The Big Easy

Our arrival in New Orleans was a bit marred by my bad experience and waste of time at the GMC service center there.  But with that in the past we set out for a day of exploring in town.  We followed the advice here and had no trouble getting a spot to park.  We were definitely big for the parking spots but we squeezed into one, paid and headed out on foot.  Had we been in a dual rear wheel truck there would have been no way.

It was before noon and the first thing that hit me was the number of people drinking on the street.  Many of which were already drunk (or maybe still drunk from previous night).  Once on Jackson Square we found a place to try out some local food and for desert we wanted beignets from Cafe Du Monde.  On a nice warm Saturday the line was really long but sweet Steph stayed in line while I took the kids to watch some street performers.   We stopped at these hip hop guys who were assembling quite a crowd.  They spent more time gathering spectators than they did on their actual show but they were really good and very entertaining.  They were called Dragon Master Showcase and were on America’s Got Talent at one time.

We took our beignets to the park to enjoy these powder sugar coated delicacies.  I’d see little piles of powdered sugar all around the area, no doubt from other consumers of these sweet treats.  We went over to the riverwalk along the Mississippi river.  We were sitting at the waters edge listening to a couple musicians when this homeless looking guy started talking to the crowd.  He was nice and had quite a story including being in the service and serving 19 years for homicide!  I kept expecting him to ask for money but he never did.  In fact, he had beads to give out and even a little stuffed animal for Brielle.  He said he got them all for free and just wanted to pass them along.

Next we meandered through the streets listening to the different music that seemed to start reving up as the sun went down.  We walked a few blocks down Bourbon street and then headed back toward the truck.  But we saw a sign for pralines and had to try one.  Whooooooweeeee, they are sweet.  I think my blood sugar spiked an all time high after that bad boy!

I liked the French Quarter.  I liked the vibe.  I liked the variety of people and music.  It was a good day.