After flying for most of the night, and sipping copious amounts of fair to middling coffee, I blearyily eyed the baggage carousel. The purple people eater is there, so I snag it and set off to find...well first my co-adventuress...but then the rental car counter.
Stepping out of the airport, the waves of humid air wrap around your lungs and the sunshine kisses you hello. You can't help but smile and laugh and welcome to New Orleans. Jazz is played throughout the airport in case you missed it.
So, we find our hotel. Driving in, the city looks like any other. A concrete jungle curves and winds it way to downtown. However, once you turn into downtown, the battered old ladies of buildings still have charm. There is definately a weathered look to the structures. Paint peeling, siding missing in places and some boarded up windows. Hurricane Katrina is definately still prevalent here. I was a bit charmed by that. The thing I love and hate though is the beautiful buildings decorated and vamped up for Halloween. It is like seeing your grandmother wear spandex and a tutu, or the sexy french maid costume. The ghosts and ghouls just are wrong. And this is coming from someone who loves the fun of decorating. The oxymoron of it has been laughing and shaking my head.
On arrival to the Frenchmans district where we are staying, we find a subdued complex. The surrounding area is graffitted to death and we have already been told we are not in the best of the French Quarter. But the place is nice. We happen to have a two bedroom apartment for this extravaganza. Hardwood floors, comfortable beds, full kitchen, living room and bath...balcony...fabulous. Already the sounds of jazz and other music is wafting through the windows.
One can't just hole up in the apartment, this is New Orleans. We ventured off to find alligators but instead found a costume shop, a grocery store and the city. We window shopped around magazine street. Got lost several times and finally decided to park the rental car and walk to downtown. Hahaha.
The restaurants are already going to be the devil. We walked out the door and were hit with the savory aromas of food. Cajun and Soul. Patisseries and coffee. Beer and stale smoke. It was a palette of New Orleans. The food was amazing and that was just our first try at a little hole in the wall place on the corner of Frenchman's street. We didn't get far. Then, we walked to downtown, drfiting from artist to cafe, from tourist kitch to the river, to Cafe Du Monde to the hotel.
Now, we have slept...rested and are ready to start all over again. First, let's go get the missing member of the museum geek squad. To the airport and beyond. I will try and post some pictures of the halloween stuff...too good not to get some.
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