Last Day in the Keys!

Monday was our last day in the Florida Keys. The weather has gone from outstanding (85/75 with minimal humidity) to ouch (88/78, heat index of 101!). Time to get out of here. But as a last nod to the relaxed beauty of this place, we took one last spin to Key West. This time we snapped a quick photo of the Welcome sign...

Our first stop was the Key West Butterfly and Nature Conservatory. This #1 rated of the things to do in Key West, is a feast for the eyes! This is a park that houses some 50-60 different species of butterflies, birds, and plants from around the world in a climate-controlled glass habitat. Among the plants and along the paved walkway, waterfalls burble gently in the background and soft music plays in the distance. We spent almost two hours in an area no bigger than a good sized house, with our eyes and ears full of nature.

The thousands (it seems) of different butterflies are mostly on the move, flitting from sunshine to shade and back, occasionally stopping for a quick bite of fruit along the way. It is sheer magic that captures them in a photo.

The conservatory is stuffed with tropical plants, kept at a butterfly perfect 80 degrees!

I began to just hold the camera shutter in the "on" position, taking some 1100 pictures overall, in the hope of getting just a few good pictures.

These little guys did a dance for several minutes, twirling around and around, rising and falling, teasing each other it would seem in the sunlight. They disappeared, wing in wing.....

And then, there were Rhett and Scarlett!

The stars of the show, and proud of it, Rhett and Scarlett put on quite a show. Rhett was very vocal, trying to get Scarlett's attention. Typical male....

 But about the butterflies....

Beautiful flowering plants abound.

Even though the heat and humidity were "up there", Donna enjoyed the conservatory!

This pair are enjoying a snack of papaya and banana!

Little bird guys darted about and hid in the trees. Occasionally they stopped to pose for the tourists.

Check out the Conservatory online:

Leaving the Butterfly House at the south end of Duval Street, we walked north toward the harbor. We hadn't walked along this section of the main street of Key West, and wanted to check it out. An old Strand Theater has been repurposed as a Walgreens, but still keeps its beauty!

And the houses! And the flowers! Wow, I had no idea...but it is the closest to a tropical environment existing on the US mainland.

Just had to get a snap of the "Good-by" sign!

Before returning to (yawn) another tropical sunset.

Good Bye, Key West!