Florida Keys Blog Entry

Hello All,

Another long awaited installment of El Bloggo de Pedro! A lot has happened since the last trip to the radioactive waste dump. Meli and I celebrated our 6th wedding anniversary in the Florida Keys, we reconnected with some old dear friends in South Florida, I took my Anesthesia Oral Boards, we spent some quality fun time with the Family in the gracious Torregrosa Resorts Complex. We then raced back to Old EL Paso for a Wedding Hash. Oh yes……Life is good!

So it all starts here in Ft. Lauderdale with my buddy Greg.


Greg and I work together at William Beaumont Army Medical center at Ft. Bliss, Tx. In the biz we call it WBAMC at Ft. Ignorance is Bliss. Anyway, not only is Greg an Anesthesiologist but he is an oral board examiner for national review courses. Needless to say, if I pass this exam it is all because of unmerciful beatings via Greg. Thanks Greg! Anyway this is us in the hotel the day before the exam and me 5 min before the exam.


After that, Major catharsis it was on to Plantation Florida for a reunion of the Jacaranda Dog and Kennel Club. It was so good to see our old friends the Perrys and Peeples!


It was also good to see that everyone is doing real well and it seems like no time has passed except that all the dogs have become old men. Obviously Harley is not with us anymore but look at Chase carrying on the “Hannibal Lecter” tradition!


Also of notable mention is the fact that we very much missed Andy and China who are living in Arizona and Mike, Lisa and Casey who are in DC.

After our delicious dinner and many delicious drinks (Thanks Mary and Murrell) we headed south to Miami. Next on the itinerary was a reunion with Barclay and a first meeting with his girlfriend Ashley.


They had just moved into a cute little bungalow near downtown and I was totally amazed that there were no boxes laying around. Take it from someone who has moved 5 times in the past 9 years, when you are in your new house for only 1 week, the place should be a total mess. Bugs and Ash looked like they had been living there for months already. Anyway, we had a very nice brunch with delicious mimosas and good catching up time. Both Melissa and I agree that Ashley is super cool and they seem to be a perfect match. Nest on love birds!

Next we paid a visit to the Biltmore Hotel so Melissa could get a little Architecture fix. No vacation is complete without 500 pictures of windows, doorways, and pathways.



We then stopped off for a visit with Anna, Evan, Sienna and the new bambino Griffin. We had such a nice visit and Evan, the chicken was not over cooked!


OK, now we are getting to the serious R&R time that Melissa and I had been dreaming of for months. When you realize that we had not seen rain for over 2 months and that the colors blue and green are totally absent form our lives, you can begin to imagine how magical the Keys appeared to us.

We made our first stop in Islamorada at Rum Runners bar.

Most of you may remember this place as the Tiki Bar, Holiday Isle or just close to the Sand Bar. The water was so blue and clear, the scenery so serene, the rum runners were so frosty and the grouper sandwichs delicious!


We did not realize how much we missed the water! We then went for a visit to Morada Bay were we were married 6 years ago. Some of you may remember the wedding tree which was in a lot of our photos. It was very romantically reminiscent.

For the next four days we basked in the luxurious hospitality of Torregrosa resorts. Cousin John Fritz has a great place and he gets kudos for letting the family invade and temporarily evict him (Peter, Melissa, Pepi, Eileen, Margie, Chen and Maggie).

We had so much fun out on his boat and kayaking in the mangroves but most of all, lounging by the pool and reading good books. It was totally relaxing and just what Meli and I needed.



Obviously, once Pepi arrived, there was no more relaxing. But that is OK because he and Eileen totally spoiled Melissa and I for the whole weekend. They treated us to a lavish dinner, deep sea fishing, cooked us a paella with the fish we caught and brought us out with their friends on a beautiful boat. We cruised around the Keys and spent the afternoon out by the sand bar. It is so nice to be spoiled rotten by you parents. I highly recommend it!

Not only did melissa catch the biggest fish but she also caught the most fish! We had to listen to her self aggrandizement and watch as the fish in her stories got bigger and bigger!


Once at the sand bar we ran into Bob and Susan Tempkin. It is a small word! Melissa and I were good friends with their daughter Stacey when I was in med school. They look great and had 3 golden retrievers in tow at the sand bar!

Here is a plug for the Hashers. Those of you who know get it.
Sunday we flew back to El Paso just in time for a 4/20 wedding anniversary Hash. Melissa decided to run the race in her wedding dress and I ran in a suit and tie. We were a little worried about the heat but no matter, the trail ran through an underground drainage culvert for over a mile.
Not so much sun in there! We celebrated with all our hashing buddies and then went home and absolutely crashed!

What a fantastic week! I was ready to go back to work! Next upcoming entry will be Jazz Fest May 1-5 Stay tuned!

Pedro