ADVENTURES IN PARADISE PART ONE

ALL PHOTOS ARE MINE, SO NO DOWNLOADING PLEASE!!

THE FLORIDA KEYS

Some background......the Florida Keys are connected by 43 bridges. Mile one starts at the southern most part of the US in Key West and works up to Miami. A lot of the direction to things, direct you to Mile Marker whatever and the north, south, east and west directions are by compass heading not land orientation. The famous Seven Mile Bridge that connects Marathon Key to Big Pine Key was in the movie True Lies which starred Gov. Arnie and Jamie Lee Curtis (one of my favorite movies).

The long awaited adventure finally arrived on April 12. After nine months of planning, the dream trip was a go. Or was it? American Airlines had taken tons of their flights down due to the FAA inspections. Lots of travelers were stranded in places they didn't really want to be. No way to get home or to destinations. I was feeling the uncertainty of maybe having to cancel the trip. Since I had booked the flight so far in advance, the flights had been changed many times. Now with all the canceled flights the trip had suddenly become *iffy.* I was checking their web site for any information I could. Only a trip to the airport was the only way of knowing for sure. Would we be bumped for passengers who had been stranded? Would we get stranded in Dallas? How long are the check in lines?

Bags packed, we went early to the airport, only to find the curb side check in looking like a ghost town. Got to terminal three and decided to sit in the lobby for a bit before going through the security. What does one do with time on their hands at an airport? Eat of course. Pizza.

Finally, on the plane headed for Dallas. We only had 40 minutes between flights. It was a good thing we ate. Our plane arrived a little late, the 40 minutes was getting cut down slowly with another 10 minutes before we got off the plane. Geez, we have to go clear across the universe to get the flight to Miami. We barely made it. A fast pit stop and on the plane.

Arrived in Miami at 10:45 PM. Got to the Hertz rental, only to find the Mustang convertible that was reserved for 9 months wasn't available. They offered us a upgrade we could not refuse. A 2007 Mustang Shelby GT special edition. WOW!!!!! How cool was that?! We would only find out just how cool later.

We arrived at our place to stay at 2:30 AM. We stayed on Conch Key. Conch Key is a tiny key almost to Marathon Key. We were staying on an island connected to US 1 (aka S. Dixie Highway) The place we had chosen to stay was an old fishing camp converted into cottages. We wanted something with a kitchen. The cottages are typical island style with brightly painted walls. No, they weren't the Hilton, but we wanted something in a more private setting and smaller setting. The service was very personalized.

It was time to go to bed. Stay tuned for part two. Good night. Got a big day tomorrow.