Vol. 2, No. 11

September 2006

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Photos by Andy Newman/Florida Keys News Bureau

Created by Lazy Dog Charters, a float featuring a giant shark rolls down Duval Street during the 2005 Fantasy Fest Parade.

Fantasy Fest to Present
Disorienting Delights
Oct. 20-29

BY CAROL SHAUGHNESSY
Florida Keys News Bureau

KEY WEST, Florida Keys — Revelers are to climb aboard for a wild ride during Fantasy Fest 2006, themed "Key Weird on the Dis-Oriented Express."

Scheduled Friday, Oct. 20, through Sunday, Oct. 29, the festival offers 10 days of masquerade balls, quirky costume contests and other disorienting delights. Its uninhibited flair and lighthearted spirit attract crowds of people eager to shed their real-world personalities and live out their fantasies on the island many locals call "Key Weird."

Lewis Frame prances in his court jester costume at the 2005 Pier House Pretenders in Paradise costume competition.

Highlights of Fantasy Fest's schedule are to include a Royal Coronation Ball to crown the king and queen of the masked madness, a Goombay street party in Key West's historic Bahama Village, a gala where attendees display outrageous masks and headdresses, the WKEY Pet Masquerade and Parade for costumed "party animals" and their human companions, the legendary Pretenders in Paradise costume competition where top designers showcase spectacular creations, and a rollicking street fair on Key West's Duval Street.

The "key weirdness" is to reach its peak Saturday, Oct. 28, as tens of thousands of spectators flock to the island's historic downtown for the Captain Morgan Fantasy Fest Parade. The madcap procession typically includes feather-bedecked marching groups, Caribbean bands and lavishly decorated motorized floats — such as the 40-foot mechanical shark, surrounded by dancing sea urchins, that wowed crowds in the 2005 parade.

For more information about Fantasy Fest and a complete schedule of events, visit the festival's Web site at www.fantasyfest.net or call (305) 296-1817.

Photos by Belinda Serata

A series of vintage dive helmets, representing different nations, is on display at the Florida Keys History of Diving Museum.

3,000 Years of
Diving History Displayed
at New Museum

BY BOB SERATA
Florida Keys News Bureau

ISLAMORADA, Florida Keys — The Florida Keys History of Diving Museum in Islamorada has completed construction of its final exhibit area and is set to open officially Sept. 20.

Scheduled to be open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Tuesdays through Sundays, the museum features one of the world's greatest collections of diving equipment.

Beginning their tour in the "Timeline of Diving" gallery, visitors are introduced to 3,000 years of underwater exploration beginning with breath-hold diving.

The museum then brings visitors within inches of the earliest diving machines, including a full-scale replica of an all-wood diving bell.

An early highlight of the self-guided tour is the collection of open-bottom diving helmets. The most famous of them, the Miller-Dunn, was invented and produced in Miami in 1916. Imagine tying on 20 pounds of weight, then sinking to the ocean floor with a bucket on your head. That's the fun of open-bottom helmets.

A separate gallery is dedicated to Art McKee, generally regarded as the father of recreational diving. McKee began diving with Miller-Dunn helmets in Islamorada in the 1940s and was the first underwater treasure hunter to turn his work into a tourist attraction.

A museum exhibit displays a mannequin garbed in dive equipment of the early 1900s.

Midway through the tour, visitors come upon the Parade of Nations, perhaps the world's greatest collection of historic hard-hat dive helmets from around the world. Helmets from 25 nations are presented side-by-side for close inspection.

Galleries featuring the development of underwater lighting and communication lead into the scuba gallery, where today's divers can check out some of the earliest scuba gear.

The final gallery, "Into the Abyss," features authentic deep-diving suits, the kind that resemble the Michelin man. Weighing up to 900 pounds, these suits allow divers to work at extreme depths.

The museum is purposely low-tech with the focus on ancient and antique equipment.

Visitors — even modern certified scuba divers — are often overheard saying, "They must've been nuts to dive with that stuff."

The museum is located at mile marker 83, bayside in Islamorada. Admission is $10 per adult, $9 for kids 5-12. Children under five are admitted without charge.

For more information, visit the museum's Web site at www.divingmuseum.com.

Photo courtesy of Key West Lobsterfest

Florida Keys lobsters sizzle on a barbecue.

Florida Keys Lobster
Tempts Taste Buds

FLORIDA KEYS — Surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico, the Florida Keys are a paradise for lovers of seafood. The island chain's "Floribbean cuisine" relies heavily on indigenous seafood such as yellowtail snapper, stone crab, tuna and shrimp.

From Aug. 6 through March 31 each year, spiny lobster tops the priority list for many seafood fanciers. That's the official season for harvesting the clawless Keys crustaceans that are prized for their sweet and tender meat.

The most popular way to serve succulent lobster is steamed or boiled with drawn butter. Traditional trimmings include boiled potatoes or potato salad and corn on the cob.

Some Florida Keys chefs prefer to serve lobster split, stuffed and broiled, while others present lobster meat napped in exotic sauces incorporating tropical fruits such as mango. Chilled lobster salad is a favorite lunch dish, and it's even possible to start the day with a luscious Lobster Benedict at a few creative eateries.

Whether visitors to the Keys choose to enjoy their lobster at a waterside seafood shack or a gourmet emporium, they'll find a palate-pleasing dining experience.

In the August issue of the Florida Keys e-newsletter, it was incorrectly reported that Delta Airlines' partner, Atlantic Southeast Airlines, is owned by Southwest Airlines. Atlantic Southeast is actually owned by SkyWest Airlines.