The Green Parrot Bar on Whitehead Street in Key West is surely one of the world’s most famous bars, probably because it was Hemingway’s favourite boozer. His house was (and still is) only a drunken stumble away on the same road.
Here are a couple of pics I took back in January:
I’m not entirely sure why the parrot was balancing a chicken on its head that day… nor am I in the know about the snivelling prohibition.
Hemingway’s other favourite hangout was Sloppy Joe’s – also a bar, surprise, surprise! I didn’t take a photo, but I do have a pic of one of its urinals. Hemingway pinched it while the bar was moving to a different location. His reasoning was that he had surely pissed enough money into the receptacle to claim ownership.
Sloppy Joe’s urinal, turned into a fountain by Hemingway. It still gushes away merrily on the grounds of his house, where it serves as a giant water bowl for the descendants of his beloved six-toed cats. His wife hated it…
[If you would like to see a post on those lovely furry purry creatures, click here.]
Lady Of The Cakes 
Cavorting and urinal don’t quite sit together in my everyday conversation… must say that white chicken seems oddly out of place! Love the pics as always!
LikeLiked by 1 person
True… it gets some people arrested… but not in this case 🙂
LikeLike
That urinal /fountain is amazing!
LikeLike
Yup… nothing like a refreshing splash after one of your runs 😉
Ha – it’s my punniest sentence of the day, that. Scatology rules.
LikeLike
Pun on, sista.
LikeLike
I can’t help myself. I think I’ve got Punnette’s Syndrome…
LikeLike
I think Hemingway must have had a lot of ‘favourite’ bars, I seem to remember visiting one in Cuba….
LikeLike
He sure did… I’m frankly amazed he was such a prolific writer! Maybe that’s the secret…
LikeLike
Are we allowed to plug our Key West/Hemingway post – which mentions the urinal, cats etc…?
LikeLike
You can plug whatever you like. You guys are family 🙂
LikeLike
Aw..thanks. Guess if your readers like Key West they may be interested in a ‘post’ from 2007: http://conjamonspain.com/2013/02/20/ernest-hemingway-never-set-foot-in-this-place/
LikeLike
Ah yes, I do remember reading that 🙂
Any on-topic/relevant links are always welcome.
LikeLike
I saw one of the 6-toed cats when I visited Hemingway’s house. 🙂 But my favorite part was his writing studio. Did you get a chance to see that room?
LikeLike
One??? I had to step carefully as not to trip over them when I was there 😉
Yes, I saw that room… I want one like that. With a cat snoozing in a chair by the window.
LikeLike
It’s nice to have a bar so close to home. Much easier to stumble home. We now have a pub right on our street corner.
LikeLike
Ah, now I understand why we’ve not seen much of you on the blogs lately… 😉
LikeLike
I love this. Once again, I wish I hit up the beach bar scene a bit more in Ft Laud, but I did find a Parrot bar of my own! (World Famous Parrot! 😛 )
LikeLike
Parrots all over the place 🙂
LikeLike
Hemingway was always an original…but a urinal for a fountain, though I must admit it doesn’t look much like one!
LikeLike
It does! Not the top part, coz it’s some kind of Cuban storage jug, but the bottom basin part is a urinal, fair and square 😉 Pretty tile design, though.
LikeLike
lol…saved by the pretty tiles…what a man was he!
LikeLike
A perpetually drunk, bi-polar, cat-loving, womanising, bilingual literary genius 🙂
LikeLike
In a word…well maybe more than one 🙂
LikeLike
Fantastic 😉 I’ve visited enough bars now that I should be entitled to remodel my whole apartment!
LikeLike
Some have pretty comfy sofas 😉
LikeLike
That’s some bizarre stuff…
I used to spend a lot of money in my favourite bar in Hamburg, but they never named anything after me let alone erect a fountain in my favourite stall… They did go out of business, though, after I left town.
LikeLike
Hemingway stole this thing and erected his own fountain. That’s the way to do it, clearly! Take heed 😉
LikeLike
Oh, I see! Of course! If only I had known earlier…
LikeLike
No shortage of bars in Mexico 😉
LikeLike
True, but I cut back my Mai Tai consumption. I don’t deserve a fountain anymore… But maybe I could gold-plate an almond croissant from the patisserie next door.
LikeLike
Oooooh, almond croissants… for some reason, they’ve not arrived in Spain yet. Well, not properly. Surprising, seeing as they are the home of almonds and marzipan.
LikeLike
Maybe they have. They just never make it on display…
LikeLike
I think I would have to side with Hemingway’s wife on this one. As much as I like quirky stuff, I draw the line at a urinal fountain. I guess it’s from growing up with 2 older brothers 🙂
LikeLike
I think that was probably one of the minor headaches he caused her… 😉
LikeLike