Travel Moments

Submitted by Margit Bisztray on July 7, 2009

By now, all the Tourist Network destinations are familiar to me (favorite places I visit every time, foods I eat every time, people I'm happy to see). They're all homes-away-from-home in some way.

In spite of this, I still get Travel Moments in these places. A Travel Moment is when a place gets 100% of you. You're filled with the experience of being in that place, and you're rewarded, and best of all, you know that it's the reason you love travel in the first place. It's even better when it comes unexpectedly.

A Travel Moment is when a place gets 100% of you.

Earlier this summer, I had such a moment on Highway 30A in Seaside at the new restaurant called Pizza Bar. In winter, I'm sure the urban interior with the cozy flames of the pizza oven burning will be the greatest seat of all. But when the weather's fair, there is nothing like the terrace out back. You take a seat in the big armchairs or sofas. You look out over a fringe of sea grass to the Gulf beyond. Above you is a trellis of shading plants, and to one side you see the steady parade of beach-goers, families, and wedding parties headed to the beach. The pizzas are wonderful (try the mushroom one, or the one with all the vegetables). There are Italian wines to enjoy. I'd say it's as good as being on the Mediterranean, except that with the white sand beach nearby, it might even be better. The couple of hours I spent there were filled with one Travel Moment after another.

I can even have Travel Moments in my own hometown, Key West. It has that magic way about it. Almost every day, I have some experience that makes me think, wow, that could only happen here in Key West and nowhere else in the world. Like when I was interviewing Buddy Owen (a.k.a B.O. of B.O.'s Fish Wagon on Caroline Street) and he was telling me about growing up on Bahama Street (which runs between Southard and Eaton, past the Fleming Street Fausto's). Buddy's getting ready to turn 70, so this was in the 1940s, and he talked about living in a house in the back of his grandfather's tailor shop, knowing everybody on the street, eating rice and beans every day (and fish only once a week, and that being grunts they bought "by the string" off the docks that are now the Galleon Marina). His stories took me back to a Key West I could only imagine, but that haunts the island still. You'll hear part of my interview with Buddy in an upcoming Top 5, so stay tuned. If my shows share even some of my Travel Moments, I consider that a success, and this one will, I can guarantee you.