I have to admit overall my flight experiences were fairly uneventful. I worried about the layovers. But quickly discovered they weren’t that long and in one case not long enough. After I arrived in Miami from Chicago I had to move quickly to make my connecting flight (always as far as possible).
The gate I needed seemed to be missing. I overlooked it twice and went in a huge circle. I heard “This is the final call for passenger Torres.” It turns out the sign was hand lettered on a piece of cardboard by a set of stairs, which I had to descend. The sign did not indicate there were also letters associated with the gate number, A-E. Since the gate was not printed on my ticket I had to locate someone who was not busy with the teaming humanity in the cramped space. Fortunately I didn’t miss the shuttle that took me to the plane.
When planning the trip I found a flight that went directly to Key West International Airport rather than Miami or Fort Lauderdale. Since I was traveling alone I figured that would be the more cost effective bet and it would be easier to get to my final destination in Marathon. Well the airport is rather small. Though there are many taxis available there weren’t many options to get to the resort in Marathon. The taxis charged $150 for travel to Marathon. And they are cash only. Greyhound offered service to the major airports a couple of times a day. It was late morning and the next one didn’t leave until evening.
A helpful Greyhound employee and sheriff let me know that there is local bus service that goes to Marathon. Of course the bus didn’t come to the airport, which would be helpful to all of the travelers with destinations in other parts of the Keys. The close bus stops were the Publix Grocery Store and Sears. I opted to take a taxi to the grocery store so I could get a reasonably priced cold beverage. Unfortunately the stop was a standing only deal. So I used the time to update anxious relatives.
The ride was approximately an hour, a straight shot over the Overseas Highway. The bus let me off directly across the street from Tranquility Bay Resort for a flat rate of $3, talking about cost effective
