NEW ORLEANS DAY 3

Went to Café Beignet for breakfast – another busy place. Trish and I had a croissant with eggs and bacon and a café au lait for me and a juice for Trish. Don’t think it was as good as Café du Monde, but it was still good. It was quite crowded and we shared our table with a couple from Rhode Island – it was good to share some tips with them as they had just arrived.

Then we went to Decatur Street to find the last of the souvenirs that we were looking for. It was a nice walk on a beautiful sunny but cold morning. Have I mentioned that the temps here are near record lows for this time of the year? Enough to freeze the balls off (see picture).

Actually colder than home and always a cold wind too really chill you to the bone. Arghhhh and we have sandals and capris – thank goodness I wore my Canada sweatshirt on the plane on the way down – it has saved me from freezing to death.

Found the stores that we were looking for and picked up the last few trinkets. I was madly taking pictures to make sure I had enough. We both decided that if we were starting this trip over again, we would stay closer to the French Market and Jackson Square. That seems to be the location for the best shopping, best eateries, best street music and it is the place where we have headed to each day. You can still walk easily to Bourbon, but you

don’t have the smell…the garbage and yes the rats…..ewwwww. We came almost eye to eye with one that was on top of the garbage can during our walk in the morning. Close enough to see that he/she had one blind eye but was staring at us with the good one. Trish made me walk by – I sort of did my girly shrieky thing and wanted to cross the street, but nooooo I had to walk by.

Came back to the room to pack up and we had a nap and then out to dinner about 5:30 Omg I just want some vegetables and unfried food. The closest we came was a little spot down far enough on Bourbon Street to leave the nastiness behind. We had “dinner” at the Clover Diner. It was old and the food was plain, but the closest I got to vegetables was lettuce and tomato on my grilled chicken breast burger. They placed the raw breast on the grill and flattened with a heavy skillety thing.

Then out comes a hubcap that covers the breast, a water squirter, lots of steam happening and a piece of leather comes out to go on the bun. Trish had a hotdog that wasn’t what she was hoping for – she thinks it was even deep fried and the bun, if you can call it that, was plain, untoasted but at least fresh...oh – but the onion rings were delicious!

We walked back up Bourbon Street and stopped at a bar and order a $2 margarita TO GO. Yes you can do that here. I didn’t want to leave N’awlins without ordering a to go drink and walk down the street with it. They even have Margarita and Daquiri drive throughs. My goodness – who knew – but it is against the law to drink and drive, so you are supposed to wait until you get home…..GIVE ME A BREAK!

Bourbon Street certainly gets loud the darker it gets and there are so many strip joints that we were glad to turn to turn the corner and get home even though it was only about 7:30. Didn’t feel unsafe, just wanted to get away from all the hustlers trying to coax you in the bars and the other joints.

So tomorrow we bid New Orleans adieu. It was a great trip and a wonderful time everywhere and with each other. Home and our own beds are calling now and the sound is sweet and inviting.

Til next time…

NEW ORLEANS DAY 2 ... PART 2

Continuing on….

After resting up for a bit and waiting until dark…we then took the trolley down Canal Street to get off  and take the free ferry to Algiers. A short 10 minute ride – the purpose being to see the New Orleans city skyline at night – it was lovely. I tried to take a couple of photos, but with the ferry vibration and trying to do a night shot – it didn’t turn out as well as I had hoped, but you get the idea – it was rather spectacular.

So we rode the ferry back, got on the trolley and got off at the end of the line where we could easily make our way up to Frenchman Street. A tamer area than Bourbon Street and with great music we have been told. Every seat was taken in every bar with live music and even the standing areas were full. We had to satisfy ourselves with walking up and down the 4 blocks and just listen as we strolled.

Since we hadn’t had any dinner, we stopped at a place called Angeli’s. What a find! We had the most delicious pizza, it was quiet and warm and we enjoyed sitting after such a busy day.

Since both of us had ordered small pizzas, needless to say we had a full pizza left over between the two of us. I asked the waiter if people ever asked for handouts at the restaurant. He said that they weren’t allowed to give food away, but if we wanted to take the leftover pizza in a box and leave it on any flat surface outside, he said it would surely be gone in 5 minutes. So he packed up a box of leftovers from another table and the leftovers from our table and I took them outside and left them on top of a newspaper stand and sure enough 5 minutes later they were gone.

