Visiting Key West, Florida/Carlos Pueblo
Overnight
the ship reached Key West, Florida, the most southeastern
tip of the
United States. I am very happy for myself by completing the
four extreme
points of the North American territory, St. John’s, Newfound
land, Sydney
and Halifax, Nova Scotia on the Northeast by cruises; Cape
Flatttery,
Washington on the Northwest by car; entering Tijuana, Mexico
by car and
Key West on the Southeastern tip of Florida by cruise.
Truman
Little White House in the Truman Annex is one of the most unique
subdivision
in the U.S. It was built in 1823 and kept in mint condition through
out almost
200 years. It was a Naval Station for protection of pirates from the
Caribbean
and housing the officers and soldiers. Harry Truman picked up one
of them as
his retreat and passed it on to his successors until Bill Clinton. Now,
the Little
White House is managed by the State of Florida in a very good shape
as a museum
open to the public. I was asking almost
everyone on the street for
the
information of ownership of these gorgeous frame mansions. The front yards
of every
house arranged like a garden in Hawaii with tropical flowers, palms, and
orchid on
tree trunks, etc.
There are
typical tourists town with a very organized management of a city, stores
and streets
full of visitors. I can feel a taste of Cuban culture at least some of cigar
shops and
beautiful roosters rooming around at store front and street corners like
the old town
Miami. I found the Hemingway’s old house and some visitors went
inside to
view his old mansion. He is a Nobel Laureate for his novel, the old man
and the sea.
He went to the Spanish Civil War. My fellow passenger told me that
this house
was his second wife’s and the first wife owned the one in Havana, Cuba.
She read a
book of his third wife about their marriage with a sad name that I couldn’t
Remember.
Obviously, he was doing very well at his time as a writer. That famous
novel is
about an old man trying to cat a fish in the water between Florida and Cuba.
As a matter
of fact, there was a fishing contest of $80,000 award for fisherman
Interested when
I visited.
I attempted
to locate the famous Key Lime pie mentioned to me by my graduate
school professor’s
wife, Mrs. Jean Baker, a Florida native. Finally, I found one in
an ice box
with a price tag $5.99, of course plus tax. I kept on going toward the ship
after 4
hours walk. I found an art gallery to rest my body. Interestingly, it is also a
furniture
store with products made of coconut trees from the Fiji Islands. It is very
heavy and
looks luxury. I thought that the owner is an Asian Indian yet he is an
Australian
who found the idea and with the skill to make it as an art product.
