Jan. 26 - Key West, FL

Knowles House Bed & Breakfast

We enjoy Key West, it's a funky little place where just about anything can happen. I found a saying somewhere...in a book or online that seems to describe it perfectly. Key West has character—and characters, lots of them. Key West close to perfect...far from normal. One of our favorite things to do in Key West is watch people and it never seems to let us down...it's always entertaining.

We decided we'd take the Lower Keys Bus to Key West and spend a few days away from the boat. Key West is full of quaint B&Bs and most stay very busy this time of year, but Stan found a little place a few blocks from the Historic Seaport and not too far from all the action on Duval Street, named Knowles House. It should be a fun little get away. I will fill you in on the details and pictures when we get back to The Pearl. In the meantime here are a few fun facts I found about Key West.

Key West is an island at the end of the chain of the Florida Keys. It’s connected to the mainland by US Highway 1 and a series of bridges. It’s a popular vacation destination, which gives you the feeling of being in the Caribbean without leaving the country.

• 42 bridges connect Key West to the mainland of Florida.
• The third largest coral reef in the world is off the coast of Key West. The reef is 160 miles long.
• All of the sand on the beaches of Key West was shipped in on barges from the Caribbean.
• Key West is the southernmost city in the United States. The city is closer to Cuba than it is to Miami.
• The whole island is a bird sanctuary since there are many endangered species there.
• Happy hour begins at 9AM at the Schooner Wharf Bar.
• Three Civil War forts are located on Key West.
• Even though Key West is the southernmost point in the United States, it was Yankee territory during the Civil War.
• Duval Street in Key West is known as the longest street in the world, because it runs from coast to coast.
• The nearest Wal-Mart is 126 miles away.
• People born in Key West are called Conchs.
• The temperature in Key West has never dropped below 41º.
• There are about 25,000 people that live in Key West.
• The highway that ends in Key West, U.S Highway 1, is 2,209 miles long and runs from Fort Kent in Maine.
• Key West has more bars per capita than any other place in the country.
• Key West has more churches per capita than any other place in the country.
• Back in 1889, Key West was the biggest city in Florida.
• Key West has the most inhabitants of any of the keys. Of the 800 keys, people inhabit only 30.
• The first international flight left from Key West. In 1927, the Pan American airlines flew a plane from Key West to Havana Cuba.
• Most of the 40 cats living at the Hemingway House have six or seven toes because they are all descendants from Hemingway's cat.

Knowles House