Point of View
The air has the gentlest breeze tonight and it is the perfect temperature. The slightly warm water gently laps over the edges as this “infinity pool” was designed to do. The sun is the most beautiful shade of amber I have ever seen as it nears the horizon on its fall into night and the ocean view is broken only by pool fencing, palm trees, a few sailboats slipping past, and a couple of boat docks with rope hand-grips. The fading light reflects off of the seawater ripples making them brilliant yellow and that moment approaches where the water becomes almost luminescent just after sunset. The rich, beefy smell of bar-b-que wafts through from the campers in the RV park, which is full this weekend with weekenders preparing to watch the Super Bowl on their outdoor televisions. There is wholesome, happy country music in the distance, probably from the joint next door to the RV park.
At precisely the moment of sunset, someone blows a conch-horn and a small crowd of people cheers. As Michael and I soak in the pool, I am intoxicated from the cocktail of sights, smells, and sounds. I turn Michael’s body toward the sunset and wrap my arms around him from the back. I lean my head against his as we watch the sun fall tonight. My heart swells with love for this man. In that moment there is nothing else. Nothing painful, no animosity, nothing political, unfair, sad or ugly; only pleasure and happiness.
I gaze down at the thatch-roof bar palapa next to the pool and chuckle at the sight of a dark-haired man in an American flag shirt. I remember a scene from a movie, the Dictator, where the lead character is wearing something similar. Then the sun is going, going… gone.
Previous nights have been similar to this one, but tonight has the perfect feel. There are more sounds, more smells. Deeper emotion. It is like a cozy island of joy in the middle of a mixed landscape of sadness, regret, gratitude, and love.
We are back in Key Largo, this time at Point of View campground. We had driven through this campground before heading to Key West and it had seemed at that time like a plain, boring gravel parking lot with a few hedges until we got to the waterfront sites, which fronted to grass, little beach areas, and palm trees. Of course, dogs aren't allowed in these nicer areas. That made us sad. There are few more pleasant things for dogs to do than to lie in lush grass on a warm day. When we arrived for our stay, our site actually had a tree and was larger than most other sites. We are not in a water front space but we are close enough to have a water view through the front windshield. That actually turned out to be close enough to suit us.
From a distance, the pool looked like a really large above-ground pool with decking around it and a faded powder blue wood sided clubhouse next to it. It was decidedly less than appealing at first site. What we actually found was really quite different. The pool is actually a gunite infinity-style pool, somehow built above ground but the elevation gives a better view of the gulf next to which it was built. The decking is high quality Trex decking, which isn't as hot as concrete pool-surround material. The water is heated somewhat so that we can walk right in without the shock of cold water. We're old and we don't like to be cold anymore! <grin> While the clubhouse looked cheap, inside it is really quite nice. The outside could use paint, preferably a different color, but that's all. There is a game room with a pool table, air hockey, TV, and other stuff, nice and clean bath/shower areas, and a fitness room sporting a few decent pieces of equipment. That was more than I was expecting. Even the dog park is nice and large. Internet seems to be pretty consistent except in the evening when over a hundred campers are streaming movies and eating up all of my bandwidth. Mine! My bandwidth! Overall, this RV park turned out to be a pleasant surprise! I'd rather be pleasantly surprised than the opposite.
We have gotten to know the neighbors in the next site. Harvey and Cindy have a bulldog (I think) named Elvis. These folks are about our age and when we get together to chat for a minute, an hour flies by. They are a down-to-earth couple whose kids, like ours, are adults. It seems that there is always something to talk about. We wind up meeting the nicest people in our travels! That is one of the best things about life on the road.
This campground is a one-time stay though. It has been sold and it closes down the first of April when the process of building a resort on this site commences. It's too bad for us. After staying here, Michael and I both feel that we would have returned. It will be interesting to see what sits here when we return next year. Progress is never-ending.
There are two campgrounds in the Keys which have sold and one, Geiger Key, which we know to be for sale. It makes me a bit sad that I'm not aware of anyone building new campgrounds. That will drive up campground prices and reduce space availability for those of us who enjoy wintering on the water in the Keys where the temperatures are so temperate.
I'm looking forward with the deepest of anticipation to returning to the Keys once Michael is well. There are fish tacos to compare, key lime pies to sample, live bands to watch, rum drinks to cool off with, historical sites to see, fishing and diving to do and for me, and pretty gauze dresses to shop for. Hopefully the fishing will be better next time. This year we found that the laws have changed, making the fishing a disappointment because it has been regulated and more and more fish species have been restricted. Michael wasn't able to fish for his preferred species of fish this year.
We have about six weeks remaining in Key Largo, which will be back at Keys Palms RV Resort. We are really, really, REALLY looking forward to it if for no other reason than that there is a hot tub feet from our site and it feels good on our sore backs.
After Keys Palms we are on the non-plan plan, returning to old homeless gypsy wanderer mode. Who knows where we will show up next?