We took a cab back to the hotel as it is not good to walk around at night. It was funny that at 8:30 when we got to the restaurant it seemed fine, but then at 9:15 when we were ready to go, it all changes and you don’t feel safe anymore. However, the cab came right to the restaurant door - I made quite the entrance as my hand slipped off the seat arm rest (it was a van) and I went down on one knee - hit my arm on the seat armrest (that will leave a mark) damn that ArmorAll ....and away we went back to the hotel.

What a great day!

NEW ORLEANS DAY 2

We made our first destination Café du Monde. Thanks to my friend Rie who told us about the side entrance, we were able to move past about 50 people in line and get seated right away! We ordered beignets and café au lait for me and a milk for Trish (she doesn’t like coffee). The coffee in New Orleans is a blend of coffee and chicory and made into a café au lait and when sugared up nicely is OMG so good.

The lineups and continuous orders are something else. The wait staff will take an order and then get in line to pick it up – it is never ending – and so worth waiting for. Didn’t take long to scarf those puppies down and then be on our way.

We walked through the French Market, which is a combination fruit and vegetable market, food stalls, junky souvenir stuff and some different artisans. We bought a few things and then at the end of it all, we then walked down to the levy and got on the streetcar.

We were one stop away from the end of the line.

We bought a 1 day pass for $3 each and then rode back that one stop. We figured we would start there and then go all the way to the other end. When we went back the one stop, we were made to get off at the rear door….wait while the driver changed the trolley, flipped all the seats the other way, take the controls at what was the back (and is now the front – are you confused yet?) and then wait for her to open the door to let us back on again. Unfortunately for the family of 4 that rode the one stop to the end with us – who really wanted to go all the way to the other end – but only bought a ticket instead of a day pass. They were told by the driver they could not get back on without paying their fare again. She was a nasty-a**. So now the family was a stop further away from their destination and out $6.00 for the experience. Although it seemed so funny to us at the time – in hindsight it really wasn’t and it was too late to do anything about it.

So we rode the streetcar all the way to the other end to the cemeteries. There were so many up there and we were able to get off the streetcar for about 30 minutes and I took some more pictures. We didn’t feel unsafe in the cemeteries up there. I think they say not to go to the St. Louis #1 without going on a tour because it isn’t safe. These cemeteries, although quite large, are not as old and in a different part of New Orleans and we felt very safe walking around. We didn’t see all of it – just enough to get some more pics for the album. Then hopped back on the streetcar and it was time to look for somewhere for lunch. We got off at the Decatur Street stop. We were told that the Central City Grocery Store where you can get the BEST Muffeletta was just 2 blocks up on the left – we walked for about 4 blocks and asked again. This person said that oh yes it was on Decatur and about 5 blocks up on the left. So we walked for about 8 blocks and stopped and had a

muffeletta at The River’s Edge Restaurant cause we were told that the Central City Grocery was just 2 blocks up on the left and we weren’t taking any more chances! What we had was delicious and the best as far as we know!

Well, that takes you up until about 3:00 and there is still more but I think this is enough for now!

Last day of adventure is tomorrow

NEW ORLEANS DAY 1

We made it! New Orleans! Our first impressions of this city are…traffic and honking horns, lots of tourists (two cruise ships in)…smelly Bourbon Street…so many restaurants…so much colour…beads strewn everywhere…narrow streets…beautiful old architecture.

After we checked into our hotel, the desk clerk was able to get us on an afternoon city tour. So we went to a little restaurant down the street called Oceana and had some brunch. I had a poboy with fried shrimp and Trish had a cheeseburger. We certainly didn’t leave the table hungry. Neither of us was able to do the Remoulade sauce that is so much a staple sauce in New Orleans. Some of the ingredients are: Creole mustard, chili sauce, hot sauce, mayonnaise, Worcestershire, garlic and just in case the insides of your mouth aren’t quite seared completely off…horse radish and lots of it. I think my delicate palate is just that – delicate! I wish I could enjoy all the flavours, but it ain’t gonna happen!

Our city tour was unique. Bernadine was an excellent tour guide and told us so many things about the different parts of the city. We learned that the levies here were built to withstand a category 3 hurricane, but Katrina was category 5. We learned that New Orleans is shaped like a bowl and is on average 8 feet below sea level. So when the waters came over the 33 foot levy, there was no where for it to go. The rebuilding that has already happened is amazing….however, there is still a lot to be done IF it ever will be. I am more proud than ever that one of my amazing nieces was able to come down here to help with this a few years ago.

We toured the garden district and have now seen more mansions than I ever expected to see anywhere! Beautiful antebellum mansions (which means built before the civil war) are too numerous to count. The other noticeable thing about lots of the houses here is that they are built quilt long and very narrow.

