Photo by The Joneses Gisela Jones stands at the "Southernmost Point" in the United States. The point, located in Key West, Fla., is 90 from Cuba. SLIDE SHOW: From the Kennedy Space Center to the Keys — — — View Larger Map
ARCHIVES: You wouldn't believe how beautiful Canada is! Wouldn't change a thing Who knew there was so much to see in South Dakota? Time is flying by — but at least we're having fun! I (heart) Hart Ranch, South Dakota Rallyin' in Goshen, Indiana A special day From friends to work to warmer temps, we're still having fun in Florida Traveling to Texas Finally, we're in Alaska! On the way to Canada Boise sure has changed a lot Escapees Rally in Wyoming Bittersweet trip through the southeast From Boy Scouts to ‘Stars on Ice’ Michigan is full of treasures Arriving in Florida Earning our ears Celebrating Christmas and New Year's in Florida and the Disney Parks Down in the Lowcountry Making our way through Minn., Wisc. and Ill. The holidays in Florida Our time in Lakeland has come to an end Couldn't have had a better time in Omaha! Arriving in Charleston A day with friends from Frederick 'Life is good' in Lakeland, Fla. Leaving Florida, and heading north Our final days in Kentucky Into the Keys Out of Charleston and off to Indiana Dreams come true in Vermont You never know what you'll see or who you'll meet in Alaska Leaving Indiana, but not before taking some of the state's best sites Idaho is full of natural treasures — and moon-like craters, too It's all about the theme parks From prairie country to beautiful views to grand 'ol Yellowstone Thunderstorms, flooding, tornados and a visit with the 'Duke' And so it begins ... Moving days for Greg and his family The gang's all here! Happy to be in Florida again Strawberries, and more strawberries 'The RV Capital of the World' From the beautiful Maine coastline down to southern Connecticut Training for our jobs at Disney World Chillin' out at 'Camp Monaco' Under the weather Back in Florida At long last, back in the area Lots to see in the 'Show Me' state With family and spectacular sights in Hailey, Idaho Look back, look ahead Back in the Lower 48 The cold weather is hitting Florida From Dallas to devastation Back on the road again Leaving Idaho and heading east Beautiful Alaska A memorable visit to Alaska's Kenai Peninsula Watch out for flying dinner rolls

By Gisela Jones

Time is flying by. It has been two months since we left Frederick, but it seems like it was just yesterday. But then, looking back at everything we have done so far it seems more like six months.

We started the New Year with a party at our campground in Clermont, Fla. It was very lively with music and dancing. Some of these retirees sure know how to have a fun time.

We have become acquainted with several of the other campers. Most of them are “full timers,” too, and absolutely love the lifestyle. Our neighbors, who are also from Maryland (the Eastern Shore), have done this for six years and plan on doing it for quite a few more years.

My cousin Erika came to visit us from Wuerzburg, Germany. She was here for two weeks and we were on the go every day. One very interesting visit we took was to the Kennedy Space Center. It is about two hours from here.

The day we picked was one of the two coldest days in Florida. The temperatures were in the low-50s and with the wind blowing from the Atlantic it was quite chilly. Fortunately, most of the exhibits were in the visitor’s center area and the sightseeing was done by bus.

Our bus took us, among others, to the Space Shuttle Launching Pads A and B, International Space Station Center, the new Vehicle Assembly Building (tallest building on the center), Shuttle Landing area and Crawler Transport. What an awesome place.

We also took in an IMAX movie, which was very interesting. Watching the movie gave us the feeling of being inside a space station. It was so real, I wanted to reach out and touch the astronauts while floating around with them.

Erika and I also drove to Key West, Fla. Ralph stayed home and relaxed. I think he enjoyed the four days by himself — with Gretchen, of course — and was able to do some golfing.

We stopped at Miami the first day and took a harbor boat tour that drove by the man-made islands of Biscayne Bay. There are magnificent mansions in these islands that belong to rich and famous people — the only one I can remember is Elizabeth Taylor but there were a lot of known names. We didn’t see anybody, however; most of the houses didn’t appear to have someone living there at the time.

The drive to Key West through the many little towns that make up “The Keys” was beautiful. Driving over the seven-mile bridge was breathtaking. All you see is water, blue and deep, as far as you can see. The Atlantic is on one side and the Gulf of Mexico on the other

Key West is a very old, historic town. It was one of Ernest Hemingway’s favorite places. We did visit his house and saw the room with the manual Royal typewriter he used to write several of his famous stories, e.g. “Green Hills of Africa,” “To Have and Have Not,” “For Whom the Bells Toll.”

I have read and enjoyed most of his books, so this was a very special room for me. The house is not very large, but it has beautiful lush gardens that are the home of more than 60 cats. All of them, so we were told, are descendants of Snowshoe, Ernest Hemingway’s cat that had six toes. All cats are neutered except the ones with the six toes to continue Snowshoe’s line. We saw several of them.

Located in Key West is the “Southernmost Point" of the United States. It is only 90 miles from Cuba. A large buoy marks the place and, like all the other visitors, we stood in line to take a picture.

Erika left on Friday and I hope to slow down and relax a bit. We have started our training at Disney World and I’ll write about that more later.