2009 April | Hole In The Donut Cultural Travel

Cats Are The Stars At The Hemingway House In Key West

Published April 30, 2009 | By Barbara Weibel

Ernest Hemingway ended up living in Key West quite by accident. During a trip between Cuba and the U.S., he stopped in Key West to pick up a new Ford Roadster that his wife’s wealthy uncle had purchased for them. As usual, things were happening on “island time” – the car had not yet arrived. The Ford dealership insisted Hemingway stay in the apartment above the showroom while waiting for it to arrive. By the time the Roadster hit the docks, Key West had worked its magic on Ernest.

Historic Home of Ernest Hemingway

When the same generous uncle purchased a Key West home for the Hemingways two years later, they happily settled into the community on a full time basis. Ernest spent mornings writing and afternoons on a bar stool at Sloppy Joe’s Saloon, gathering fodder for his books. From from wealthy merchants, to the down-on-their-luck fishermen and wreckers, Hemingways books are filled with Key West characters. Hemingway contentment was so great in Key West that more than half of his published novels were Continue reading →

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Ernest Hemingway Spotted in Key West

Irreverent Homage To Sunset In Key West

Walking Flagler's Folly To Pigeon Key

Jammin' at Pastry Art's Open MIC Night

Ybor City's Cuban Heart Beats Strongest After Dark

Posted in Florida travel |

Tagged blogsherpa, Ernest Hemingway Home, Florida, florida keys, historic Custom House, Key West, Museum of Art and History, photos, six-toed cats, Sloppy Joe's Saloon, Travel, USA, woman |

3 Comments

Blogging BoomerCarnival #113 At Baby Boomer Entrepreneur

Published April 27, 2009 | By Barbara Weibel

This week’s Blogging Boomers Carnival is being hosted by The Baby Boomer Entrepreneur, where we’re invited to “Get Social” and use this carnival as a way to start a conversation with each of the bloggers represented. Click on over to read what our group of Boomers are discussing this week – everything from Twitter to Facebook to free speech in the press.

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This Marriage Thing Hosts Blogging Boomers Carnival #110

Blogging Boomers Carnival #136 Hosted by Contemporary Retirement

Blogging Boomers Carnival 139 Hosted By Don't Gel Too Soon

Blogging Boomers Carnival 142 at Gen Plus

Blogging Boomers Carnival #150 at It's All About Aging

Posted in Carnivals |

Tagged Baby Boomers, BabyBoomerEntrepreneur.com, blogging boomers carnival, midlife, social networking |

Discombobulated in Key West

Published April 26, 2009 | By Barbara Weibel

There are things I love about Key West. The weather is awesome – my skin absolutely glows in the tropics. It is a small, eminently walkable island (only seven miles around). Key West is one of the safest places I have ever visited; I can walk home alone at any hour of the night without worry. Vegetarian food is abundant; in fact one of the best vegetarian restaurants I have ever been to – The Cafe – is located in Key West. The beaches are lovely and within walking distance. A strong arts culture ensures there is always some event going on, whether it be a gallery showing, an arts film, or a display of sculpture in the public parks.

The beach at Fort Zachary Taylor is my favorite - a lovely sheltered cove, pure white sand, and no tourists

But for all this, Key West unsettles me. After being here a few days I start to feel uncomfortable in my skin. I know that it is a real place with real people who live here year round; the problem is that the real people are overshadowed by the Continue reading →

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Wordless Wednesday - Storm's A-Brewin'

Crane Point Museum And Nature Center, Marathon, Florida Keys

Walking Through An Ancient Ocean In The Florida Keys

Sarasota's Mable and John Ringling Museum - An Unlikely Melding of Fine Art and Circus Memorabilia

Ybor City's Cuban Heart Beats Strongest After Dark

Posted in Florida travel |

Tagged Art, beaches, blogsherpa, drunk tourists, Florida, florida keys, Fort Zachary Taylor, Key West, noise, Sculpture, Travel, USA, Vegetarian |

5 Comments

Online Travel Sites Continue To Battle It Out

Published April 25, 2009 | By Barbara Weibel

The recent elimination of booking fees for airfare now appears to have been just the first salvo in the war between online travel booking sites. Expedia and Orbitz yesterday announced that they are reducing fees on hotel rooms booked by July 15th. Additionally, Orbitz is now displaying the entire cost for hotel booking upfront, inclusive of fees and taxes, rather than tacking on the aditional fees at the payment screen – a practice long criticized by consumers as being deceptive. Although these latest discounts will no doubt be embraced by consumers, continued erosion of revenues in the industry could result in a round of failures, mergers, and/or acquisitions.

