Back story to Key west visit

We have been to key west once before. About twelve years ago. We drove from Orlando (our first time in Disney World) to Key west on a whim and stayed for only two nights. Being in Key West, snorkeling was a must but we didn’t know how to swim at the time. So the snorkel tour was a disaster waiting to happen. I got sea-sick within minutes of setting off cos the water was so choppy. Thus, getting in the water (swimming or no swimming) was out of the question for me. Our son was just a year old and with mommy being completely indisposed…daddy had to take over mommy duties. So he wasn’t able to get into the water himself. This (my being seasick) was a blessing in disguise. All the people who got into the water got stung by jelly fish. Yes, you read it right. The poor snorkelers and the boats crew came back red and crying. It was scary and funny at the same time.

The best part of the trip was the inadequacy of the crew. The captain got into the choppy waters and almost drowned. So, there was this 200 lbs muscular black man flailing in the waters crying for help. It was one sight I cannot get out of my mind for a long long time. The catamaran we were in (my husband remembers its name as Fury 2) All in all the trip was way too short, unplanned and ending on near disaster.

Final planning to the Keys (again)

This time around we want to be more organized and spend a relaxed seven days here. The kiddo is 13 and can enjoy more. Sidebar: no fun dragging a one year old on vacay…he/she is cranky and tired all the time.

Reality check – The planning actually happens only two weeks before the actual trip. The husband books air tix while he himself is flying to NYC on a work trip. It somehow makes perfect sense though as he flies almost everyday of the week…no exaggeration!!!!! So he texts me from the air and asks me to book the hotel. The plan is to take our furry friend (our baby) Mr Fitch – the westie, with us. So that greatly narrows our hotel choices.

Text from Sid “Book the hotel rightaway…like right this minute as the rooms are going fast” I wish I had a screen shot…he puts me in a spot cos I’m literally stepping out the door for a luncheon with my friends. Hmmm….The husband (as usual) forgot what my plans are. For those of you who know me, also know I hate being late. So I do the booking at lightning speed (online) and leave to meet the girls. On the way…I panic…what if the booking didn’t go through….what if we go there only to find we have no place to stay. So, the very instinct that prevents me from being late also gives me anxiety and panic attacks. And I’m panicking right now while driving for this lunch. Thank goodness the car is Bluetooth enabled. I call The Perry Hotel…to make sure we are ok. To my satisfaction, we are. A sigh of relief and off for a wonderful lunch with my friends. (read on…the irony of this call will hit you soon enough)

A few days later and the hubby is flying out of the country for work and we are catching up via texts (like we often do) and he comes upon this place called “Dry tortuga national park” and asks me to book a tour there. A search on google and the pics look heavenly. But when I call the tours (they allow only 2 tours per day by ferry and seaplane to avoid overcrowding) they are booked. Not just booked but booked days and even months in advance…they are totally sold out. So this is something that remains unchecked on our to do list…something to come back here again for…right?!?! So, if you are going down there…do not miss this!!! Book atleast six months in advance.

It is the day before we are to fly out. Hubby has just returned from an overseas work trip and we are generally procrastinating our packing duties. I suddenly realize that the doggy will be with us and it will be soooo much easier to have a room on the first floor so decide to call The Perry Hotel  to request for one. I speak to the reception and as soon as I give my last name to look up the reservation…silence at the other end. My heart is pumping fast…there is definitely something wrong. The lady who picks up the phone keeps me on hold for more than 15 minutes. When she comes back I can hear the concern in her voice. She transfers me to her boss…the guy responsible for reservations. Ok…now I’m certain something is wrong. Someone with a silky smooth heavy voice comes on the phone he tells me how patient I’ve been for holding the line. When they are nice to you – there is definitely something wrong!!! That alone tells me he bears me BAD news.!.!.!.!!. He tells me that the hotel bungled up and that we DO NOT have a room…hec…we had booked a suite and now we don’t have a place to stay….Wonderful!!!!Remember my panic stricken phone call from the car to make sure the reservation went through? – ALL FOR NOTHING!

