Conch Republic

So we have made it to the end of the cruise. This morning we are docked in Ft. Lauderdale. Some of my old friends still live here but I don’t recognize a thing. I head for the rental cars and will try to find my way to Key West. The waters in Key West are as beautiful as any in the Carribean and I have always wanted to visit Ft. Jefferson in the Dry Tortugas. Driving south on A1A is one stop light after another but I wanted to see the sights. After about 2 hours we arrive at Shorty’s BBQ in South Miami. The BBQ is a good as any we have in Texas and I loaded up on the baby back ribs. It was fantastic. Next it’s on to Key Largo and begin to drive down the Keys. The keys are a chain-like cluster of about 1700 islands.They begin at the southeastern tip of the Florida and extend in an arc south-southwest and then westward to Key West, the westernmost of the inhabited islands, and on to the uninhabited Dry Tortugas. This drive, which is mostly over water, is longer than I thought. In 1982, the Border Patrol had established a roadblock and inspection points on US Highway 1, stopping all northbound traffic returning to the mainland to search vehicles for illegal drugs and illegal immigrants. The Key West City Council repeatedly complained about the roadblocks. After unsuccessful complaints against the blockade failed, on 23 April 1982 Key West declared the independence calling it the "Conch Republic". After one minute of secession, the mayor surrendered to an officer of the Key West Naval Air Station), and requested one billion ($1,000,000,000) dollars in foreign aid. Long live the Conch Republic!