Shoppingterror Deluxe

Today was all about the embodiment of consumer frenzy. Promptly at 9:30 AM, we hopped into our horsepower-loaded vehicle and headed to the Sawgrass Mill Shopping Center, which is the largest of its kind in the Miami area. When we arrived, we initially only had to deal with a handful of people, which gave us hope for a relaxed shopping day. You can probably guess: it didn't stay quiet for long! Throughout the day, this mall turned into a consumer hell...and we were right in the middle of it. The only thing that mattered was hard dollars hidden in the small plastic cards of their owners. As expected, we couldn't resist this spectacle and by 7 PM, we were loaded with some storage problems in front of our Ford. However, with some creativity in loading the car, we quickly overcame this challenge. When we briefly calculated our investments in textiles, we had to realize that we (slightly) went into the negative with our vacation budget...our step count, on the other hand, is significantly in the plus, and that's all that matters - after all, health is the most important. ;-)

Before heading to our today's 'Final Destination' Key West on the highway, we quickly filled up our deficit in calorie intake at a famous fast food chain. While the first Florida summer storm poured over us, we headed south slightly delayed. It wouldn't be a proper family day if there wasn't some excitement coming into the day... After a good four hour drive, we reached the historic Palms Hotel in Key West. A really chic place...but unfortunately, only from the outside at first! The tour guide forgot to inform the innkeepers about our late arrival. As it had to happen - we were standing in front of a locked door. Check-in was only possible until 10 PM...Düdüm! The children were asleep, the wife was slightly annoyed, but I managed to prevent major mood swings and fortunately reached the security after a few phone calls. The slightly eccentric 'Sheriff' eventually granted us access after some waiting time. Now we are sitting here at the southernmost end of the USA on our veranda, sipping on mango margarita and a cool Heineken. We really earned this!