Smoky and Shann's Excellent Adventures: On to New Orleans

After the drive from Vidalia to New Orleans on Tuesday, March 21, and fighting our way through rush-hour traffic, we pulled into the Jude Trailer Park on Chef Menteur Highway, chosen because of its location, which was approximately 5 miles from the French Quarter.

NOLA French Market.

Marla, the campground owner, gave us lots of great information about how to get to the French Quarter, making our trip on Wednesday morning easier than if we had tried it alone. The parking lot she recommended was about a block from the French Market.

Inside the French Market you could find
anything to satisfy your urge to shop!

One of the lovely balconies in the French Quarter. This
one was part of a restaurant.

Smoky was last in New Orleans in 1967-68. In 1967 he was stationed in Biloxi, MS, for communications electronics officer training in the Air Force. On weekend leave, he drove his white Buick Special convertible with red vinyl interior. Can't you just imagine him driving this sweet vehicle to New Orleans!

Our trip to NOLA was a time of remembering for Smoky. We walked through the French Quarter, ate beignets at Cafe Du Monde, and then strolled down Royal Street, stopping frequently to listen to buskers playing music.

Beignets at Cafe Du Monde.

Yum, yum!

Smoky remembered the St. Louis Cathedral at Jackson Square, so after our beignets we walked over to see it. Visitors were welcome to go inside this elegant cathedral, which is the oldest one in North America, founded as a Catholic Parish in 1720. The original church burned; the lovely cathedral we visited was completed in 1794.

St. Louis Cathedral, seen across
Jackson Square.

Inside the amazing St. Louis Cathedral.

Only in New Orleans could you visit a place like St. Louis Cathedral and then step out the front door and have your fortune told, receive a tarot reading, and hear a jazz band before you left the block!

Tarot reading by the Realistic Mystic.

Tarot and palm reader.

Wall decoration in inner courtyard
at Oceana Grill.

Bourbon Street.

We treated ourselves to a late lunch at the Oceana Grill on Conti Street, where we sat in their inner courtyard and enjoyed a catfish po-boy and shrimp fettuccine alfredo. After lunch we walked down Bourbon Street, which Smoky remembered fondly during Mardi Gras in 1968. What tales he told me of that trip! Now Bourbon Street felt a little seedy and sad.

Reza Anvari, creator of fantastic carnival masks.

Royal Street, just one block over, was an entirely different place from Bourbon Street. There we found a little shop where venetian carnival masks were being made by Reza Anvari. Smoky bought a beautiful white one with quail and rooster feathers to use in his photography classes.

Preservation Hall sign above entrance.

We had hoped to see a performance at Preservation Hall, another memory of the past for Smoky, but the performances that day didn't start until 8pm and the line outside the hall for the first performance was already down the block.

At 4pm, the line outside Preservation Hall for the 8pm show was already
down the block.

We satisfied ourselves with listening to groups on the street. One of our favorites was St. Cinder, a group of guys who played ragtime using interesting instruments, including a mandolin, harmonica and washboard with spoons. These guys dressed in period clothing and really sounded authentic.