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Christmas in Key West

My little brother is in the National Guard and is currently serving in Iraq, not due home until the middle of February. Which means that my parents and I go away for Christmas. Last time, it was to Savannah. That was rather a bust- not really a destination a lot of people pick when they're trying to escape. So this year, we tried Key West and have planned family Christmas for February.

My parents and I do not make particularly good tourists- not generally sucked in by tourist traps and its beginning to feel like I've been almost everywhere, at least stateside, and certainly seen a lot. So Duval St did not hold a lot of interest for me, beyond a distraction and people watching. And a distraction, it was. Sure, there were tons of people out shopping, but you never would have known it was Christmas Eve. The oddest part of my day (for it being Christmas Eve) was walking home from dinner about 10:oo when a man who was at least three sheets to the wind asked me if I knew where a a gay bar was. Did I mention we had just walked passed at least three?

And Christmas Day was no different. Almost everything was still open. Dad and I took a sailing trip and did some snorkeling and kayaking. Of course, my fingers quickly turned yellow while snorkeling, even with a wet suit. And then got sunburned kayaking. (One a side note, I would definitely recommend Danger Charters if you're ever there.) A hot dog for lunch at the Hogs Breath Saloon topped off the strangest Christmas ever.

Really though, Key West made me sad. Sure, there were tons of people trying to live their version of the good life. But at the same time, it was overrun with people who seemed like they were trying to escape their lives and with people who were just plain alone.

posted by CP @ 4:44 PM 2 thoughts