Carsten Lane

I am sorry the Fiat 500 is no longer being sold in the US. My wife's convertible has 111,000 miles and since she teaches from home I have taken to commuting in ours  and thoroughly enjoy it. This one is in rather cleaner shape than ours, parked across from Carsten Lane.

A block long with a  weird right turn in the middle, lots of foliage and lovely light.  A  few pictures:

Carsten Lane

I enjoy walking the Fleming Street and Southard Street corridors with my camera, places that Rusty has not lately shown any interest in. So on a lunch break from work and thus dog-free I came saw and photographed. First things first Michael's Restaurant, the steak place, is to be replaced it seems by a fish place possibly?.

I ambled off under the trees down Margaret toward the cemetery. Old Town Key West always gives a great return to someone paying attention.

I passed the Old Harris School looking mysterious and castle-like through the shrubbery.

                         

A particular splash of color deserves the color treatment at the corner of the lane.

Once again a red door merited a flash of color, I thought. 

Traveler's Palms. Said to contain nasty tasting potable water inside the stems  supposedly good for travelers in distress. I've never been so desperate.

Oops there's something standing out...

I saw a small pun through the bushes lining Carsten Lane and focused the camera through the saplings at "Tree Man," which in this case could be said to be me...

Fence angle and house angle and not even using a wide angled lense.  

That was a fun lunch break.

Poincianas In June

To hear some people talk about them the poinciana trees are being decimated by the city's tree commission. I have no idea but I see plenty of them around. Bright orange splashes over the city.

It's the time of year when orange blossoms fall to the ground and cover everything, the just and the unjust alike. 

I couldn't get a picture of Rusty in a poinciana tree so I took this picture of him instead, enjoying his walk, oblivious to the trees that interested me: 

 The Old Harris School in the background appears to be undergoing a renovation of some sort.

This old place on Carsten Lane has been made habitable apparently though it still seems like a work in progress. It's been that since I can remember. 

Not a poinciana:

Some people call them royal poinciana though where that designation comes from I'm not sure.

In the Caribbean they call them flamboyants, which should be a timely reminder that Key West is not in the Caribbean. The Caribbean Sea laps the south coasts of Puerto Rico, Hispaniola and Cuba, not Key West. 

Indeed the Tropic of Cancer runs between Havana and Key West making the Cuban capital properly tropical while the Conch Republic is actually sub tropical. Covered in flamboyant petals nonetheless.

In Africa and other more exotic parts they have similar growth they call Flame Trees, and if they look much like these poincianas you can see why.

I'm glad I don't live under one but I do enjoy walking past them in May and June and into the summer months proper.

Welcome to Flaming Key West.