Home Sweet Home
November 19, 2013
Next to the safety drill, debarkation is my least favorite part of cruising. Crowds, crowds everywhere but I must admit, the process is better than days of old.
We managed to find our way to our apartment, courtesy of AirBNB. What a nice surprise! The location, only a block from Bourbon Street, was great- unbelievably quiet to be so close to the ‘action’. Yarda, the owner, stored our luggage and we began the walk. One of the best bargains in town, the all day $3.00 streetcar/bus pass took us to the famous cemeteries of New Orleans. We wandered through the French Quarters, and even watched a Saints Game with the locals at Monahan’s Irish Pub (named after Shelly, of course) until the smoke got the best of us. New Orleans certainly is proud of their Saints. What patriotic fans! Of course, before days’ end, we had a Hurricane at Pat O’Brien’s, and dinner at a local hamburger joint on Bourbon. And that was after a lunch of local Louisana favorites – red beans and rice, shimp po-boys, creole and mufalettas. Can you match the character with the food?
Utilizing the streetcars once again, we enjoyed the Garden District and attempted to visit the Lafitte Cemetery but we really just observed the locking of the gate at 2:30 just as we arrived. No problem, we’ll just go across the street to the famous Commador’s Palace for a snack and a drink. So, we thought but once again, our plan was thwarted. No shorts-wearers allowed inside. We put our money back in our pocket and walked about the Garden District a bit more before boarding a very crowded streetcar back to Canal Street.
Suddenly, time was short and our to-do list was long. Yet, we managed a short visit to the casino, a quick stroll along the river walk, a taste of beignets and café au lait at Café du Monde (not to be confused, as we do with Café el Mundo in San Jose), and a mini-tour of the French Market.
All of this, and we yet, had to celebrate a 36th wedding anniversary. Actually, to be exact, I guess we were celebrating the anniversary of our last day as a bachelor and bachelorette since it is a day early. So be it. The 19th will be spent driving home. So, we began at Patrick’s Bar Vin and proceeded to Fins, an excellent seafood restaurant recommended by Patrick’s. Without reservations, we could only be seated in the bar area and that was fine with us-less formal, less stuffy. No better way to end our vacation that a final serving of Crème Brule!
As I write, we are in the midst of No Where, Alabama but happy to be headed to Marietta (not Pawleys Island) to see all of our family and friends. We just detoured through Pass Christian and the Biloxi area and are happy to report that Katrina damage doesn’t hit you in the face anymore. Sadly, those old homes can never be replaced, though. Ward 9 in NOLA showed improvement as well. Of course, it has been 8 years!
Headed home on our anniversary. OK, Asa and Hayden, hang-on! Wait just a few hours more to show off your next new accomplishment, please!
And so the chapter ends!