There goes all of our planning out the window. But wait…he is saying something more. He is not throwing us out…he accommodates us in a different room and also gives some perks to calm me down.

 

Looks like he knows how to hit the right button. He waives the pet fee for Fitch – this clinches the deal for me!!!!…although we are downgraded from a suite to a regular room with two queen beds. The funny part is this is what we intended to book in the first place but it was sold out so we book the suite and now Mr Joe Pfander (reservations manager) at The perry is giving us just that. Hmmm…irony strikes again. Obviously some problem with the whole reservations process or software or whatever… but as long as we have a place to stay….I’m happy!!

How we get there!

So the plan is to fly into Miami and drive the 3.5 hours to the keys the next day. The flight is a little stressful as we are traveling with Fitch. But he does great on the flight after a couple of sedatives. We stay at The Royal Palms at South Beach in Miami. Arriving around 5 pm at the hotel, we decide to go for a walk along the famous south beach road – ocean drive!!! OMG!!! Is it crowded or is it crowded…on top of which hustlers are trying to get you into their overpriced restaurants strewn along the road. They all seem to have similar menus. Is it even worth going into one of these places????

After walking more than a mile we find A fish called Avalon. The hostess actually asks us whether we have reservations instead of hustling us in. Sid and I look at each other and we know this is the place we want to eat at…and we do not regret it. The food is delectable and they have a great assortment of wines.   What I remember from that nights dinner is the Crème Brulee’. It is best I have ever had. So if you are ever in Miami, do not miss having the Crème Brulee’ at A fish called Avalon.

 My two cents about Miami – If you are planning to get away from the daily grind and hustle bustle, Miami is not for you. It is certainly not for me. Even the hotel we stayed at was packed to the brim. We had to wait 45 minutes to be seated for breakfast. Too many people, too many lights and too many shops….too many and too much of everything. Personally, I think it is for youngsters who like to party. But I’m sure there are many of us who still like the nightlife even in our 40s and 50s….it is just not Me!!!

Finally – The keys, some activity

The only way to drive in Florida weather is with you car’s top down. So, off comes the top of the rental Jeep Wrangler and zoooom…we are off to the keys. The dog isn’t very happy with all the wind blowing him around but he gets used to it soon enough and even enjoys it a little by the end of it.

We do the dolphin and snorkeling excursion the very next day (booked at the Perry hotel and take off from the Marina right behind the hotel). We see a lot of dolphins! Sorry guys…no pics. I am too scared I’ll drop my phone in the water. We spend almost 45 minutes following the dolphins. It is simply splendid. There is nothing like watching healthy animals having fun in the wild. Our captain – Melanie is very friendly, well-informed and quite fun. But the snorkeling is disappointing (to say the least). After having snorkeled in the beautiful waters of Belize and Maldives this is a super flop.

The next day, the boys go for a jet-ski tour while I stay back with the dog and read my book. I must say it is an absolute pleasure to not do anything. To lie in the sun (at the pool) with a cool refreshing drink and read my heart away.

The boys came back to tell me that the waters are so choppy that they cannot go to the actual open ocean. Their jet ski even topples over (at which the 13 year old is totally embarrassed).

Soon we realize, we really don’t want to do too much. We just want to enjoy the sun the balmy weather and have good food….highlight…good food. So here’s what we do for the next few days. We wake up and within the next hour make reservations at some top rated restaurants first thing in the morning. Breakfast and dinner. Then we swim in the pool and lounge around at the bar with a short nap in the afternoon. Sounds like Heaven???? It is!!! OH….We also get a massage…we always get a massage on every vacay. No vacay is complete without one. 

In part 2 of the blog I will explore some of the restaurants we visit in the keys…stay tuned. If you like what you read, please do subscribe. All you need to do is type in your email.

You can also read about some of the other places we have visited in my previous posts

1. Cancun
2. Colorado
3. Hawaii