After my tour of the lighthouse, I headed back to the hotel and hung out in the hammocks for a while deciding what I felt like doing next. This was one thing I really loved about traveling alone, taking breaks when I needed them and playing things by ear. I had been thinking about going to the beach my entire trip, but most of the beaches are kind of a hassle to get to, and I was pretty tired and wanted something relaxing to do. So, I decided to take the hop on hop off trolley around the island.
I love a hop on hop off tour when I am visiting somewhere, it is such a great way to get around. On my first ride, I just stayed on the trolley the entire time and relaxed in the shade, enjoying the breeze and taking in the scenery.
The trolley goes all around the historic district and then up into the newer, more modern part of Key West, which was interesting to see.
This little buddy sat across from me for a little part of the ride.
We did a trolley exchange at the shipwreck museum.
We drove past Mac's Sea Garden and it looked so quirky and fun, it's one of the more famous shell shops in Key West.
After my first loop around the island on the trolley, I just stayed on to ride again. This time I had a little list of of places I wanted to get off.
First stop was at Kermit's Key West Lime Shoppe. Most of the things I had read before my trip said that Kermit's was the best key lime pie, so I had to make sure to try it!
Their shop is super fun to browse through, it had key lime flavored everything from baked goods to salsa and salad dressings.
I opted to try their chocolate covered, frozen key lime pie on a stick.
This was an area I hadn't explored at all so, I decided to stroll around while enjoying my pie. It was delicious by the way, I am always surprised when lime and chocolate mesh well together.
I hadn't read or heard anything about the Historic Seaport Harbor Walk, so it was a spontaneous find and it is actually one of my favorite things from my trip! It was so beautiful and relaxing walking next to the water.
I happened upon a group of pelicans that had gathered for some fish scraps a guy was throwing out for them.
It was such a gorgeous day!
Then it was time to head back to the trolley stop to hop on and ride to the next stop. These fun little stores were just across the street so I had enough time to briefly pop in.
I made a couple of other stops to go shopping at some shops I had passed by when walking around town, it was so nice to have a ride to them.
The very last stop for the trolley of the day was at Casa Marina Hotel, my favorite place to watch the sunset. I had planned to spend the evening here and it worked out so perfectly to be dropped off my the trolley.
Last time I came here to watch the sunset, I got a little chilly. So this time I came prepared with a cozy sweat suit.
While some people might prefer the excitement of the sunset celebration at Mallory Square, I prefer the quiet solace of watching it from the comfort of a beach chair with the soothing soundtrack of the lapping ocean waves on the beach.
I was so happy, cozy and warm in my sweats. This was the best sunset experience of my entire trip.
For my final meal on the island, I walked to The Seaside Café. I was seated at the last available table next to the water, the best table in the whole place, I was told by several servers.
Before ordering, I needed to use the restroom. It was down the tiniest little alleyway that was nicknamed Diagon Alley.
This meal was memorable for many reasons. First off, the food was absolutely outstanding. I got coconut shrimp with pina colada sauce and a caprese sandwich. Everything was so flavorful and so delicious.
I also had great company during this meal. Michael, the owner of the restaurant and Southernmost House Hotel, checked on me several times throughout the evening to make sure my meal was good. (his son was the chef) He was the kindest and most sincere person, he was dressed in a fuzzy sweatshirt, shorts and boat shoes, he gave me Sandy Cohen vibes from the OC. Eventually he sat down at the table with me and we chatted about travel, work, animals, and he gave me good advice on what to look for if/when I ever decide to get married. At the end of our wonderful chat, I told Michael once I find my man, I will invite him to the wedding, and he said he would be thrilled to attend. Michael also paid for my key lime pie since he insisted I had to try it even though I was stuffed.
The key lime pie had the same pina colada sauce that was served with the coconut shrimp and it tasted amazing on the pie as well!
I had more excellent company during this meal, one of the managers, Keith, also stopped by several times to make sure I was completely happy with my experience at their restaurant. My phone died right after I got my dinner and it was killing me that I couldn't document more of this magical meal. Keith was so nice and offered to charge my phone and when I kept asking for it so I could take pictures, he took pictures for me and texted them to me. So nice and thoughtful.
After my wonderful meal, Michael gave me a big hug and told me I could keep in touch my emailing or mailing letters to the Southernmost House Hotel. Meeting wonderful, kind, interesting people is always one of my favorite parts of traveling.
On my walk home, I came across this adorable and fluffy kitty that I couldn't resist petting. My last Key West kitty interaction.
The next day, I checked out of my hotel and while I was waiting for my Uber to take me to the airport, I saw this quote on the sidewalk, I hadn't ever noticed before. There are several of these quote throughout the historic district, but somehow I had missed the one right outside my hotel. It was the perfect parting quote.
I flew to Orlando to meet up with the family for a trip to Disney World!
I got to fly on a hot pink airplane with a flamingo on it, the perfect way to saw goodbye to Key West.
I loved this trip so much, it was so fun and relaxing and also taught me a lot. Turns out I absolutely love traveling solo, and can't wait to do it again. This was the perfect first solo adventure and it will always hold a special place in my heart.
