In October Josh and I went to Key West, Florida, on assignment for Passport magazine. Passport sent us for six days to shoot footage for a six-minute travel video about Key West and all the fun stuff to do there. Josh H (left) served as on-camera guide and Josh K as videographer and editor. Above the Joshes are at Casa Marina Resort, a beautiful place to have lunch and kick off the Key West trip.
Josh and I got around Key West the way most of the locals do: bicycle. We came to really enjoy our rides around the island.
Blu Q, a gay-friendly tour company with daily boat cruises, took us for a sunset cruise one evening and on a snorkeling-and-lunch expedition out at sea another afternoon.
There were quite a few adorable couples on our Blu Q excursions and some gorgeous scenery.
Okay, and so there might have been a very, very hot Italian guy on board who just happened to be the director of marketing for Valentino in Milan. Josh K is either ogling the guy or in awe of the tropical scenery. Who can remember which it was?
After lunch, but before snorkeling, we all got off the boat and waded into the warm waters off the shore of a deserted island near Man Key. Josh H (center) and Josh K (not pictured here) even ventured off in kayaks to check out a small shipwreck further up the shore left by Cuban immigrants fleeing their home country.
One of our favorite events was a guided tour of writer Ernest Hemingway's home.
After the tour our guide, who took a shine to the Joshes, gave us a rare private tour of Hemingway's writing studio in a building behind the house.
We each even had a chance to sit down at Hemingway's typewriter that he used to write classics including For Whom The Bell Tolls. Um, it was such a literary turn-on. It had us both practically sweating.
Josh K gets ponderous.
Later we made our way back to Casa Marina where we both took a nap on the beach, Josh H in the hammock and Josh K goin' for it right in the sand. It was glorious.
One morning we got up in time to see a Key West sunrise over the harbor on our way to a day-long cruise and tour of the Dry Tortugas National Park and historic Fort Jefferson, a former military fort which sits on the national park.
After a two-hour speed ferry ride the Dry Tortugas National Park and Fort Jefferson appeared on the horizon. Because of its remote location it's the second least-visited national park in the United States. But, as we were to learn, it's certainly one of the most beautiful, especially for its compact size.
Josh K at work in the halls of Fort Jefferson.
Josh K walking along the top of Fort Jefferson.
A view of the moat and the sea from the top of Fort Jefferson.
The Joshes snorkeling at Dry Tortugas National Park.
We spent our last night in Key West, like most nights, by the pool at our guest house, the famed Island House.
We looked up at the stars, something you never get to see in New York City. (The only exception: when Manhattan and the entire metro area have a blackout. Otherwise, nada for stars.) Josh K set his camera's shutter speed to a slow setting and got this great picture of the sky.
The next morning we got on a plane and headed back to New York. We really enjoyed Key West and look forward to when we might have a chance to go back and enjoy it again.
