I am ashamed to admit that I have lived in Florida for 10 years and my trip to the Florida Keys last month was my first time in the Keys. But let me tell you... I fell in LOVE! We drove from Orlando to Marathon Key on Memorial Day weekend, we had planned ocean swims, snorkeling and I was determined to swim along side a Turtle but Tropical Storm Alberto had other plans for us... here's what we did instead;
The Turtle Hospital
If you know me, you know I LOVE turtles, I even have a turtle tattoo so visiting the Turtle Hospital in Marathon Key was an absolute must do for me. This is a working hospital where the main goal is to rehabilitate sick and injured turtles and then release them back into their natural habitat. You get an extensive tour of the facility and meet all of the turtles and learn their stories as well as a sit down learning experience about the different types of turtle species and what the common injuries and sickness are for each one. The best part about the tour, all of the proceeds go directly to helping the turtles, no gimmicks.
First Legal Rum Distillery
Free rum tastings? SOLD! This was a very cool place to visit, this boutique rum distillery offers free rum tastings so you can try before you buy and take some notes on each tasting and they offer free tours. The rum is distilled six times to remove the impurities, and they produce about 600 hundred bottles per week. Each bottle is labeled by hand, and the Legal Rum flagship bottles bear police mugshots of former local residents guilty of alcohol contraband offenses.
Duval Street
Southernmost Point of the United States
Standing at this point, you are closer to Cuba than you are the nearest Walmart. How crazy is that!? The an anchored concrete buoy in Key West, Florida, marking the southernmost point in the continental United States, the lowest latitude land of contiguous North American States is one of the most popular tourist hotspots in The Keys and a fun fact? It is 18 feet above sea level.
The Florida Keys truly is a tropical hotspot and each Key unlocks it's own story. I cannot wait to go back and explore more!
