We're doing our best to fill our days while we wait for our weather window. It's a tough job but we're working at it. If you have ever been to Key West, you'll know my tongue is firmly in cheek. If not, let me tell you about Key West - aka the Conch Republic.

I had always dismissed Key West as a place that might be interesting to visit some day but was probably pretty much like the rest of southern Florida. Not so. While we are somewhat disappointed that we have not been able to move on yet toward this year's "destination", we are once again reminded that both the story and the joy are in the "journey".

We moved around to the anchorage on Monday, filled up with fuel at Key West Bight Marina (and are thankful we travel on a sailboat) and found ourselves a nice little spot in 16 feet of water. On Tuesday, we decided to return to Azur to see if they do breakfast as well as they do dinner, and the answer is Yes! Although the beef hash looked awfully tempting, 3 of the 4 of us opted for frittata with various choices of cheese and flavourings and all were good. Steve's eggs, fennel sausage and home fries also passed the taste test. Hmmm ... will we manage to check out lunch there as well before we leave? Time will tell.

Jim and I visited Hemingway House on Whitehead St, and our guide, Lorne, was full of anecdotes about the famous resident. We laughed with him about Pauline's decision to replace the fans with chandeliers, and the stories about the pool, hand carved out of rock in the back yard. We imagined the stormy scene when Ernest arrived home with a urinal to install as a watering trough for the cats and viewed his "last penny" embedded in the pool deck. We loved seeing his writing room over the garage and we could picture the man writing with intense concentration each morning before he headed off to the local bars. We admired a few of the many 6-toed cats who live on the premises, and came away shaking our heads in wonderment at the larger than life author, fisherman, ladies' man who spent several productive years here. It is so sad to think of the way depression brought about an early end to this man's life. I'm currently reading "The Paris Wife" about Ernest's years in Paris with Hadley, his first wife, and so far, he is still relatively happy so it seemed strange to be visiting this house where he lived with Pauline, Wife #2.

After visits to several galleries and shops, and a stop at a well situated coffee shop on Duval St where we perched on stools and watched the passers by, we rejoined Steve and Sandi for $1.50 beers at Pepe's followed by another visit to the Schooner Wharf bar (Richard - we did it for you!) to check out the local colour again. I think it is a toss up as to which bar has more locals and accompanying character. We're headed for Pepe's for breakfast Friday so perhaps that will tell the tale.

One tragic story to report is the death of a crewmember on the Appledore - a tall ship here in the harbour. The young man was aloft when the person holding the line (his girlfriend) was unable to manage a shift in weight and he fell to the deck. It is so terribly sad and our hearts ached every time we walked past the ship with its sails at half mast and the crew clustered around, supporting each other.

Jim and I visited the historical museum at the Customs House, learning more about Flagler's railway that was finished in 1912 after delays from hurricanes, and washed out in the hurricane of 1935. What an event it must have been when the first train, with Flagler aboard, arrived in town. It was truly an enormous feat of engineering to build all the necessary bridges and connect the many keys between here and Miami. After the railway was washed away, the road was finished and the era of car travel to the Keys began. Portraits of many significant individuals in Key West history lined the staircase, and we spent lots of time examining artist Mario Sanchez's wood cuts depicting life here.

We all went for a good walk to El Siboney, a Cuban restaurant on Catherine St, with great dishes - chicken fricassee and lima bean soup were the specials - both delicious. Sandi and Steve came for dinner in the evening - Spicy Coconut Pork with Rice and Broccoli Salad, followed by a game of Mexican Train Dominoes where Sandi cleaned house by winning all three rounds!

We spent a good part of Thursday on board. We had planned to go ashore around noon, but as we sat in the cockpit chatting on the phone, we noticed that, with the wind and current combining to pull our anchor chain straight, a nearby buoy was too close for comfort. We upanchored and circled around a bit, finding that the only available space was in areas of 26-28 ft depth and we would much prefer to be in shallower water. We located an empty spot and we're dug in but will likely move again when the opportunity arises. These dolphins spent several minutes playing around our dinghy. They rolled and dove and popped their heads up to have a look at the grey creature that declined to play with them. Jim even got a splash from one of them as he blew air before he dove under again.

Our bar of choice today was Captain Tony's - the original location of Sloppy Joe's where Ernest Hemingway spent many hours and where Jimmy Buffet started performing for tips. In need of food, we crossed the street to Amigo's where we happily downed platters of nachos loaded with black beans, chilies, tomatoes and sour cream, and drank water from cups that said "Once you've ruined your reputation, you can live quite freely." What fun.

Madcap was still where we left her when we returned just after sunset and we spent a quiet evening aboard - resting up for another full day of experiencing Key West. It looks like we'll be here until next week - Tuesday? Maybe Monday?

p.s. I added a blog about Stock Island back one or two days - scroll back. More coming on Key West.