"Our Honeymoon to the Florida Keys!" Florida Keys by SarahTony

We flew British Airways from Heathrow to Miami, after firstly taking an internal shuttle flight from Manchester. Certainly cannot fault British Airways for service, and despite me not being the biggest fan of flying, I managed to survive the journey in one piece!
We arrived at Miami at about 18:00, and were relieved to find our baggage had made it too (always a worrying moment as you stand around the baggage carousel....will it be there!!!). We then made our way to the car hire shuttle, and from there to the Dollar depot to pick up our wheels!
Now came the nerves.....because I had never driven a right hand drive car, never driven an automatic car and had never driven in the US before! Add to this jet lag, a husband with a tooth ache, and the fact that it was gradually getting dark....and you have one very worried individual.
But it had to be done, and the car was a dream...a Chrysler Seabring convertible, and so easy to drive once you got to grips with the basics. So we were on our way!
It was fine on the small roads out of the depot, but suddenly we were on the freeway, cars flying in all diresctions, and us not really having a clue where we were and where we were supposed to be! HELP!!!!!!!
By good luck rather than good judgement we made it onto the Florida Turnpike, and from then on it was one straight road down to Key Largo, although I wasn't very popular as I couldn't work out how to get the headlights out of full beam, so we were constantly flashed at on the way down there, but we made it none the less!
As we pulled up at our resort, the relief was immense, I was now ready to enjoy a relaxing few days in the sun!

Outside our room

We had pre-booked our accomodation in the Amoray Dive Resort in Key Largo, mainly because it looked so idyllic and on the website played the "Under the Sea" tune from the "Little Mermaid"
How could we resist! We were not to be disappointed!!!
We arrived late on in the evening, and having had a very long day, very little sleep the night before, and the time changes we decided to hit the sack as soon as we checked in! The room was divine, right on the edge of the water, with big ceiling fans and our own screened verandah and hammock!
The following morning we woke early, very early! It was still dark, but because our body clocks were out of synch, we got up anyway! We headed out to explore the property, in the dark! By now the sun was starting to come up, and we sat down by the edge of the sea, listening to all the birds waking up, and watched the colours gradually change as the sun rose in the east. It was unbelievably calm and peaceful, a real tonic after the hectic few months we had spent preparing for the wedding! We then went back into the room to unpack until breakfast was served outside. Breakfast was complimentary: toast, muffins, bagels, coffee and gorgeous Florida orange juice!
We had an amazing few days here in Amoray Resort, very quiet and relaxing, and spent every evening watching the famous sunset from the edge of the water, toasting it with a bottle or two of budweiser!
On our last evening, we invaded the local supermarket and had a barbeque, sitting outside on our verandah. This time we watched the sun go down with a bottle of champagne, and toasted ourselves for finding such a fantastic location to spend our first five days as Mr and Mrs!

Have a look at our Florida Keys tips for more information about what we got up to in paradise!!!

Tony at Capt Tony's Bar, Key West!

I don't know what we expected from Key West, but it surpassed most of them. We travelled up from Key Largo, and made the most of the trip by stopping frequently to admire the amazing scenery. Sometimes there was nothing but the vivid blue sea on either side of the road and it was stunning! Crossing the seven mile bridge was also incredible, and the fact that we made the trip in a convertible enhanced the whole experience.
We arrived in Key West late afternoon and found our hotel, The Southernmost, which was at the southern most (never!!) point of Duval Street! That evening we made for the sunset watching ceremony at Mallory Square, definitely a thing to behold. The sunset itself was spectacular, but the entertainment on the quayside was very bizarre, as there was even a British guy doing a tightrope thing. We found a fantastic Cuban bar, near Mallory Square, where they had live salsa music and a great atmosphere!
Our trip coincided with the Fantasy Fest, a sort of carnival type affair which lasted for about 2 weeks in all, during which there were social events, parades etc. We missed the parades, as we had returned home, but some of the people out and about in costume going to the various balls and events made for some fascinating people watching!
We also enjoyed a few drinks in a wonderful bar in the schooner wharf, and it was like a blast from the past...salty sea dogs in abundance, propping up the bar whatever the time of day !!! We half expected the odd pirate to appear!!!!
Look out for the old chap making and selling cigars in the middle of the bar...what a character!
We had a great time in Key West, the architecture was beautiful, and the people very friendly and laid back! It has almost a Caribbean flavour, and the most unusual mix of characters in one place I have ever come across, from world-hopping students earning a few bucks with their bicycle taxis to a busking Elvis impersonator! Every day the gigantic cruise ships spilled their passengers into the town, easily recognisable by their large waistlines, bulging wallets and camcorders! The most unusual sight I witnessed however was an old chap walking aroud with a dog, on top of which sat a cat, and on top of the cat sat a mouse! Only in Key West......