The chickens of Key West have personalities, which can easily be observed in how nervous they are.  The chickens in Old Town are less nervous around people.  They have apparently adapted to cruise ship tourists who try to photograph them or feed them.  You can tell the chickens who don’t live in Old Town are more wary of people, since they probably come into contact with more locals than tourists.

Locals are more likely to hate the chickens, since they have to live around them.  Chickens can be rude and wake you up at any time of night, contrary to popular belief.  The roosters will cock-a-doodle-doo at any time of night, like 3 or 4 am.  If you live next to a chicken, you will come to hate them for this reason.

But not everyone lives next to them, and many locals love them.  This can be seen in the may forms of art dedicated to the Key West chicken.  There used to be a Chicken Lady who had a chicken store in Old Town, but she relocated to the mainland with her chickens.  There are several art galleries on and around Duval that feature chicken oil paintings, wine glasses, etc.  Joy Gallery on Duval has some gorgeous oil paintings of the Key West Chicken.

Capturing the Key West chicken on film can be challenging.  Depending on the personality of the chicken you’re trying to photograph, the chickens can be nervous and flighty.   Photographing a chicken in New Town or say the parking lot of Home Depot where some of these shots were taken, requires bait.  Throw some rice or bread crumbs down and you have a captive subject for a few minutes while the bird pecks away.  He’s still in constant motion, however, so your challenges aren’t over.  Here are a Key West chickens, plus some baby chickens on Duval Street for your enjoyment.

Singers at the Womanfest 2010 Street Fair

Post-Labor Day in Key West is when restaurants close up shop for a while, and owners take their yearly break from life in the Southernmost City.  It’s the start of the off peak season, but not for those who come to town for Womanfest 2010.  Each year in September, a week long celebration of Women takes place, in one of the most low-key festivals to hit the streets of Key West.

The events feature mellow gatherings, cocktail parties, and a street fair.  While the bull riding event at Cowboy Bill’s isn’t exactly mellow, everything is done in the name of good-natured fun and games.  This is no man-hating event for lesbians only.  It’s Woman fest, and although there are more lesbians in town this week, most events welcome everyone.

There was a street fair on Saturday from noon to 8pm.  The 700 to 800  block was closed to car traffic and vendor booths were set up.  Jewelry was sold, a local bank sponsored something that gave away free lei’s with employees yelling “free lei, free drinks” but it wasn’t clear what the catch was.  A girl bank set up on the little sound stage in front of Aqua but soon after they finished their mic check, a downpour came out of nowhere.  Everyone had a good time at Womanfest 2010 anyway.

Whether you’re searching for the perfect flip flop, a designer bag, or the most awesome souvenirs to take home to friends and family, a Duval Street shopping spree will take care of everything. Set aside a morning, afternon or evening (most shops are open at night, too), and stroll up and down Key West‘s hub of shopping, eating, entertainment and catching the scene. Yes, Duval Street has its share of tacky t-shirt shops and souvenir vendors, but it’s easy to identify them, and therefore easy to avoid them if you want to.

Starting at the northern end of Duval, near Mallory Square and Front Street, work your way up Duval and then back down on the other side of the street from where you started. Since the Mallory Square area at lower Duval is near where cruise ship passengers disembark, this end of Duval is much busier and the density of tacky t-shirt shops is much much higher. As you walk further and further, the crowds thin out and the stores even get a little nicer in some cases.

However, lower Duval is also where you find some of the more famous Key West attractions. You get Sloppy Joe’s Bar, Captain Tony’s Saloon (not right on Duval but within spitting distance of it), and some of the more famous eateries like Hog’s Breath. The Bull & Whistle is worth hitting too, three levels of rustic bars, each with its own flavor (especially the rooftop bar…we won’t spoil the surprise, you’ll just have to visit and find out for yourself).

Best Soft Serve in Key West

At the 300 block of Duval Street take pause and have some homemade soft serve at Kohr Bros. They have soft peanut butter ice cream, need I say more. In fall, they have special flavors like pumpkin. For winter, there’s peppermint. Simply Divine. Look for the neon sign in the shape of an ice cream cone.

By the 500 block of Duval, you’ll notice some higher end chain stores like Coach, Banana Republic and Biton. You’ve probably heard of Coach and BR, but not Biton, which is not really a true chain store although it does have multiple branches all over the country. Biton sells fully upscale clothing by designers you’ll see in Vogue. Beautiful and pricey. It’s also in this area (and a few other areas of Duval, since they have a few branches) that you’ll see Crazy Shirts, a very gimmicky yet irresistable (for some) store. Their t-shirts are dyed and smell like whatever you choose, and you can choose from beer-dyed, money-dyed, and more.

One of the best places to get original, thoughtful souvenirs of Key West for folks back home is Artisans, and Aria. They sell costume jewelry, handbags, decor items, and fine jewelry. Their offerings are very carefully selected and staff is very friendly and helpful. The souvenirs would be the costume jewelry you can buy, from $4 to $12 for earrings, necklaces, and bracelets and hundreds to choose from. It’s an emporium of jewelry and bargain prices. You can take home something much more original and thoughtful than a mug from Margaritaville or a t-shirt from Hog’s Breath.

After the 600 block or so, it quiets down and there are lots of nice galleries. This upper end of Duval has great dining, too. Locals’ favorite La Te Da has outdoor dining. Nine One Five has award-winning chef. Upper Crust has the best pizza in Key West. Take the time to make it to this end of Duval. You’ll be glad you saved your money when you see the great artist wares for sale at a myriad of galleries up at this end.

Warning though pictures are kind of adult in nature

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