Blessed Are The Intrepid, Day 13:
Life Aquatic
August 25, 2019
The potential of one day is pretty mind-blowing. Waking up in our adorable green pastel RV in Key Largo’s Sunset Cove Resort we headed to the renowned John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park, the country’s first undersea park. Though our snorkeling tour had been cancelled the previous day due to wind speeds, prompting our stay in Key Largo, this morning was a go, despite very strong currents, rough seas, and a need to declare yourself a strong swimmer. I wasn’t really. They, the first and second mates, found this out.
Our 2.5 hour trip took us to the Grecian Rock Coral Reef, which lies within the mighty Atlantic Ocean–a fact that, along with the conditions described at the park’s arrival, scared me a bit. I love the ocean. And with love, I am awkward and useless to steer it to my will.
On the boat, ready for an adventure
Layers at sea
I managed some clear shots of the coral reef my first outing. But the waves were so rough, I’d have to return to the boat a couple of times to rest. The first time a man had to swim me back as I was a notch away from total distress. It was difficult for me to regulate my breathing, which is the foundation of remaining calm. But the boat mates did their best to comfort and console me. Why are the men who work on boats always so great? I headed back out again after some regrouping, but I stayed close to the boat.
Looking for Sponge Bob
On a break, watching all the snorkelers out there.
Not in my comfort level selfie
Black and yellow, black and yellow, black and yellow. (I feel like I have used this caption repeatedly. I think I may have to retire it.)
The world underneath us–as fascinating as the world above us. Endless awe, I tell ya.
It is illegal to set foot on these coral. It’d be like going to an animal sanctuary and stomping on the animals.
I wished they’d give us more information about how we can help the coral thrive. I never knew that the chemicals in traditional sunblock, beach staples, were damaging the coral, as reported by my friend. With a captive and interested audience on the boat, it was a lost opportunity to advocating for the coral. This infographic has some ideas.
Beautiful blue fish munching on some goodies from the boat’s rope.
Afterwards and on our way to boat adventure number two, we had to check out Happy Vegan Bakers outside of Miami in Hialeah. They offer vegan versions of traditional Cuban pastries, both sweet and savory.
Though the selection was limited given the places popularity and our late arrival, I was blown away with how good their pastries were. Flaky and light, flavor pack fillings–they were perfect and possibly the best vegan pastry I’ve ever had! We got 2 Guava n “Cheeze” Pastelitos, a “Meat” & Potato Empanada, 2 Spinach & “Cheeze” Pastelitos, and 2 Meat Pastelitos.
The cheese in the pastelitos was from Atlas Meat-free Deli in Miami. I am excited to see that their amazing pastry is in a few nearby locations. We ate all these in the car heading west towards the Everglades. Upon arrival we had pastry all over us. Because it was that deliciously flaky.
Meat pie was fresh out of the oven. So damn good.
One more stop before the next boat. Homestead’s Coral Castle is a truly fascinating place. Though the limestone structures are interesting without knowing much about who, what, when, why and how, our tour guide Willy would fill us in with all those perplexing details. Arriving with the thought of a quick stop of some regional commonplace roadside attraction, I left bewildered by the place’s construction, its creator, and his vision.
Referred to as Florida’s Stonehenge and it’s just as mysterious. Irrational in its conception, the place is, in short, the space he wished to inhabit with his 16 year old fiancé who broke his heart back in Latvia… carved in tremendous slabs of limestone he moved from his own quarry with only basic tools. Towering construction weighing tons of pounds, there are legends of help from alien life forms and/or magnet technology–for which he claimed cured him of his tuberculosis.
The rooms are all based on astronomy. His “palace” would include a Polaris telescope, which allowed him to track the movement of the Earth, data he needed to develop his…
Sun dial. But it focuses only on the hours of 9:00 to 4:00 pm; he claimed that these were the hours a man should work. You can read the time down to 1-2 minutes.
The Moon Fountain in front of the planets and its “Crescent of the East” moon.
This Obelisk weighs over 55,000 pounds. The weight of these pieces are what allured many about his creations. They wondered how he managed to move and position slabs so large.
The memory of his fiancé is everywhere in his palace. The number 16 is prevalent, hearts, and other sad references to their failed love. It was a bit unnerving to be walking within his works–a home for a him and a woman who rejected him which contained a table and chairs for their would-be children and a discipline room for his would-be wife and would-be children. He never had another love, dying in 1951. Wait, is that love?
Onward through the strange man’s heart ache, we arrived in Coopertown on the border of Everglades National Park to see the Everglades through a second boat ride… this time on an airboat.
A ride in the swamp with a really loud airboat. What a way to end the day!
Definitely a nice means to seeing more of the park, which is most submerged in water. And we had our eyes peeled for gators!
Our tour guide was adorbs. Best mansplaining style ever.
Another kind of dragon fly stopped by to say “Hello.”
Our first alligator sighting!
And another. This guy swam slowly towards our boat like he was a gentle beast. But, according to our tour guide, they can jump up to 2 feet high, run 20 miles per hour and lift cars off bassinets… to eat the baby in them.
This guy was likely not enjoying the sound of all the airboats.
The Everglades swamps are one of the very few places in the world where alligators and crocodiles live together.
Sexy swamp bird books it when we putter on by…
Now after all that action, we need some sweets to take home. Parlour Vegan Bakery‘s location in Plantation was on the way back to West Palm Beach. We both got an assortment of treats to munch on while vegging out and watching The Wire. Because you can never watch The Wire too many times. Or have too many vegan treats on hand.
A cake batter and a chocolate chip cookie dough cupcakes. These were really yummy.
The passion fruit and guava mini cupcakes.
A Napoleon pastry. I never see this veganized! Filled with vanilla pudding. Icing was a bit sweet, but really nice thin pastry.
Our last body of water for the night–the pool. Goodnight, Florida. Thanks for all the great stuff. Our time is coming to an end–kind of.
