In my accommodation entry, I gave you the basic logistics of the Sea Shell Hostel. Please read this first in order to get a visual of my surroundings.
Now, having done that, imagine, if you will, that you are me, a woman traveling alone in Key West for the first time, from Chicago. I am sitting at one of the picnic tables at about 7pm attempting to write.
To really give you the feeling, I need to elaborate a little further. I need to mention that it is Valentine’s Day.
Picture,if you can, a man who resembles Marlon Brando in the movie "The Island of Dr. Moreau."
Now reduce him by half the size, make him gay, and a little drunk. We’ll call him Lil’ Marlon or LM for short.
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Now, having done that, imagine, if you will, that you are me, a woman traveling alone in Key West for the first time, from Chicago. I am sitting at one of the picnic tables at about 7pm attempting to write.
To really give you the feeling, I need to elaborate a little further. I need to mention that it is Valentine’s Day.
Picture,if you can, a man who resembles Marlon Brando in the movie "The Island of Dr. Moreau."
Now reduce him by half the size, make him gay, and a little drunk. We’ll call him Lil’ Marlon or LM for short.
LM is an entrepreneur. His money-making scheme of the night is to sell cheap Valentine’s gifts to drunk people on Duvall St. This man has bought every item off the shelves of the local dollar store with any resemblance to a heart, a rose, or a teddy bear. All these items are strewn across 3/4 of the table at which I am presently sitting.
LM really wants to talk to everyone, which unfortunately, at this moment, includes me. I pretend to be writing when across the way a young girl from Israel is unable to retrieve her soda from the vending machine. I help her with that, which leads to a whole conversation about the housing prices in Key West, which LM has much to say about. I write a little more.
In walks Bill. Bill can’t find his room. I show Bill where his room is.
Somehow, after only 3 days, I seem to have seniority at the hostel and have thereby become the cruise director.
Of course, it doesn’t stop there and I soon learn all about Bill, where he is from and what he does for a living.
Soon after Bill strolls in Sanja, who I met on the first night here but haven’t seen in a couple days. This leads to a conversation on what she and I have both been doing. LM does not like to be excluded from ANY conversation, so we soon learn what LM has been doing.
Suddenly, LM asks the group, "Does anyone want some wine?" We all say yes and LM proceeds to extract a delightful vintage I shall call "Box O’ Chardonnay" from one of the lockers.
I now completely give up all hopes of writing anything legible and go to the kitchen to procure Styrofoam cups for the group. A few cups of wine and six cigarettes later, LM is finally ready for Duvall St. and begins mounting his various packages to one of the rental bikes, securing them with pipe cleaners.
I try to convince LM that he will be more visible, therefore make more money, if he mounts the giant red stuffed monkey to his head. This makes sense to LM and he attempts to attach the monkey to his hat, which stays up only long enough for me to snap a picture.
By this time, it is midnight, and I realize I am not going to get any writing done this night, so I decide to turn in. I climb aboard my bunk and turn on my walkman to drown out the sounds of what I imagine to be a giant red teddy bear trying to break into one of the vending machines. I sleep.
Is Hostelling for you?
Before deciding, ask yourself some key questions:
1) Do you require privacy?
2)Can you block out unusual and sometimes disturbing noises while sleeping?
3) Do drunken foreigners annoy you?
If the answer to any of these questions is Yes, you may want to spend the extra cash and opt for the usual motel room.
If, however, you enjoy a little insanity in your life and are open to a vacation from the norm, give it a try! You definitely won’t be bored!
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