We left Havana on 26 April for an overnight passage to Key West, this ended up being a cracking trip, so much so, that we had to reduce sail to make sure that we did not arrive in Florida in the dark! We checked into the US with the minimum of fuss. Having come from Cuba we fully expected to have been boarded by the Coast Guard and generally given the shake down by the US Homeland security types. As it turned out it was all very straight forward, customs being completed over the telephone although we did have to visit immigration.
We were given a 6 month visa to stay in the US but Jem, having a blemish free record and requiring her own licence, was given the ‘right to remain’ for a year! My initial attempts to discuss the shortcomings of this arrangement with Officer Ives, US Customs and Border Protection, was met with that glazed ‘do I give a s**t’ look so well honed by US Government Officials. I was however given the obligatory ‘have a good day’ all the same! Incidentally in more relaxed circumstances this expression has mutated into ‘Have a wonderful day’ – sweet.
Only 90 miles from Havana but Key West might has well be on another planet! To travel overnight from a country that has so little, yet appreciates so much, to the land that has everything and takes it all for granted is quite a contrast.
Things here are large and to misquote Benny Hill from The Italian Job “they like them big – BIG’. A lunchtime appetiser not only feeds both of us but also means that we don’t have to bother cooking supper either (a handy tip for the cost conscious….). The cars to are of course enormous. It’s not so much the ordinary car, they are pretty rare, everyone seems to rush about in huge pick-up trucks – It’s white van man on steroids.
The Florida Keys are a major holiday destination and things are priced accordingly; the idea of a nice quiet night or 2 tied up in a marina, with nice showers, laundrette and WIFI internet access, quickly disappeared as we soon found out it was about $150/night. Even trips to the shore, from our anchorage had to be a bit restricted because they charged $5.50 to park your dinghy! Ashore Key West proved to be a very pretty town with perfect clapperboard houses and quiet shaded side streets to wander around although the main drag is very touristy with lots of bars and full on ‘fun’ on tap.
On a sad note; Sarah Grace, our sailing companions since Venezuela, left us in Key West for the first leg of their trans-Atlantic trip home. This was particularly sad for Mark as Chris (Owner/operator as they say) is a meticulous passage planner so tended to tell us where we were going and how we were going to get there. Mark, now left to his own devices will have to work it out for himself - Chris also provided someone for Mark to blame when we ran aground.
The next stop in Marathon, where we ran aground in the entrance channel, (No Sarah Grace to follow in) so had to anchor outside the harbour but we were quite relieved when we dinghy’d in as we found it packed with hoards of boats. Despite the number of boats there was still room for wildlife; we spotted 2 dolphins which nearly ran into the dinghy and a spotted ray that leapt out of the water causing Louise to leap out of her skin. Whilst sailing in US water we have also spotted a couple of huge turtles, just hoping to see a Manatee now.
Continuing north we hit the US mainland at Miami and slipped into a quiet anchorage surrounded by some fairly expensive looking properties. The subsequent stream of tour boats advised us that we were in a canal with houses belonging to Julio Inglesias and Ricky Martine on one side and Sharon Stone and Vanilla Ice on the other. Strangely none had the courtesy to call us over for a shower and use of the washing machine! | 