Ginny & Dean's Excellent Adventures: Key West 12/03

Dean & Ginny's excellent adventures... Main Adventure Page

Key West--12/03: << Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 >> Part 4 >> Part 5 >>

Late afternoon every day, people climb aboard ships or gather at Mallory Square to celebrate the sunset. Vendors sell their wares, street performers do their acts, and everyone waits...

A story teller entertains a crowd on Mallory Square.

We posxed for a photo...

Waiting for the sunset

for the sun to set over the water.

Sunset from Mallory Square

And often the sunsets are magnificent, but the fact that people come out everyday to wait is part of the culture. Despite the associated carnival, it is a good example of people taking the time to smell the roses and making the effort to enjoy what nature has to offer.

Key West calls itself the Conch Republic, so it seems fitting that the giant conch shell dropped on the roof of Slopping Joe's Bar.

We did go go out into the crowds on New Year's Eve - what a madhouse! Everyone gathered within sight of Sloppy Joe's and its conch to watch it fall... Just like Times Square except it was 78 degrees!

Holiday decorations varied wildly throughout the island: from the garish, to the primitive to the elegant and understated. Even the house-boats took part. The photo to the left includes the reflection from the top of a car amplifying the garishness of this inn.