffic tie ups, or how long I take for lunch.

The turnpike is the best way from my house and until you get to Key Largo, things move along well.  From Key Largo on down, it is mostly 45 mph even when the speed limit ups to 55.  Tourists often are in awe of the overseas highway and they slow to gawk, even in the 55 mph zones.

I made it exactly at 3 pm.  The next issue is parking.  Several years ago Key West instituted “residential parking” sites.  People who live in Old Town can reserve sites in front of their houses for a fee.  That took away a lot of on street parking.  Fortunately, since I am here for Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, there are still some non-residential spaces available.  I parked one block over from the Equator.  I usually never move the jeep once I park in Key West and simply walk everywhere I wish to go in Old Town.

The Equator has a happy hour from 5 pm to 6:30 pm where any and all drinks are free.  It’s a good chance to socialize with other guests.  They post a listing of all guests, their home towns, and their room numbers.  I met a couple from Sweden, one guy from Kentucky who was amped about their bowl bid, and a guy from NYC.

Dinner was at Cafe Marquesa.  About five years ago I had the best meal of my life at the Cafe Marquesa.  I usually prefer to sit at the bar and the bartender does the serving of the meal.  Then about 3 years ago, I returned to a new chef.  The meal was simply OK.  Tonight, there was another new chef and to be perfectly honest, the meal was a complete disappointment – an expensive one at that.  With a single drink, and an entree, the price came to $58 without tip.  I had grouper and I think it was actually previously frozen.  It’s been a while since I’ve had grouper (you have to worry about cigautera poisoning from large fish found on reefs).  I’ve always found grouper to be a delightfully flaky fish.  This was tough and stringy – more like shark than grouper.

I was tired and turned in early.  Unfortunately, I could not sleep.  I tossed and turned and finally dozed off around 3 am.  Of course, I waked at 6:30 am.  I stole down for a cup of coffee (they serve Starbucks 24/7 – eat your heart out Wilson) and returned to the room to surf the web for news, check email and do a crossword.

The Equator does a free breakfast from 8-10:30 am and I finally made it downstairs around 8:30 and had breakfast.

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It was commissioned in 1936 and eventually was assigned convoy duty during WWII.  It actually was one of the few ships to sink a u-boat during the war.  The Ingham was also in Vietnam and until its decommissioning was the longest serving military ship in the United States after the USS Constitution (which is still under commission).

The Ingham is docked just east of Mallory Square in a section that has been renovated into a park called Truman Park (a part of the Truman Annex).  This was all new stuff to me.  It’s a great park that borders on the harbor that abuts the Key West Naval Base (still in use with guards at the gates with M-16’s).

I waited until 10 am and went aboard.  I was thoroughly welcomed by the volunteer on duty and proceeded to take the self guided tour through the ship.  The tour is amazing.  It has all kinds of memorabilia from WWII and Vietnam, and you can walk through most of the ship.  You can’t get into the engine room but you get an overhead view of it on the tour.

As a former radioman, I was, of course, interested in the radio room.  You could walk right in and look at the transmitters. If you are ever in Key West, this is the tour to take.  However, you are warned the ladders (stairs for landlubbers) are very steep.

I found I was close to Fort Zachary Scott and decided to walk over there.  I think the last time I went to the fort was in 1985.  Back then, you had to slip through an opening in the fence of the naval station to access the fort.  That has all changed.

There’s a modern entrance with great walkways and paths.  The fort hasn’t changed any, but the maintenance of the facility is now much better.  The fort has one of the largest collections of civil war cannons on display anywhere.

My lunch stop was at Starbucks.  My reservation tonight for Sarabeth’s was canceled.  The owner actually called me to tell me their hood was scheduled to be cleaned on Monday but they notified her today that they couldn’t make it until today.  She had to close the restaurant for hood cleaning because of the Key West attitude about work from contractors.  I’ll try Mangia Mangia tonight for their scallops and pasta dish.