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Metasearch Engines Evolving Into Excellent Travel Booking Sites

What Is Twitter? The Most Important Marketing Revolution Of Our Lifetime

Repositioning Cruises - Great Deals

Southwest Begins Service To New York LaGuardia And Boston Logan #traveltuesday

Trazzler Brings A Dose Of Fun To Online Travel

Posted in Travel industry news |

Tagged deals, discounts, expedia, hotels, online travel service, orbitz, price wars, search engines, Travel |

6 Comments

Key West, Florida or Conch Republic?

Published April 24, 2009 | By Barbara Weibel

In April of 1982, the United States Border Patrol set up a blockade on highway U.S.1 in Florida City, at the northern entrance to the Florida Keys, and began searching every car, supposedly looking for illegal aliens attempting to enter the mainland United States. When the checkpoint resulted in a seventeen mile long traffic jam the media began covering the story. As a result the Keys were paralyzed: visitors canceled reservations, deliveries were delayed or stopped, and attractions suffered tremendous loss of business. Something had to be done.

Spectators enjoy the "longest parade route in the world," which runs from the Atlantic Ocean to the Gulf of Mexico on Key West's famous Duval Street

Led by Key West Mayor Dennis Wardlow and local attorney Dave Horan, community leaders flew to Miami, seeking an injunction in Federal Court that would enjoin the Border Patrol from treating the Keys like a foreign country. Unfortunately, the court refused. As the group left the courthouse, reporters screamed, “What are you going to do, Mr. Mayor?” On the spur of the moment, Wardlow replied, “We are going to go home and secede.”

By the time the group returned to Key West, Federal agents had begun to arrive. No one knew what to expect. Would they be arrested? Would the Keys be put under martial law? The fear was palpable. Surrounded by his loyal followers, Continue reading →

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Eye Candy Aside, Miami Beach Bears Little Resemblance to CSI Miami

Posted in Florida travel |

Tagged Atlantic, blogsherpa, Conch Republic Independence Celebration, Duval Street, Florida, florida keys, Gulf of Mexico, Key West, parades, passports, photos, pirates, secession, Travel, USA, woman, World's Longest Parade |

32 Comments

Repositioning Cruises – Great Deals

Published April 22, 2009 | By Barbara Weibel

Last week I was having lunch with a couple of friends when the conversation turned to repositioning cruises. Not being familiar with the term, I asked them to tell me more.

“They’re the absolute best cruise travel deals available!” my one friend insisted. And she proceeded to educate me.

Some ships sail the same itinerary – or at least stay in the same region – year round. Others switch routes with the seasons, requiring them to reposition the ship from one home port to another, which is by necessity a one-way trip. Rather than sail without passengers the cruise lines sell these repositioning trips at a significant discount. Although these cruises require travelers to arrange for more expensive one-way airfare, they also visit more ports of call because they are not limited by the round-trip requirement. Further research turned up some intriguing examples:

Cruise West's Spirit of Oceanus, a small luxury ship that accommodates only 120 passengers

Cruise West’s Spirit of Oceanus is a small, luxury ship that departs from Anchorage, Alaska on September 10, 2009 for an 18-night Bering Sea crossing dubbed the Ring Of Fire. On its way to Kobe, Japan, the ship visits the Alaskan, Russian, and Japanese ports of Seward, Kodiak, Shumagin Islands, Dutch Harbor, Kiska Island, Attu Island, Petropavlovsk, Atlasova Island, Kuril Islands, Kushiro, Matushima, and Ise. The Continue reading →