Marathon - at Safe Harbor Marathon (the first marina on the way in)

 We have a special report tonight from Sarah on her spring break in Key West - in her words!

Belated blog summary

Sarah at the helm of Fleetwing - happy, I think

Hello everyone! Last week my brother Matt, his friend, and I spent spring break in Key West on Fleetwing! We initially got delayed on the flight down due to bad weather, but made it two days later. Once we arrived in beautiful weather and paradise, a list was made to organize our week. This list had all of the things everyone wanted to do for the days we had left. I have been waiting four years to return to Key West so I made sure to do everything I could! 

The first day we enjoyed some delicious Cuban sandwiches from the best place right by the dock, Cuban Coffee Queen. Afterwards we walked throughout the busy streets of Duval and Caroline. By my own surprise, a map was not needed, I was able to remember every street (even where the fresh gelato was). 

Then on Wednesday, Grandpa said the weather was all set for a perfect sailing day. We of course couldn’t just do that as our main event if we wanted to get everything crossed off our list, so we spent the morning near Mallory Square at the Key West Aquarium to watch shark feeding and then the Shipwreck Museum to climb the tower. To our surprise, we found out that nearly all of the street names are important figures in Key West’s history (fun fact). 

The spring break gang - Sarah, Kiernan, and Matt at right

We went out to explore the other side of the island. We waited in line to take a picture at the iconic Southernmost Point. Afterwards we went right next door to the Butterfly Museum. It was absolutely stunning inside with hundreds of flying butterflies. Once we said goodbye to the flamingos and butterflies we rushed over to Fleetwing for our departure time. Once we were out on the water, we all took our places. Matt and Kiernan were set on different sides handling the lines. I took over from Nana to steer the boat as we sailed along. Grandpa directed us like a conductor in an orchestra. It was a fabulous time to be out at sea with the wind blowing and vibrant blue waters. 

Coming in wasn’t as easy as going out because of a traffic jam. There was the Party Cat, two catamarans, a dinghy, and two sailboats including us. As chaotic as our arrival was, Nana did a great job bringing us in. 

Then we went to Mallory Square to watch the sunset in hopes of seeing a green flash (didn’t see one). We decided to view some of the fun shows that perform right in the square. Both Matt and Keirnan helped with one act where they held up a ladder (wasn’t very exciting for them). On Saint Patrick’s Day, we took advantage of The Brewery right next to us to hear some live music. We saw the view from from the second floor and they gave out free T-shirts. After, we had some of Nana’s delicious Corn Beef and Cabbage to end the night. 

Friday was our very packed adventurous day out on the water. We ate at the Breakfast Club where I had a delicious Cuban Egg Benedict. After getting fueled up, we rented bikes to ride to the beach. On our way there we had some obstacles where a semi truck led by police was turning super tight corners on busy tourist streets. We decided to go see the fort first and then cool off in the ocean. It was the perfect day for the beach! Going into the water was so refreshing after being in the heat. We swam over to a small rocky island close to the beach shore. Then we headed back to catch our snorkeling sunset cruise. We rode out on a catamaran which had about 80 people. It was an hour out, an hour to snorkel, and then an hour back. The snorkel part wasn’t really for me because I kept inhaling salt water. Matt and Keirnan said they enjoyed it and saw an eel. 

On our way back we watched the sunset out on the ocean which was gorgeous. Afterwards we were very hungry and luckily were super close to La Meson de Pepes. They are an amazing authentic Cuban place right next to Mallory Square. Miraculously, we were able to get a table and in this stunning closed off garden! I had cuban pork, a tamale, black beans, yellow rice, sweet plantains, and yucca. It is by far my favorite restaurant on the whole island and was a perfect ending to our crazy day. 

Unfortunately on Saturday the trip home was not smooth. Our flight from Key west to Fort Lauderdale got pushed back so much we would have missed our connecting flight. The only other option of flying out would have been on Monday and as much as we would have wanted to stay, we had to get back to school. So we rented a car and took it through the keys up to FLL airport. I think we saw more of the Keys than we wanted to that day, but it was a beautiful trip nonetheless. 

We missed the gang this morning as we set out for Marathon (red sky in the morning,… )

In the end we managed to cross off so many things on our list. Overall it was a fantastic trip and better than i could have even hoped for! Sadly we missed having lunch with my grandparents, but I hope we can go to Schooner Wharf next year. I had a wonderful time and can’t thank my grandparents enough for everything!