The Keys

Many years ago I took a long weekend trip to the Florida Keys.  I only went to Key West, but since I saw the rest of the Keys, I'm going to claim them as well.  This particular trip was a spur of the moment decision.  I was sitting at work and thinking I'd rather be almost anywhere than in this land o' the cubicle.  So I asked a couple of friends if they were up for a little trip.  I hadn't really thought about a destination, but when someone asked where, Key West just popped into my head.

From the moment I said Key West until we were on a plane took about two weeks.  Originally there were somewhere between 6 - 8 people who agreed to go.  I think they originally said yes because they didn't want to be the only one to say no, and because they thought there was no way I was actually going to take a random vacation.  Little by little people kept dropping out until it ended up being only two of us.  I remember my friend asking me at least half a dozen times, "Are you really going to do it?  Because I really want to go, but I don't want to go by myself.  So, are you sure?"  I think she was convinced I was really going until I told her I had already bought the ticket and had just submitted a vacation request to my supervisor.  Even if she backed out too, I had already decided that I was going to go.

Key West was great.  A bit of warning though: if you don't like small planes, DO NOT fly into Key West.  We flew into Tampa and took a tiny plane into Key West, shared a cab with two random people we met on the plane, and eventually ended up at our hotel.  The next few days were filled with jetskiing, snorkelling, eating, staying out most the night, and generally having a good time.  I would say relaxing, but that would not be accurate.  There's too much going on to really relax.  I don't really see myself going back, but at the time it was a perfect weekend get-away from Cublicle World. 

Spring Break

I will be graduating from law school this December, so my last official spring break begins today.  Although technically spring break doesn't begin until Monday, I have no Friday classes, so my spring break begins the minute my last class ends at 3:00 today. 

Everyone is more than ready for a few days off, and trips are the topic of choice for my law school buddies today.  Since I will not be taking a trip this year, I figured reminiscing about past trips would be appropriate this week and next.  Today's topic -- a sneak peek at some island retreats.

I've been to a few island in my life (in fact, I was born on one!), but my favorites are definitely Hawaii, Oahu, and Key West.  I've never been one for sitting on the beach and working on my tan, so the good thing about these islands is that they have a lot of activities other than sitting on the beach.  Some of my island adventures include volcano-watching on Hawaii, snorkeling on Oahu, and jet skiing around Key West.

Coming tomorrow -- actual details.