I was sorry to hear about the fire in Key West but relieved to learn that none of my favorite attractions - including Thelma and Louise - were harmed.
Two weeks ago when I was in town I stopped by The Gardens Hotel, which is kind of the ne plus ultra of classic Key West lodgings. The owner, Kate Miano, was giving me a tour of the garden - the sculpture of a crane reading a book, the pond into which Hemingway reportedly fell - when she casually pointed to two tortoises and said, "There are Thelma and Louise."
Immediately my mind raced back to Bangkok, Thailand, and The Atlanta Hotel (the ne plus ultra of classic, idiosyncratic lodgings). For there in its garden, shading the country's first hotel swimming pool, live two turtles: Archibald and Doris (named for Cary Grant and Doris Day). If the scholarly and debonair owner of The Atlanta, Charles Henn, ever visits Florida, I will make sure that he pays a visit to Ms. Miano in Key West.
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