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The cruise we took was actually a bit on the short side—we only had two ports-of-call. The first port we stopped in was Key West where we mostly shopped but also spent a bit of time at the Hemingway House. The second port was Grand Cayman which sounds very exotic, but was my least favorite of the two. We did have a good time snorkeling and swimming with the stingrays, though!

No matter where we went, though, it was clear we were in travel-marketer paradises with no shortage of cheesy tourist-trap statues… Deb is seen here with a famous denizen of Grand Cayman (yes I will refrain from unseemly jokes about what the sign says) and I’m pictured in Key West at the restaurant where we had lunch, Crabby Dick’s (please note two things about this picture: the look on my face and the mermaid over my right shoulder).

(1) (2) (3)

We walked from the pier down Duval Street to the (1) Hemingway House, shopping all the way. We took a ($11!) tour of the house given by a very knowledgable docent who told us a lot about Hemingway’s time in the house. For instance, even though Hemingway only lived in Key West for 9 years, over 70% of his life’s work was completed here, (2) in the room pictured above. His house—though more than a half mile inland—was located next to a (3) lighthouse. Given his propensity for the bottle, his friends often joked with him that he bought the house so he could find his way home after last call.

Those of you who know Hemingway may know that he was a cat freak. The Hemingway House still has over 50 cats living on-site, each of them named after a famous musician, actor, artist, etc. We met a bunch of cats, including the aptly named Charlie Chaplin. The interesting thing about these cats is that they are all descendants of Hemingway’s original cats, and all have six toes. That sixth toe acts as an opposable thumb and does allow them to grasp things in a way normal cats cannot.

(4) (5) (6) (7)

Out next stop was Grand Cayman. I expected amazing things from this little island, but I guess it really is all about the banking. It still looked a little beat up from Hurricane Ivan back whenever that was. (4 and 5) We did have a great time snorkeling at the barrier reef around the island. (6) Debra even got up close and personal with a stingray—she held it and even gave it the traditional kiss for 7 years of good luck. (Our Jamaican guide put it differently, “Aren’t you jealous, mon? She just kissed a man with two winkies!”) Deb had the foresight to buy an underwater camera which is what we used to take these photos, I think it did a pretty good job, for a disposable, of capturing some of the magic of the (7) reef we were exploring.

In any event, this posting and the two from yesterday pretty much sum up our trip. It was a lot of fun—and I’m sure I missed some stories that Deb can share in another posting or in the comments field. And if any of you see us in person, we can bore you with the 8 dozen other photos we have of the trip!