Go (Key) West, young man
By Karen Haymon Long/Tampa Tribune

Originally published December 31, 1995

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KEY WEST - Enchantment in this southernmost city comes in waves. Waves of rock 'n' roll, rhythm and blues, and decent jazz. Waves of deep-sea fishing boats, scuba divers, catamarans and glass-bottom boats heading out to sea. Waves of tourists sporting goofy T-shirts along Duval Street - ``The older I get, the better I was.''

Waves of purple flowers falling from jacaranda trees. Waves of history. Waves of writers. Waves of scrumptious seafood, Red Stripe beer and rain.
Like New Orleans, Key West is a party town. And like New Orleans, it exudes a sense of history, of multi-ethnic cultures, gorgeous architecture and good times.

``Don't stand up when the trolley's moving. Don't smoke. That's all the rules,'' trolley conductor Lee Shelburne croons over the Old Town Trolley speakers.

That Jimmy Buffett, laid-back attitude - remember ``changes in latitudes, changes in attitudes''? - permeates the air here.

Wanna wear shorts in a nice restaurant? No problem. Want a cold beer after snorkeling? They're free for the asking on many charter diving boats. Wanna shop for expensive jewelry, clothes and KW T-shirts at midnight on a Thursday? Try Duval Street, the colorful main drag that rocks until the wee hours.

Wanna bring your dog into a bar? Perfectly fine in many places. OK until 5 at Hog's Breath Saloon.

CELEBRATE THE SUNSET
Oh, this town has the usual laws, and police cars cruise slowly up and down Duval. But, attitudes are more free here, more relaxed, more tolerant than most places north of here. And every place in the United States is north.

There is one must for visitors: the sunset celebration at Mallory Square in Old Town, where most tourists hang out.

Just before sunset every afternoon, waves of tourists descend on Mallory Dock, a concrete slab facing the Gulf Coast horizon. As the orange sun sinks and crowds crowd around, house cats leap through hoops; an Uncle Sam look-alike makes finger rings with play money; a man covered with white paint and baby powder mimics a Roman statue with Charlie Chaplinesque grace.

When the cat man's cats stop to lick themselves, he shouts: ``No grooming!'' They stretch tall to attention, then rocket through the air onto bar stools.

Down the way, a man and woman juggle with knives while their mutt does tricks and their two black, potbellied pigs trip through ground-level hoops. The pigs wear pearls. The crowd hands over dollar bills.

In the background of all this, tourist boats, yachts and sailboats toot by. The sun slips into the sea. Everyone cheers.

FISHING AND FUN
Evenings after sunset, tourists turn toward song. There's plenty of it: Capt. Tony's Saloon rocks to a band that plays hits by the Allman Brothers and Santana; Rum Runners has decent reggae; try Donnie's on Duval for show tunes and jazz; Sloppy Joe's on Duval Street and Turtle Kraals at Land's End Marina both have good old rock 'n' roll.

There probably are as many places to listen to music and dance as there are T-shirt shops. And that's saying something. Don't worry about people laughing at your dancing. Anything goes. By yourself or with a partner. Or with lots of partners.

In the daytime, the sea beckons. Higgs Beach and South Beach are popular places to soak in the sun. Deep-sea fishing, flats fishing, fly-fishing, snorkeling, scuba diving, water skiing, motor skiing - you can try any or all these water sports in Key West. Just look for signs advertising rates and times. They're at water's edge and along ``Charter Boat Row,'' on Palm Avenue.

We went on, and recommend, the Pride of Key West glass-bottom boat excursion, which takes passengers out in the Atlantic to the living coral reef, home of beautiful, colorful fish. Trolling slowly overhead, we saw a variety of corals, barracuda, grouper, snapper and all kinds of brightly colored fish.

Besides boats and trolleys, most tourists get around Key West's Old Town on mopeds, bikes, but mostly by walking. That's the best way to see Key West.

Bikes probably are second best, but you might miss something: an orange calico cat sleeping on a porch (Key West has zillions of cats); a purple bougainvillea bush; a restored Key West-style house, with wood shutters, a white picket fence and, of course, a porch.

We got our bearings on the Old Town Trolley Tour, which covers much of the 4-mile-wide, 1 1/2-mile- long island. It goes past the old cemetery, by writer Ernest Hemingway's house - look for the six-toed cats; past the Southernmost Point in the United States; past the twin forts guarding the Atlantic; past the airport, the houseboats, the deep-sea fishing fleets and lots of hotels.

