ZappoSissy: Celebrating SIXTY in Paradise!


Some "Catmas"! The parents went somewhere and left me & Lucy. Of course, we had our cat sitter but that doesn't count. Notice my sad face...Abbi

Yep, the parents certainly did leave for somewhere else...Key West, Florida. We were celebrating my 60th birthday, Ron's birthday and holiday time with the family. 60...that cannot be correct??? The view from our room at the Parrot Key Hotel.

Sandy relaxation area below our balcony. Since there are no waves in the Key West waters, no sand is produced. Sand is imported from the Miami beaches!

Our balcony...the four of us were sharing a townhouse with an ocean view. Parrot Key is not in the "old" town area and taxi rides were $40 daily for the round trip. OUCH!! There were four pools and a small cafe on the grounds. Lovely and quiet but a long way to Duval.

Paul & Ron at D.J.'s Clamshack on Duval. (Reminded me of Costa Rica in the small villages, complete with chickens.)

Chicken! D.J.'s is known for its lobster roll. Other than Maine, truly the most awesome lobster roll ever...no fillers, just a lightly butter bun stuffed with lobster.

Well, Ron did not have enough lobster & he had the overstuffed roll.

The old movie theater which is now a Walgreen's.

quite amusing advertisement

This is a real dog looking rather sad. There was no charge for the photo. At one point, Sister and I wanted to take a picture of a parrot perched on a bicycle. Just as I was ready to snap, an aging hippie ran out and said there would be a charge. He posed the bird on the shoulders of tourists for a photo op and a small fee. Hmmm. Have to be faster with the shutter.

Up close and personal to a Carnival Cruise Ship docked in the Mallory Square Harbor area.

Newly married and walking around in her beautiful dress. We deduced that the groom was not wearing underwear as you could see through his white pants!

Pelican watch in Mallory Square Harbor

Key Lime pie is a big deal in Key West but the pie outlets sell Key Lime pie dipped in chocolate on a stick. That was a little much and we passed on all opportunities.

Hmmm...is this our "watering hole" Could not breathe for the smokers so moving on. There is no law banning smoking in establishment that serve food or drinks.

Hanging from the smoke-darkened ceiling in Capt. Tony's

Sloppy Joe's with a window seat. No, there are no bras on the ceiling. The boys are looking at the massive collection of flags.

Happy husband with 60 year old wife!! Note I am wearing my Dr. Roeder t-shirt.

Chickens are everywhere in Key West and not just in the Old Town area. It seems that Key West passed a law many years ago that made the area a bird sanctuary. Since chickens qualify as "birds', they are protected and it is a crime to kill one. One of the locals said there were at least 3,000 chickens in Old Town. (total yuck)

time to call a taxi on day one...nap time

Painting inside Santiago Bodega, a tapas restaurant. We called this "The Red Queen"

Hay, ODIE! How do you like this Friesian? By the way, ODIE, there are no horses in Key West.

Santiago Bodega...5 star meal!

The lady who lived above Santiago Bodega had two dogs & owned this artistic jeep. She walked her dogs without a leash while smoking a tiparillo. Cigars were a large industry in Key West until the early 1960's when access to Cuba was terminated. There were lots of smoke shops with an array of cigars.

MEOW! Many cats were roaming the streets of Old Town. This one was the resident cat at Blue Heaven, another excellent restaurant. Our second day was rainy in the morning and the cat is wise to stay under cover by the hostess desk.

A hungry couple waiting for their late breakfast. The painting on the wall was most interesting with cats.

Happy Birthday to me...all week!

Breakfast for four at Blue Heaven. Blue Heaven got its name from a former chef who was a UNC graduate...Chapel Hill, a.k.a Blue Heaven.

Lobster benedict with sauce on the side

Paul's 911 omelet...bacon, lobster, 3 eggs, cheese and tomatoes.

Trolley & Conch Train depot. Yep, it is raining. We were wearing our Conch Train ponchos. Conch Train is a 90 minute tour of Old Town, most informative. The engineer promised to drive slowly so we could snap some pictures but he never slowed down.

The END OF THE ROAD...end of U.S. Hwy 1 South...mile marker ZERO.

Bougainvillea in abundance. Did you know that the beautiful colored part is actually the leaf? The flower is the tiny white or yellow in the center.

The southernmost point in the United States. There is a hotel & restaurant in this area but the honor of the Southernmost, Southernmost Point goes to a residence.

Sister looks a bit anxious but cute with freckles.

from the moving train

Hemmingway House, from train. The place was so crowded that we decided to pass on a visit.

Butterfly girl. The last few minutes of our train tour included a stop near the Butterfly Museum and the addition of middle school kids. This girl had purchased "butterflies" to attach to her shirt and named each one. When the train got to rolling, her "butterflies" started falling into the street. She said, "Well, there goes Amy; she's dead now." Amy was one of the kids on the train and they all just howled.

An interesting and entertaining entrance to a bar.

Read the sign. Do you remember the days of Pan Am?

View from the highest point in Old Town, the Crowne Plaza Hotel on Duval. The Walgreen's on the corner is where we attempted to take the parrot picture.

Another Carnival Cruise Ship, from the top of the hotel

Sister enjoying the view and planning our walk to a Cuban restaurant for take-out. The boys were at the hotel reading and playing on "tablets".

Hey! We found our own stuffed parrot for a photo op.

Which bird do you prefer?

Additional security in the event the electronic device failed.

What did we say about reading & tablets? Paul won a Cruz Android before the trip and could not stop interfacing. Ron brought the latest Stephen King, 11-22-63, and had to be reminded that it was time to eat. 11-22-63 is one of the best Stephen King books, I have read and I could not put it down, all 697 pages.