The Key to the West?

I almost did not get to post last night and cannot imagine how much the data roaming done for it will cost but I am glad I did as it really helped me realize that Steem is already part of my life. I can see how many live so intensely connected to their social networks! However, given that we have an early sail time tonight, I will be posting this a bit earlier than usual which has also meant that I will just write about my experience today in Key West. Despite living in South Florida for a couple of years now, the family and I have never made it done here so it was a first!

The Keys are a series of over 800 keys that stretch for more than 180 miles! There is only one road in and out which is the infamous US 1. The mile marker zero is popular for starting at the southern most city of the continental United States. It is actually closer to Cuba than to Miami! The road here also includes the longest bridge in the United States called the Seven Mile Bridge which was completed in 1938 when the islands were growing due to their tourism much like today.

It is often called the Conch Republic as citizens in the early 1980s advocated for succession without achieving it but it was a story that identifies its population still today. The memory is still celebrated today as many participate in a number of celebrations every April to commemorate the effort. It continues to rely heavily on tourism for its economy as the alternatives are still very small and the size of the economy excluding tourism are minimal.

It was a hot day but the streets were well laid out to walk in the shade and also get into establishments with air conditioning more often than not. We decided to getboff to an early start as the amount of onboard activities for the family are amazing! We also live so close that we know this will not be are only time visiting Key West and the amount of attention and entertainment on the shop is great! We had to make one decision out there and it was to visit the Key West Art and History Museum or Ripley’s Believe It or Not! I am glad the family reached a cultural consensus that chose the Art side of things!

It was a small museum but had some great pieces of both history and art. My daughter was amazed at the brick architecture of the building and quickly became interested in its history. It was also ironic to read about one of the most significant events of the Keys’ history in that it was completely devastated by a Hurricane in the 1930s that impacted all infrastructure and a lot of lives. It impacted the construction of the Seven Mile Bridge which started to connect the Keys and is still the only way in and out of here by vehicles. There was also a railroad but it did not survive the Hurricane and was never reconstructed!

After visiting the museum and finishing our walk around the town, we decided to come back to the ship for some activities. After defaulting to the pool to combat the sun and heat, we decided for lunch and regrouping in our room for the next activity. To my complete surprise, we could not decide on what to do together so we all decided on separate things to do! This is a shock as our daughter is starting to show her independence and confident and wanted to head to the youth club for activities with others of her age! My wife opted to go to the Spa while I went next door to the gym for some fitness activities in an effort to burn some calories for all the food I have been endulging myself with this week!

While working out, I started to reflect about my age and how things will go from here on out and I have to admit that the uncertainty is scary. Raising a family and moving to the next phase is intimidating as we are never probably truly prepared for what lies ahead despite even trying to plan ahead. There are so many factors that one variable will make little difference. We try to control the known factors like finances, education, and health but even those become wild cards eventually! However, much like our Steem experience, I think it is about the journey and the destination. This is why I embrace these moments to remind me what we work for and making them count!