Plowed my way through Miami

    Staying at a youth Hostel can be a crap shoot.  Most of the time I am lucky, last night was the exception.  Three bunks, six guys, no problem accepted for this one obese guy who not only smelled but snored so no one could sleep. The unwritten rule is that everyone takes a shower and is considerate of everyone else’s private space, including excess snoring and light. I used my blue tooth headset to dampen the noise but sleeping was still difficult. I was up at 6:40 following a guy out  who left thirty minutes earlier.  The attendant down stairs heard our complains but how do you weed out someone who snores.  It happened to me once in Dublin.
      By 7:40 I was on the road to Florida City. Dealing with dozens of traffic lights was the biggest problem.  Even when I down shift three gears coming up to a red light, pedaling from a start still requires plenty of effort.  As for Miami Beach,  I took plenty of pictures of the Art Deco buildings and Miami skyline.  Lined up on the docks were several absolutely gigantic cruise ships, floating cities. For essentially the entire day, the lights were everywhere.  Fortunately, however, there was a paved trail most of the way, sparing me from the traffic.  Along the way I buddied up with a guy commuting home on his electric pedal assist bike.  As an ER nurse,  he had a long tiring shift and was in no rush to ramp up the speed.  We talked the whole way, Tim giving me the scoop on the area. Having had a meager breakfast, I needed sustainance by 11:30.  He pointed out a farmers market which I would have missed had I been alone. Being a heavily Hispanic area,  all the food was Mexican and delicious. Being Saturday, the place was buzzing with all the locals. They looked at my loaded bike and I took in their scene, mutual curiosity.
    Eight miles further, thirty-five overall,  I arrived in Florida City at the Hoosville Hostel, very cool layout.  Huge outdoor shower, palm trees with hammocks, fire pit, spring filled rock pool and very laidback.  It took me back to the sixties. Only one other older guy in my six bunk room, a relief from last night. Even before my shower, I laid down for a brief nap and blacked out for two hours. After a hypnotic outside shower in a tropical setting, I shared a beer with my roommate and headed next door for an authentic mom and pop Mexican dinner.  Back at the hostel, the NFL playoffs were on outside on a large screen.  For the first time in over a week, the temperature took a dive into the fifties, as low as fifty-three overnight, an Arctic blast.
   Tomorrow, will be a thirty mile jaunt to Key Largo where there is a campsite. I have covered over four hundred and twenty-five miles to date.