First Impressions

Yesterday we spent a good part of the day traveling, but after an early morning we finally made it to the island about 2pm. We disembarked the plane in the prominently advertised "Conch Republic" on the tarmac and walked through the bright sunshine into a tiny airport. Despite the runway being lined with personal planes and a number of larger planes coming in and out, Key West's tiny airport couldn't have more than 2 gates.

After a dramatic shuffle to the hotel (broken bags, tiny bus, taxi vans) we arrived and checked in. The views were worth the wait. 

I went on a quick stroll around the area before our welcome meeting and met the local roosters, saw the southernmost point in the U.S. and an interesting crowd of bar hoppers on duval dressed in animal-fashioned snuggies. Key West is an interesting place indeed!

Already we got a brief glimpse into the history of the Keys with an undersea diver named Alex Okinczyc--a guy from Michigan! He told us his bottle and conch shell finding tales and sang a few songs after dinner. Unfortunately, most of us were pretty tired from the early morning.

Today is a new adventure! Looking forward to witnessing the brillient Key West sunsets and relaxing our way through a day of learning, all while on island time.