Key West’s 1970s Renaissance Owes Much to LGBT Care
Few people realize the impact the LGBT community had on Key West beginning in the 1970s, when many gay men and lesbians “discovered” the island city.
Few people realize the impact the LGBT community had on Key West beginning in the 1970s, when many gay men and lesbians “discovered” the island city.
More than 2,100 people submitted stories to the Florida Keys Flash Fiction Contest, competing to work in Ernest Hemingway’s former Key West writing studio. But none of them could outshine “Wallpaper” by Ireland’s Denyse Woods.
Visitors can enjoy the indigenous flavors of the Florida Keys, and take home tasty edible “souvenirs” to help sustain them until their next vacation escape. The Keys are home to artisan food crafters including a master chocolatier, beekeepers and even a saltmaker.
In the Florida Keys, where the day-to-day business of living is easy, extraordinary creativity thrives. You'll find scores of freethinking spirits who, in the island chain’s nurturing atmosphere, indulge their talent for crafting wares as individualistic as they are.
Journalist Robert Silk has a great love for the Florida Keys’ natural world. Recently his outdoor outlook inspired him to write “An Eco-Tourist’s Guide to the Everglades & the Florida Keys,” and here he offers insights into his favorite activities and places in the region’s fascinating natural environment.
If one man’s junk is another man’s treasure, then the late Key Largo resident Stanley Papio was a treasure hunter extraordinaire. And ultimately, he became a treasure creator — crafting some of the edgiest and most eclectic metal sculptures of his generation.
While some runners push themselves to race long and grueling distances, participants in one recent Florida Keys challenge did the exact opposite. About 1,400 “athletes” who didn’t want to break a sweat romped, strolled and ambled across the Florida Keys’ shortest bridge (spanning mere feet!) during April’s Cow Key Channel Bridge Run.
Loaves of stale Cuban bread, a governmental border checkpoint, and a request for a billion dollars in foreign aid played major roles in the Florida Keys’ secession from the United States and the formation of the independent Conch Republic.
Slip away to the southernmost outpost in the continental U.S. this spring to soak up the salt air, sweet breezes and irresistibly laid-back vibe.
Many of the Florida Keys most appealing festivals and events celebrate visual, performing and literary artists’ passion and talent. And while each one is different, they all spotlight the Keys’ vibrant history, natural richness, and irresistible vibe that inspires creative spirits.