We toured a cemetery and learned that when a person dies, they are put on the top shelf and the tomb is sealed and cannot be opened for 1 year. If someone in the same family dies in the meantime, they are buried in a rental tomb. After the year has passed, the tomb can be opened and remains of body #1 are moved down to the second shelf and the most recent dearly departed is placed on the top shelf. And the process is repeated with the oldest remains being placed in a 3 foot hole that is under every tomb. As the temperature reaches 600 degrees farenheit, it is a slow cremation that goes on in the tombs, so I guess it isn’t quite as gross as it sounds – and after a year of those high temps…I am hoping there wouldn’t be much more than ash left. Either way – I’m not applying for the job of opening and moving the remains around!

We came back and had dinner at a German restaurant right across the street. We understood this food and it wasn’t spicy – and it was very delicious! A great way to end our first day.

So we did walk around a bit – but tomorrow will be a day of adventure – so definitely stop in again and I will try to find some more interesting bits for you!

COZUMEL

We awoke early in excited anticipation of our swim and ride with the dolphins. It is another beautiful day and slightly overcast so at least the sun isn’t on us continually. We left the ship at 8:30 and went for a short cab ride to Dolphinaris. Soon it was time to enter the water with the dolphin. Our dolphin was Emilios – he is a 23 year old alpha male weighing 750 lbs. He is sleek and shiny and a perfect host to us. There were 12 in our group and we each received a hug, a kiss and a belly ride. It was amazing and I am so glad I had the opportunity. Trish loved this adventure – it was her idea and was as wonderful as she had imagined. Both of us left with huge smiles on our faces.

We rode back into town and had nachos for lunch at Carlos and Charlies – a very noisy place, but the nachos are so delicious. We didn’t walk around the shops – we are in Mexico and everything looks the same and as the shop owners call out – “come in…come in…my price is so good it’s almost free!”

We decided to just get back onto the ship. After a shower it was time to read my book for a while which means I fell asleep. After, we wandered out for a cup of tea and to just enjoy sitting on the promenade deck. Soon there was music and someone on a microphone. We looked over the edge and between us, the Norwegian Star and the other ship along side, the Norwegian Dawn…the crew was dancing and jello shots were being handed out to all the people coming back to the ship from town. It was a like a very huge and loud party. It was enjoyable to watch and the people coming back would dance back to the gangway.

So now we are sailing away and heading back to New Orleans. Tonight and tomorrow at sea and then we will be at the Prince Conti Hotel just off Bourbon Street for three nights and then home on the 27th. It is a fun journey with lots of smiles and laughter – now if only we could win at the casino!!!

BELIZE

As we weren’t doing anything ashore today, I didn’t rush to get into the tender. Left the ship around 10:00 and away I flew to the shore. Trish decided to stay behind and enjoy a day by the pool – she was the smarter one! This port was much like Costa Maya – just enough stores to nab the tourists and nowhere to get a real look at the surrounding area. The port was quite a distance from the city and unless you had booked a city tour, there was no way to venture there and most indications were that it was not a safe thing to do outside of a tour.

This is the place where there are discount drugs at pharmacy stores. In the small area adjacent to the tender docking area, there were at least 5 of these stores. They sell sleeping pills, paxil, viagra, amoxicillan and any number of prescription drugs at discounted prices. My goodness – I ventured inside and did buy some Fisherman’s Friends cough lozenges and a codeine cough syrup – maybe Trish will be able to sleep tonight! This is such a different cold. Stuffy nose and lots of coughing. Oh well, it doesn’t appear to be holding me back any!

 I actually ventured in the pool today and enjoyed a little float around to cool off after walking around on shore – it was then I realized that my bracelet wasn’t on my wrist. Sigh*….No idea what happened – it has such a tight way of fitting together, I can’t believe it just fell off, but it is gone. Although I feel bad about it, I made up my mind that it isn’t going to ruin my holiday and who knows …. Maybe it will turn up somewhere. I have always been lucky before.

 Tomorrow is an early morning as we are going into Roatan for a Underwater Museum Snorkel. Looking forward to that. It is in 5 – 20 feet of water on the inside of a reef in calm water and a great snorkel for beginners. I was able to borrow the camera from school with an underwater case so I will have the first digital underwater photos for my collection! More to follow tomorrow!

