It was strange being in a “familiar” place, even though we were only here a few days we felt like we were returning to a place we knew where things/places were. Tuesday morning was spent trying to connect to the internet, of all the places we have been this has been the worst connection we have had & this is the only one we have had to pay for – go figure. We made a grocery list, finding some recipes for dinners to be sure to get the right ingredients. Off to a late start it was 1 before we even left the boat on Tuesday. As we were leaving we noticed the coast guard boarding & searching another boat down from ours. As we went by Jim & Roberta’s boat we stopped to talk to them as they were out watching the boat being searched also. After making a few jokes about it the pump out boat swung by and came over to fill us in on the situation. The guy had moved moorings & they noticed he was leaking fuel from his bilge, so they did a total search of the boat. Excitement over so off we went to the dinghy dock then over to the marina office to check in again & pay for the mooring. Then we walked about a mile stopped at an air-conditioned restaurant to have lunch then walked a little further to the Winn Dixie grocery store. Up & down the aisles of the unfamiliar store to find all the things on our list, time to check out. We get a cab back to the dinghy dock load all the groceries in and there is just enough room for us to fit back in. It is 5 PM by the time we get back to the boat from our grocery outing, get everything put away and jump off the back of the boat for a swim to cool off. We have another relaxing evening and beautiful sunset in the cockpit.
Unless we have an early departure that I have to get up for I tend to get up around 8:30 – 9 am, Steve is usually out of bed an hour or so before me working on the internet. We are spending more time than we would like on our computers because of the slow connection that we have to keep re-connecting to, very frustrating and time consuming. Before we know it the morning is gone. Wednesday we again leave the boat around 1 pm, today’s outing is to West Marine. This is a much further walk, in towards town, stopping at ace hardware & Key West hardware on the way to see if they have something we might need. We get everything on our list except one item that can be ordered & have the next day.
We then go find a place ‘Blonde Giraffe’ we were told to go by for the best Key Lime Pie on a stick (a Key West specialty) & have a nice cool snack. Spend some time just walking around window shopping & people watching and stopping at a few places for a drink & to listen to some live music when we need to rest & cool off. Go for an early dinner and have a cheese burger in paradise at Jimmy Buffets Margaretville. Long walk back to the dinghy dock and a short 10 minute ride back to the boat. It’s an hour before sunset & it has been another HOT day with light winds so we go for a swim to cool off, Steve using some of the boat soap we just bought to clean along the water line while he is in the water. No wind + high humidity +batteries need charging = run the generator and we can run the A/C to cool the boat. We try to watch LOST over the internet since we have NO TV channels here, but due to our intermittent connection we can’t, will have to try when we have a better connection.
Thursday we leave the boat “early” – 10 AM, and walk to a close by bike rental place. This one only $15 a day & they have a better map showing some bike routes around the Island. We ride around stopping by West Marine to get the part they had ordered for us, then off to explore some more of the Island. It is really nice being away from the main tourist areas of the Island. Stop for lunch then ride around some more & by 3 we decide to head back to the boat & go for a swim to cool off – think the warm weather is here to stay. Spend some time swimming, Steve cleans some more of the boat. Start getting the boat ready to leave Key West on Friday a short trip up to Big Pine Key to visit Donna & Patrick & Mel & Roger before going up to Marathon for several days.
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