NOLA

I chose to take the Monday bus trip to New Orleans, and not to go through the hassle and expense of getting a hotel room and rental car just to spend a few extra hours Sunday night and Tuesday morning. The bus was getting to New Orleans at 1:30pm and returning the same day at 8pm. Given the fact that I had never been to New Orleans before, 6 1/2 hours was not really much time, but I did my homework to make the most of it. My plan was to see the sights, eat as many New Orleans staples as possible, and have a few drinks.

Sadly the weather forecast was not good. It was basically supposed to rain for the entire day. As it turned out, the rain mostly stayed away, but it was dreary and gross all day.

In researching what I wanted to do in New Orleans, I kept running into the same problem. Nothing was open on Monday. On the plus side, it made my limited time easier to work with. On the negative side, I missed out on several attractions like the Aquarium.


The biggest disappointment though was missing the Dreams Come True Exhibit of Disney Art at the New Orleans Museum of Art! For a fleeting moment, I considered trying to find a last minute hotel room so that I could go on Tuesday. Maybe I should have.

New Orleans is known for many things. One of them is great architecture.

Food is also a big deal in New Orleans.

Of all of the recommendations I received, eating beignets at Cafe du Monde was the most recommended thing to do in New Orleans.

I also wanted to eat a Muffuletta since New Orleans is the home of the Muffuletta sandwich. Sherry K tipped me off to The Central Grocery Co. which is credited with inventing the sandwich, but of course they were closed on Monday! I ended up going to the place next door.

I had dinner at Mother's Restaurant once again based the word of Sherry K. Mmm po boy and crawfish etouffee!

I really should have expected it, but there are signs of Mardi Gras everywhere.

Most of the tourist areas of New Orleans like the French Quarter were not heavily damaged by Katrina, and walking around I really did not see much in the way of devastation from the hurricane. One can actually take tours of the areas most heavily devastated by Katrina. That did not appeal to me. I would much rather see the theatres of New Orleans. The Saenger Theatre which is the big theatre venue in New Orleans is north of the French Quarter and was damaged by the flooding. Earlier in the year, the Cats tour played at the Saenger, but as you can see in the picture they are obviously not re-opened for good. Part of what made me content in just spending a few hours in New Orleans was the thought that hopefully one day I will be on a tour that plays the Saenger.

Another must do in New Orleans is to hear live music especially at historic Preservation Hall. Sadly since the bus was leaving so early I did not get the chance to go hear any music. Well maybe it was not so bad since I don't really care for any musical styles that have come out of New Orleans!

Even though I could not go to any performances, I still wanted to see Preservation Hall. In my defense it was getting dark outside, but I must have walked past the Hall three or four times before I actually figured out what it was! Can you blame me?

Of course the main attraction of New Orleans is Bourbon Street. I walked up and down Bourbon Street a couple of times, and indulged in a couple of hurricanes (ironic name for New Orlean's mixed drink no?). It is as seedy as I thought it would be as it is several blocks of bars, dumpy restaurants, and strip clubs, but I think it would also be fun with the right group of people. Since I was by myself, I didn't spend much time there.

But of course, I ran into a group of Wizard folk walking along Bourbon Street. So we went to have more beignets!