Leaving the maze of Miami we finally find the bridge heading out to Key West, just as a thunder storm is brewing. We had headed off early so once the weather had brightened up we stopped for breakfast along the way in this typically American diner. The heat and the humidity outside was amazing. We stayed at the Key Lime Inn, Key West, and had a bungalow style room on the corner of the swimming pool; very nice inside and out, convenient for Duval Street and everything it has to offer. The following day we decided to walk to Ernest Hemingway's House, which was built in 1851 in the Spanish Colonial style. The heat and humidity were almost unbearable, even though it was only a short walk. In the 1930's Hemingway spent his winters here and continued to visit Key West in the 40's and 50's until his death in 1961. One original thing that is still here are the descendants of his cats and an odd thing is the cats have six toes, whereas most have five. We went on this trip in September and the heat and humidity were very difficult to cope with. If we were to go again we would probably choose to visit between March and May when the humidity is far less. To be honest, having seen Key West once I think that's more than enough as far as I'm concerned.
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Arrived in Udaipur (Rajasthan) from Jaipur and stayed at the Badi Haveli. A mishmash of rooms on different levels and a nice roof terrace. We were told there were two choices: stay on the floating palace and look at the shit, or stay in the shit and look at the wonderful palace; we opted for the latter. At the time of this trip I didn't realise the cruelty that goes on to elephants in captivity. I never have and never would have any part in an elephant safari in Asia due to the disgusting cruelty. Dinner in the evening in Udaipur you would hear or see the James Bond film Octopussy being played over and over again; hard to avoid. Part of this film was done here in Udaipur. Took a boat over to Nehru Island Park. Luckily it was very peace and quiet for a couple of hours, away from the masses. During the day we could see what was called the Monsoon Palace, far in the distance, and from that distance it looked well worth a visit... Where cremation ceremonies take place. If they're still being used I don't know, I guess so. Really enjoyed our visit to Udaipur. Okay, it's busy, but it's not as bad as Delhi or Old Delhi. I would certainly like to come back at some point.
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GaryBorn in Chiswick West London, grew up in Royal Berkshire, currently living in Amsterdam, the Netherlands Archives
March 2016
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