Tag Archives: Butterfly garden

Key West, Florida

Florida, Travel, , , ,

January 19, 2026 – We had the opportunity to spend a few days in Key West in January, so we jumped at the chance for a new experience and some warmer weather.

There is lots of chicken imagery, as well as roosters and chickens roaming free on the streets.

This chick greeted us at the airport
Excellent art galleries
…including one with original sketches by…
…Dr Seuss!
A Turkish store that reminded us of Istanbul
Lots of cigar stores – we are just 90 miles from Cuba
Conch fritters
Frozen margaritas
Cubano sandwiches
We visited the Ernest Hemingway house / museum – a popular attraction with a line of folks waiting to get in
Some of the typewriters he used to tell his famous tales
The writer’s studio
Some of the cats, including descendants of the six-toed Snowball, that inhabit the premises.
Yes, the whole place smelled like cat pee.
Outdoor cat hotel
Cat under the covers
Extensive feline cemetery out back – Hemingway named many of the cats after his friends
Right next door was the Tennessee Williams house – no one waiting to get in. Sorry Tennessee!
Key West bills itself as the Conch Republic – it seceded from the US for a day back in 1982 to protest government anti-drug and immigration policies that were causing traffic backups on the only highway
The pretty beach where tourists queue up to watch the sunset
The line of folks waiting to have their pictures taken in front of…
…the end of the continental USA
Right on the beach was Fort Zachery Taylor…
…with lots of old cannons, ammo, and a moat!
Is this Sponge Bob?
…or is this Sponge Bob?
We visited a Butterfly Conservatory with flamingos…
…beautiful birds…
Blue morpho
Archduke
Owl
Huge Atlas moth
Longwing
How often do you get to see a manatee mailbox?
Although it really wasn’t beach weather, our motel had a heated pool so we sunned and swam every day. A great short trip – stay tuned for our next adventure!