Key West

O.K. I am spoiled. I have spent the last two weeks lazing beside a pool, sitting in the shade (to avoid sunburn) and gazing at the palm trees. I had no idea that there were so many varieties of palm trees. I also discovered why they do not break in a hurricane. Did you know they are hollow, filled with flexible fibers that transport water to their tops? My bother had several varieties in his yard, two cabbage palms, five or so royal palms, a coconut palm, a bismark (lovely big gray-green fan leaves) and another variety that fans out in a diagonal line and gets bigger than the side of a house, not to mention the orange, lemon and grapefruit trees… Nature walks introduced us to alligators, birds of all kinds, plants in abundance and quaint boardwalks straddling three different ecosystems in one two mile walk. The most fascinating plants were the air plants. I thought they were nests. I also thought Spanish moss (an air plant) killed the host tree. Not true. A little exercise and then back to the side of the pool with something tall and cool as we waited for the steak to cook. Evenings brought the possibility of honing our bridge skills. Unfortunately the opposition (my brother and husband) were the ones who bid the seven no trump and made it… Still we had a lovely holiday and now it is time to make use of all those impressive photos I took. One of these years we will revisit Key West. An extraordinary place filled with extraordinary people. Life is good.