On To New Orleans

Wow! A lot has happened since my last post. We have been having so much fun that I haven’t had time to write.

Sunset in Lafayette, LA

After leaving Galveston, our first stop was a beautiful KOA right on a lake in Lafayette, LA. This was just an overnighter on the way to our real destination of New Orleans. As soon as we were set up we poured a glass of wine and went outside to enjoy the first sunset we have seen in a long time. 

One of the numerous unique and beautiful bridges on the causeways in the south.

Up until then the sun has been setting mostly behind buildings and other RV’s. I’d thought our stay in Galveston would remedy that since we were just across the road from the Gulf of Mexico but, alas, we were on the wrong side of the water! I sure miss those beautiful Mexican sunsets on the water. Dinner was next on our agenda and we decided to go to a crawfish place recommended by the KOA manager. Neither of us had the crawfish but the fish was delicious. We’d intended to stop at the Drive-through Daiquiri Shop (yes…really!) on the way but drove right past it. 

It turns out these places are all over this part of Louisiana, and in New Orleans, it is quite acceptable to get your drink “to go” and walk around with it. 

Arriving in New Orleans was like dropping onto a new planet. Everything was different: the weather, the topography, the foods, the language…everything. We had tried hard to plan our visit so we would miss both Mardi Gras and the Super Bowl but it didn’t quite work. The Super Bowl was two weeks away but preparations for it were well underway. 

Driving through town involved negotiating a constantly moving obstacle course and by the end of our stay, several of the main roads were blocked off making it extremely difficult for anyone who didn’t have local knowledge. Because of the big football game, the City decided to begin the Mardi Gras early.

Street Performers

"Yeah We Closed"

View through a walkway on Decatur St.

Our “plan” for exploring New Orleans was to drive into town early in the day, wander around checking things out and eating (because New Orleans is all about the food), return to the coach for a nap and then go back into town to watch a parade and/or find some good music to listen to. It did not work out as planned. The drivers in NOLA are even more aggressive (read: crazy) than those in Texas so every time Chris got behind the wheel his stress level ratcheted up a lot. Then, our olde hips & knees reminded us daily of exactly how long we could walk on them before incurring loud, uncomfortable consequences. It appears there is a reason why “older folks” walk with that distinctive side-to-side swinging motion.  Naps and drugs (aspirin) help within reason but can easily become a detriment. Upon arising from a 20 minute nap it is not unusual to discover that everything has now stiffened up considerably. Thus, the possibility of “doing it again” in the evening decreases exponentially.

Steamboat "Natchez"

I was pretty insistent about hearing some of the famous New Orleans jazz so we planned to spend our last night in town on a dinner & jazz cruise on a steam powered paddle wheeler. We spent the daytime hours resting up and getting the RV ready to leave the next morning. We took the shuttle from the RV Park down to the dock and were fresh and ready for fun by the time the boat pulled away from the dock. We had a great time on the Natchez. The food was delicious, the jazz band was quite good and the Captain gave a running commentary about the “sights” along the Mississippi. We weren’t actually able to see a lot because it was dark but the lights were pretty and we didn’t have to walk for hours on pavement…and…it was nice to be on a boat and feel that subtle swaying under our feet again. 

Lafitte's Blacksmith Shop

At the end of the boat ride, we jumped (?) into one of the Pedi-cabs that were waiting and had a nice ride to Lafitte’s on Bourbon Street. The young man who peddled us was entertaining, informative and cute. We had a drink at Lafitte’s and then walked the length of Bourbon Street before catching a cab back to the RV. I have to admit that it was a bit of a shock. Honestly, I was hoping to find a club or two with some really superior jazz where we could walk in and listen for a while. It turns out Bourbon Street was more about hard rock music (at full volume), drunks, strip clubs and hookers. Even a couple of the police officers (and there were a lot of them) were drinking beer as they watched the revelers. It was nothing at all like I expected.

I have to admit that New Orleans is an amazingly interesting place. We spent several days just perusing the French Quarter and trying out all the recommended eateries. We had a fantastic lunch at the Crescent City Brewery where we sampled their house beer and they had a Seafood Brie that was to die for.We had Debris sandwiches at Mother’s and Muffuletta’s from Central Grocery and Pralines at Aunt Sally’s. And a visit to New Orleans would be incomplete without beignets and café au lait at the Café Du Monde.

Chris has some relatives who live in New Orleans so we made it a point to get together with them. We had a great time and I really enjoyed meeting more of the clan. While I was bemoaning the difficulty of finding a truly quality mask to purchase as a souvenir (ie: not Made in China), Chris' cousin, Ann, said she has a friend who makes them. 

We made a trip to John Flemming’s studio and found just what we were looking for. John is an amazing artist and really enjoyed visiting with him. His masks are stunning and it was interesting to learn that he makes most (if not all) the masks for Cirque Du Soleil. 

So…after a fun filled week in New Orleans we were back on the road again and looking for more adventures.