Key West has boatloads of hotels, motels, guest houses, bed-and- breakfast inns and even a hostel. Rates tend to be higher than many places north of here. But there's a room rate for everyone's budget.

We stayed in the gorgeously restored Gardens Hotel, a ``Bahamian- style'' former private residence enveloped by lush, tropical gardens: mango and balsa trees, crotons, palms, hibiscus, bougainvillea, orange jasmine and many rare plants imported from abroad.

The Gardens Hotel has 17 rooms in its main building, two new buildings, and the ``Eyebrow Cottage,'' where we stayed. They call it that, our trolley guide said, because two shuttered windows peek out from under the roof eaves - like eyebrows under a hat brim.

Our room was lovely, with oak floors, marble whirlpool bath, king- size bed, a mini-refrigerator, imported furniture and an oil painting of a Key West scene. We had our own front porch with white wicker chairs and a private, gated entrance to Simonton Street.

Breakfast was complimentary and luscious: Key lime beignets, papaya, mango, granola, coffee, fresh- squeezed orange juice, among other items that changed daily.

Owner Corinna Hettinger and her staff made us feel like family visiting relatives lucky enough to live on an island paradise.

TRUMAN TO TREASURE
Writers are usually pretty smart. Good ones, anyway. And many good writers have lived in Key West: besides Hemingway, playwright Tennessee Williams, poets Elizabeth Bishop, Wallace Stevens and James Merrill. A walking tour wending past many of their former homes is well worth taking, if you like Key West architecture and are at all nosy about famous writers.

Hemingway's house, on Whitehead Street, is well worth a visit. There, you can see the studio where he wrote ``For Whom The Bell Tolls'' and some of his other fine novels, the $20,000 pool his second wife had built for him (they paid only $8,000 for the house); the cat sculpture given to him by his friend, Pablo Picasso; and 56 cats that are descendants of his cats. About half have six toes on each paw, a deformity inherited from many of Hemingway's cats.

Another historic site worth seeing: Harry S Truman's Little White House Museum, just down Whitehead Street, where the president that the press called ``Truman the Human'' visited 11 times for more than 100 days.

It has been perfectly preserved, and visiting it is like falling into a time warp. Chenille bedspreads cover Bess Truman's twin beds; there's rattan furniture in the Florida room; and in Truman's bedroom is a flowered daybed, where he liked to take naps.

A short movie shows interesting newsreels. The tour guide tells informative tidbits about the man many consider one of our top 10 presidents. Another interesting fact: President Kennedy was in this house during the Bay of Pigs invasion.

The waters off Key West have long drawn treasure seekers, and Mel Fisher is the king of mega- finds. His Maritime Heritage Society Museum displays just a fraction of the gold, jewelry, precious jewels and other treasures he and his crews have retrieved from the sea. A movie gives a short version of the long history of Fisher's treasure hunts. A gift shop sells jewelry made from his recovered gold.

MARGARITAS TO CONCH
None of this, of course, would be half as interesting or fun without the luscious food of Key West. Like New Orleans, this town has spawned its own style of dishes: Key lime pie, pork topped with mango chutney, grouper garnished with lime and plantains.

We had a great meal at Kelly's Caribbean Bar, Grill and Brewery, owned by actor Kelly McGillis (``Top Gun'') and her husband, Fred Tillman. They bought and restored the historic home of Pan American World Airways. Tables are inside and out of the rambling, white frame building. The conch chowder and fresh seafood dishes are great. So are their homemade beers and their creamy Key lime pie.

We also had great seafood dinners at the Palm Grill and the new Cafe Sole, and a decent grouper sandwich at Jimmy Buffet's Margaritaville Cafe on Duval, all an easy walk from our hotel. And we discovered good Cuban food at El Siboney, where the meals and good prices reminded us of Tampa's La Teresita and Latam restaurants.

Some Key West natives who call themselves Conchs have tried and still long to declare their ``Conch Republic'' independent from the rest of the country. They even have a flag that's proudly flown around town: it's blue with a conch shell amid stars.

But the truth is, Key West is one of our nation's treasures. And we won't let it go.

TIPS FOR THE TRIP
HOW TO GET THERE

WHERE TO STAY
WHERE TO EAT Key West is known around the world for its wonderful fresh seafood, tasty sauces and, of course, its famous Key lime pie. We've never had a bad meal there. On this trip we discovered some great food at places we had never been: WHAT TO SEE FOR MORE INFORMATION