AT SEA DAY

Today was a lovely relaxing start to the day. When we emerged from our cabin, Raymondo (our cabin boy as Trish likes to call him) greeted us warmly and off we went to forage for breakfast. We sat at a table with some other folks from Louisiana about 75 miles south of New Orleans. I was able to ask them about eateries that they enjoy when visiting the city. Still preparing for our return on the 24th. They were kind to tell us of several – except for their accent – I only was able to understand one place. SIGH** So I then asked them about soft shell crabs. They practically drooled at the thought of them. I found out that soft shell crabs are more harvested than caught. Evidently they are crabs that shed their shells periodically and then their innards are only being held together by a soft membrane. At that precise time (and a very small window of about only 24 hours before the new hard shell forms again) they are plucked from the water, seasoned, battered and deep fried until the succulent morsels are served at a restaurant and you eat them whole. We will be trying those for sure.

I also asked about crawfish – for Trish as she is a lobster girl. It was then we learned about Break, Suck and Pop. What is that you ask? Well the correct way to eat a crawfish is to break them apart, suck all the juice out of the head and pop the tail and eat the meat. I’ll leave that to Trish – I will be busy with the soft shelled crabs. We tried our luck at Bingo – it was expensive and we didn’t win – nuf said! Tomorrow we are in port in Costa Maya Mexico – don’t have anything planned – so we will just wait and see what the day brings!

ABOARD AND UNPACKED

Wandered around and tried to familiarize ourselves with the Norwegian Star. Of course before I left home….I told everyone I would be on the Norwegian Jewel – and at the port in New Orleans the taxi driver drove us to the Carnival Conquest….I think we are having a 7 day cruise with ports of call: Costa Maya, Belize, Roatan and Cozumel. I’ll keep you posted.

Saw the levies that abound on both sides of the riverbank. There were some obvious signs of damage on some wharves, but we weren’t able to tell of any of the devastating Katrina damage from the ship. We have been told that taking a city tour, which we plan to do on our return to NOLA to visit other sites, will also take us through some areas that haven’t been rebuilt. Our taxi driver lost his house, but was able to relocate in another area of New Orleans. He told us that New Orleans used to be a city of 1,000,000 people, but now only 500,000. He did have quite a Cajun accent, but Trish and I both agreed that is what he said. He also said that the locals believe that the levy was deliberately exploded in a poorer area so that the majority of the flooding would not enter the city. The result of this action saw a 22 foot flood line in the projects and only 2-4 feet in the city. Had not heard that before, but found it plausible and an interesting take on why the poorer outlying areas were so devastated when the city escaped most of the horror and a good reason why areas have not been nor will be rebuilt for a very long time.

On the way out of port there were so many oil refineries. I guess as you approach the Gulf of Mexico from the Mississippi River that is to be expected. I wondered if we would see any oil rigs, but we have not noticed any. The Mississippi River is very muddy – just as the songs suggest.

Other than that, yesterday was a recovery day from our traveling. We did try our luck in the casino – fat lot of good that did other than lighten our wallets. Maybe tomorrow… Til then..

MORNING IN NOLA

We had a very early start to our day yesterday.  We crossed the border into Blaine at 5:00 a.m. and after a gruelling day of travel....we have arrived at our destination.  Planes and connections were on time but we didn't arrived in New Orleans until 10:30 last night....8:30 BC time.  Still tiring and since there was no where close to wander and it was dark...time to sleep and get ready for the day tomorrow.

So I poked my head out from behind the blackout curtain this morning...and here I have posted my first images of New Orleans. 

Today our plan is to eat breakfast and then make our way to the ship.  Not sure what time we can board, but checkout here is 11:00 and so we may have some wait time at the pier.  At least it is daylight - so there may actually be something to see. 

Weather is overcast and I think a bit cooler than we were prepared for.  But soon we will be warm and toasty.  76 degrees and cloudy with expected showers is the current forecast for the area. 

Our look at New Orleans for today will be brief and only from a taxi window or from the cruise ship.  However when we return, I know there will be lots to see and do here. 

Talk to you again soon, meanwhile have a great St. Patrick's Day! AND...clearly it is time to start planning what you are boiling for lent!

Ciao for niao!

ANOTHER NEW ADVENTURE COMING SOON!

Trish and I will be leaving on March 16th and flying to New Orleans where we will board the Norwegian Jewel for our 7 day cruise to Costa Maya, Belize, Roatan and Cozumel. When we come back to New Orleans, we will have 3 days to see the sights there. Can anyone say beignets - or for that matter spell it! We are looking forward to our Creol Adventure with as much enthusiasm as we are looking forward to the cruise! I hope you will be able to join in on our fun. So until then.....