Go figure

U.S. Route 1 is a major north–south U.S. Highway that serves the East Coast of the United States. It runs 2,377 miles (3,825 km) from Key West, Florida, north to Fort Kent, Maine, at the Canadian border. U.S. 1 generally parallels Interstate 95, though it is significantly farther west (inland) between Jacksonville, Florida and Petersburg, Virginia. The highway connects most of the major cities of the east coast, including Miami, Florida; Jacksonville, Florida; Augusta, Georgia; Columbia, South Carolina; Cary, North Carolina; Raleigh, North Carolina; Richmond, Virginia; Washington, D.C.; Baltimore, Maryland; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Newark, New Jersey; New York City; New Haven, Connecticut; Providence, Rhode Island; Boston, Massachusetts; and Portland, Maine.

So no prizes for guessing where Captain Nick is then. Key West! Departed Naples yesterday and drove 6 hours down through the Everglades National Park to a small town called Homestead which is where the 'Florida Keys' commence. 'Keys' denotes island. There is no shortage of them here and if the Maldives and Kiribati people are worried about global warming and a possible oceanic flood then so too should these folk. The highest point of elevation is the bridges you cross to get from one key to the next with the highest point of most islands (keys) seemingly inches above the high tide mark. At one point a disused bridge connecting two keys is now the longest fishing pier in the world at seven miles in length.

Key West is everything that Naples is not. Liberal, easy going, laid back, has an abundance of character, possess a soul, and you can walk everywhere to where you want to be. There is seemingly a lot of people here who are running away from lives gone awry in other parts of the USA and the world. No one I have met was actually born or raised here and there are plenty of 'drifter' looking types. There also seems to be a healthy sprinkle of artists and 'alternative life' seekers residing here and some of them have gone to the extent of stamping their possessions with what they perceive to be their own artistic talent (see below). I imagine that if you did the same thing in Naples you'd find yourself locked up in either a cell or straight-jacket pretty smart-ish.

Key West also proclaims to be the southernmost point of continental USA. I contest that on the grounds that you cross 22 bridges and 9 islands to get here. Can it still be part of the same continent? There is a large land based buoy (pronounced ''bu-ee'') here stating that you are at the southern most point of the USA. Yet 3 metres away is a large fence ringed naval base that extends another mile southwards.Go figure. Interestingly a few years back I went to Hawaii and travelled to the 'Big Island' which is also called Hawaii and then took a car trip to the southern tip of the island and there I read the same proclamations.'Southern most point of the USA.'

Again.Go figure.