Thrifty Florida Road Trip Recap + Key West & Sarasota Travel Tips

Ah, last weekend's trip to the Florida Keys was just beautiful and everything an adventure should be; chaotic in the best ways. My travel mates Daniel, Jeylene, and Brian were hilarious and we had a blast making jokes, drawing silly crap, and singing on the epic pilgrimage to the literal southernmost point in the USA. Here's a recap of all the fun and some tips for when you make your way down here someday!

First, Sarasota is a statuesque city with plenty to explore. It's pretty like a post card photograph. The nationwide top-rated beaches are picturesque, a serene tableau of white sand and jewel-hued waters; perfect for swimmers.

We found a plethora of Sea Beasties at the beach in Sarasota.

There's a vibrant antique and secondhand market in the retiree-friendly city. I'll take more photos of these secondhand shops on my next visit. My best friends Ruthie and Huy go to college in Sarasota so I try to visit every chance I can.

Next stop was our virgin trip to the Florida Keys. Key West is tiny so it would be easy to cover every sight in a day if you desired. It was more touristy than we anticipated, but all of the locals are very friendly. Talk with them and visit State Parks to get a feel for the real laid back Florida Keys charm.

Goofing off atop the windy Bahia Honda State Park bridge

Anyone who knows the Florida Keys well knows one of the greatest local pastimes is fishing! So we followed suit and took a speed boat ride out deep into the sea to fish from the clean, clear waters. You could see a rainbow of colorful fish  all the way to the ocean floor!(You could see the ocean floor!)

The collective fishing haul,. Nope, I didn't catch a single one of these fish.

 

As a word of warning, deep sea fishing is not a good plan for people who get motion sick easily, we were dropping like flies! When standing I experienced vertigo, but when I laid down on a bench the rocking boat actually lulled me to sleep!

The entire trip was relatively thrifty. We split the inexpensive hotel and gas expenses four ways. The only thing we splurged on was food! Sarasota and the Keys had amazing eats and we chomped them down. Real Florida Key's Key Lime Pie, how I love thee!

Night life in Key West. It's beautiful. There's Drag Shows on Duval St. I wish I could have checked out!

This recap cannot be concluded without Daniel's BEAUTEOUS work, an exquisite drawing epitomizing our entire trip which he executed on the ride home. Let its exquisite beauty excite your eyes to tears, each graceful line will make you search for this same ethereal beauty in vain for years to come:

After Daniel showed us his masterpiece the conversation went something like this (all spoken between bursts of uncontrollable cackling):

Jelyene: What the HELL is wrong with my tits, why is one bigger than the other?
Me: Why do I have THREE eyes!?
Brian: Why is my head so SMALL?

Oh, good times! This drawing was the highlight of the trip back, I smile every time I think of it. You know you did your trip RIGHT when you're still laughing from it and smiling from ear to ear for days to come. Furthermore, I didn't know Jeylene and Brian before the trip, but we shared heart-to-heart conversations on this trip and bonded over laughter!

This trip was just what I needed to jump-start my slagging creative mojo. I've been writing and creating-up a storm ever since!

Are you squeezing in some late-summer thrifty adventures, too?

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