After running into lots of traffic Friday morning, we hit Islamorada Key around 3:30 pm. We checked into our, ummm, interesting motel, chilled for awhile, then headed out about 7 pm to the Lowcountry Boil (also called Frogmore Stew) the wedding party had on the beach. Never had this, but I've seen it done on cooking shows before. There was a huge pot over the fire containing shrimp, potatoes, onions and corn on the cob with spicy seasoning. When done, the pot is drained then dumped out onto a picnic table covered with newspaper. Here's what it usually looks like:
I'm not a big fan of shrimp, but the veggies were great and they also had grilled chicken. I started fading soon after so Joyce took me back to the motel and they all hit a bar afterward.
Saturday morning we woke up to rain and incredible wind. We went for breakfast at this cool cafe next door, then just went cruising around. I was surprised that there are not a lot of what you would consider typical beaches. The shoreline is narrow and is somewhat rugged. We came upon Anne's Beach...very beautiful and the water was shades of turquoise and aquamarine. Very pretty.
We had lunch at Islamorada Fish Company, where the wedding would be held. Everything's outside on the Florida Bay side of the Key. I had a Caesar Salad topped with blackened fresh scallops.
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Excellent seafood. We explored some shops, including one called Blue Marlin Jewelry. I was thrilled to see they had Hidalgo rings, which I've seen advertised in magazines. They are gorgeous...enamel and 18K gold and they're stackable. The one I asked to see was actually 3 rings....2 thin ones with tiny diamonds and the one in the middle was gold enamel with green palm trees. The price tag for all three was a mere $4500. A couple sauntered over to the case to see what I was drooling over and the woman really liked the one I had looked at. Her husband says, "Do you like it, honey? Let's get it." SHEESH. If only he was speaking to me, which I pretended he was. I said, "I'd like one, too!" He ignored my request for some odd reason. Anyway, Joyce found some beautiful Australian opal rings and we ogled those for awhile. Then we left. Empty-handed, of course. Sigh.We went back to our lovely motel. Very interesting. The bathroom sink was clogged, the shower was ancient and had a quaint window overlooking the pool. When people were out there talking you would bet they were right there in the bathroom with you...that's how thin the walls were. Oh well, not the Four Seasons, but it was one of the least expensive on the Key and just about every other place you encountered in Islamorada was old as dirt.
We rested for awhile, got ready for the wedding and headed out. The bride and groom stood on the dock of the restaurant in the whipping winds and tied the knot as the sun went down. It was COLD!
The reception was under the covered deck, thank goodness. I particularly enjoyed the dude playing the steel drum. And I swear to God at one point he was playing Procol Harum's "Whiter Shade of Pale." I kid you not! 
It was a really cool experience, very casual, good food, good people. Besides wedding cake, they also had Key Lime Pie served in huge mugs. It was a fun evening all around and I was happy to be there and happy for the newlyweds!I'll post on our trip back to Central Florida and add a few more pics a little later.
2 comments:
Yay, steel drum! The palm trees in the audience picture look like they're whipping around pretty hard. Elizabeth and I drove to Daytona Beach on Saturday, and the wind was incredible here, too! I'm glad you all had a good time. :)
The wedding sounded like a lot of fun. Anita told me that you would be home on tuesday. I don't know what day i am off, but i do know I would sure like to get together. Give me a call when you get in. Hope to see ya. love ya.
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