| These pictures are late in going up, I know. It’s crazy to think how much has happened between touching down back in San Francisco on January 11th and now – things like Anna losing a gallbladder, and the country getting a new president…. It’s been a hell of a January. So enjoy our last batch of pictures, late though they are! | |
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Saturday dawned with Anna going to her final half-day of the conference; for the morning, I would again be on my own. I had the perfect place picked out for breakfast, too – this little hole-in-the-wall place on Bourbon. Unfortunately, everyone else in New Orleans found it before I did. Not wanting to wait for a table to open (or a seat at the bar for that matter), I walked around the Quarter until I found someplace that appealed – The Market Café seemed quite inviting. I settled on their “Eggs Creole” – two pocket eggs with New Orleans shrimp Creole sauce and a biscuit. It was exactly what I wanted for breakfast. Serendipity. |
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Anna was done a little after 2, and so we headed out to find something. Truth be told, we knew exactly where we were headed – back to Johnny’s PoBoys. |
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And we knew exactly where we wanted to eat them – down by the Mississippi river. Sound familiar? |
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Look! A River Slug! Free from the conference, Anna was now ready to nom! |
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And nom we did. I don’t honestly remember if this was Anna’s (fried shrimp) or mine (fried catfish), and I apologize for the poor picture. Whoever’s it was, it wasn’t long for this world. |
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We ate our Po Boys and watched the big ships running up river towards wherever. Can’t beat the view. |
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After that, it was my turn to give Anna the abbreviated tour of the Quarter. We started in Jackson Square, with St. Louis cathedral in the background. It was a stunning day, by the way – warm (high 70s) with 80% humidity. Perfect day to stroll around. |
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On our way back to the hotel, we stopped off at the New Orleans Cigar Factory – the site of my cigar acquisition the night before – where I procured a few souvenirs, which are patiently waiting in my humidor. After the day, we weren’t hungry until almost 10, so I ran across the street and got a PoBoy from Mother’s which we split in the hotel room. A lovely end to the day. |
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Remember how I mentioned the day before was gorgeous and hot? Sunday dawned with steely skies and an icy wind. The temperature hovered in the high 40s with a biting wind. So when you look at the crowd at Café Du Monde, you understand why they’re bundled up. Really, though, I can’t think of a better place to duck in from the cold then Café Du Monde. And unlike my Friday night back-alley beignet binge, we did this one proper. |
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Proper stack of beignets. Proper coffee and chicory café au lait in a proper receptacle… And my wonderful wife along for the experience. Forget the weather, this was right. |
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After check-out, we decided to give ourselves a driving tour of the Garden District. The houses were amazing, but the streets were terrifyingly narrow – not unlike the French Quarter. We finally pulled over. This is the “Corn Fence,” a wrought-iron fence with, well, corn in it. Quite cool, and the only other one like it is in the French Quarter. |
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Sunday in New Orleans is not a good day to do just about anything, as everything is closed. Including this cemetery – Lafayette Cemetery Number One – as well as just about everyplace we wanted to eat. We managed to get into the cemetery because they were doing some sort of beautification. Don’t mind us, we’re appreciating your beautification! |
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The Garden District was the American’s answer to the French Quarter, and Lafayette Cemetery Number One was the counterpart to the French St. Louis Cemetery Number One – where my tour took place on Friday. You can see this tomb’s first resident took occupancy in 1861. |
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One of the fascinating things is that these tombs are still in rotation – you can still buy a plot in one of these cemeteries. Obviously, as you can see here, the previous tenants are relocated prior to you taking ownership, but you get an idea of the inside. This is a two slot model – so that if during the year-and-a-day period where your family member is, well, baking, should someone else in the family die, they’ve got another slot for them. |
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Just outside and across the street is the renowned Commander’s Palace – where both Paul Prudhomme and Emeril Lagasse both made their marks. Naturally it wasn’t exactly, shall we say, in our trip budget. Next time, right? |
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On the way out of town, we passed what we’d not seen all trip – Home Depot. No, just kidding. The Superdome. We passed it on the way in, and seeing it at the beginning and end of our trip served as apt bookends. None of the areas we stayed were affected by Katrina, but here is one of the most visible symbols of the days that followed the hurricane itself. By looking at our pictures, you’d never know the city outside the narrow areas we visited were devastated, but they were, and many areas still haven’t come back. We deliberately didn’t go to those areas, but the Superdome stood as a reminder that they were still there, and still struggling to come back. |
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This, most certainly, isn’t New Orleans. Our flight out had a stopover in Chicago and the same storm which halved the temperatures in New Orleans on our final day in town shut down Chicago’s O’Hare airport the day before. Still grappling with the crush that accompanies mass-canceled flights, we were glad to be flying into Midway instead. But as you can see, there was still plenty of snow on the ground. Following a thorough de-icing, we were in the air and headed for home. A fantastic trip, an uneventful flight home…. Who could ask for more?! The only remaining question is “When do we go back?” because it’s a “When” and not an “If” – we’re smitten by New Orleans. |
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This page contains a single entry from the blog posted on January 31, 2009 3:44 PM.
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