Easter on the Keys

Stan and I decided it was time to rough it so we packed up our tent and air mattress and headed down to the Florida Keys, leaving the hiker to fend for itself. 150 miles of another world ending at the southernmost tip of the United States. Driving through Miami is radical, like being in an out of control race to the finish and then you get on the Keys and sloowww down to a Sunday afternoon pace. This is a good thing because you need time to stare in disbelief at the beautiful color of the water and the fantastic vegetation growing like moptops on all the little islands. We stopped at a camp ground on Long Key on the way down and set up our tent and then went on to Key West where we spent the afternoon. Key West is very quaint, laid back, sophisticated and hang lose, all at the same time. I was happy to experience my first conch fritters. We walked the streets and rode our bikes to the beaches. The rain came down, everyone got wet. The sun came out, everyone dried out. To a point anyway but that's the way it's supposed to be. We were back at our campground in time to watch the sunset and visit with fellow campers. During the night we were entertained by a lightning and rainstorm, with an (almost) full moon coming through occasionally. When I looked out of the tent in the morning there were two Easter eggs sitting on the table! The campground was treated to a breakfast of sticky buns, fruit salad and coffee. I LOVE these places. After a morning spent reading the paper in a lounge chair on the beach (Maia) and snorkeling (Stan) we headed back to Fort Lauderdale and reality- loads of wet laundry. It was well worth it. Happy Easter everyone..