Monday, August 27, 2007

A visit in Ernest Hemingway's House

View from the entrance by the gate



Hemingway's office



The bedroom



Look into a room from the hallway



And his pool


As with most of Key West, you don't have to walk very far to get here - one block across from Duval Street. One of the few stone buildings in Old Key west, glimpses of the very distinguished facade can be glimpsed from the pavement through the tropical trees and bushes in the front yard.

As with many of the larger Victorian properties in Key West, the house is an impressive testament to a wealthy period in the City's history. The porches that encircle the two floors of the house and the lush gardens initiate a(nother) bout of "Why don't we live somewhere warm? . . ." "We could live here . . . "

The inside of the house is interesting with period and antique furniture that belonged to Ernest Hemingway and his wife Pauline (number two of four?). What makes the visit, however, is the tour guide with their informative and humourous commentary. A life like Hemingway's is rich material for such a tour - there's nothing like stories of excessive drinking and salacious gossip to bring life to an old house. You may have to wait a few minutes but it's the difference between "It's an old house with old stuff in it" and "Aaaah . . . now that Hemingway guy really lived!"

Don't miss the writer's studio or the cats (you'll have a job to miss those) . . . and toy around with the idea of having an old bar urinal in your garden - it'll make a great story.

Review by Jay Broek

16 comments:

Anonymous said...

I'd like to live there!
Beautiful photos of great spaces...Did you take them during the tour? Danny

Michele said...

Wow, the pictures are amazing. You did an awesome job at capturing this famous American Author. It's almost as if I stepped back in time. Beautiful. Thank you.

S-V-H said...

Hi Danny

Thanks for commenting on this post. I never like guided tours and most time I go my own way to make my picture - and come back to the spots when the crowd is gone...

S-V-H said...

Hi Michele

Thanks for your nice words to this post. Yes, it takes you really back in the late 50's and early sixties. It's a fantastic house and the spirit of the master is everywhere to feel.

lyliane six said...

A magnigic house like those of the News Orleans

S-V-H said...

Thank you Lyliane
for your kind words to this new pictures of E.Hemingway's house.

Anonymous said...

A wonderful house, I would certainly like to live their too!

Earl said...

A wonderful series of photos!

S-V-H said...

Many thanks go to

Wildlife

and

Earl,

for your kind comment to my Hemingway house photographs. I appreciate your compliments!

Voegtli said...

I like the pictures. And then looking at the office one with the typewriter recalls souvenirs. My grandmother had a Remington typewriter, It looked like the one on the picture. And when she was not able to type anymore I did the letter writing for her on that machine.

S-V-H said...

Hallo Peter,
Vielen Dank fuer deinen lieben Kommentar zu diesen Fotos hier.

Es freut mich ausserordentlich, dass ich dir mit diesen Fotos Jugenderinnerungen zurueckbringen konnte! Ich habe deinen "Femina" Bericht mit Schmunzeln gelesen -auch du hast mir damit "suesse Erinnerungen" vermittelt.:-)

Anonymous said...

Great shots... :)

S-V-H said...

Thank you Vivienne!

Bob Johnson said...

Beutiful pictures!, how many languages do you speak? I would so love to have an old bar urinal in my garden, maybe my pod.

S-V-H said...

Hi Bob,

I'm glad you liked the pictures at Hemingway's house. You have to know that Hemingway also had pretty much a extravagant lifestyle, back in that time...talking about that urinal bar in his yard.
I speak 5 languages, to answer your question.

Anonymous said...

For more information on Ernest Hemingway, visit this great web site:

Timeless Hemingway

LinkWithin

Blog Widget by LinkWithin