NOLA and my aching feet

The day began with a owner update meeting breakfast, and of course, they had to try to sell you more points.  During Q&A I got a question right and won a Wyndham beer glass.  Spousal unit came away with a $50 visa card.  Made a bet with a new friend from Birmingham that we would get outta there first.  I won!

We were surprised to find part of the St. Charles streetcar line was down for track repair.  You have to do a bus transfer for a couple of miles.  Seems like there is always some kinda construction/repairs going on in an old city like New Orleans.

For the middle of the day, there was an unbelievable number of people mingling about on Canal Street and all the connecting streets in the Quarter.  I guess it was overflow from the marathon held earlier on the day.

The Streets were full of street performers.  Musicians, painters, mimes in all colors of body paint, card readers, acrobats and many others trying to get you to put a dollar in their tip bucket.

We had agreed to meet up with our new friend in Jackson Square for a beignet treat.  While we were waiting in the St. Louis courtyard, a wedding was in progress.  With wedding march music in the background, I was able to get a picture of my bride of 30 years.

We took a seat under a tree.  The spousal unit noticed I had been tagged by the blue bird of happiness.  I think that bird must be related to the squirrels from my neighborhood!

After our beignet treat, We made our way back toward Canal and stopped at Johnny's Poboys.  We had the "surf and turf" which a roast beef with fried shrimp.  Our timing couldn't have been better.  As we began devouring our sandwich, the staff announced that the restaurant was now closed.  They close at 4:30 each day, but folks kept coming in for at lease thirty more minutes.

We made our way to the park along the river.  The spousal unit has this thing about running water.  All it does for me is make me want to pee!  I overheard a northern tourist interviewing a local about Katrina, the oil spill and eating oysters and other creatures out of the Gulf.  Learned from her that the Exxon Valdez had spilled its contents in the Gulf of Mexico.  The poor woman needed a geography lesson.  Got to see an oil tanker make its way up river.  Then, the Carnival cruise ship made a uturn from its dock and headed down river.  It looked small from our vantage point until I noticed the little dots milling around on deck.

It was now time to move on.  The Riverwalk  Mall remodel will be finished in a couple of months, turning itself into a premium outlet mall.  We waited our turn for the river street car, then moved on the the Canal Street line.  There was a streetcar that looked stalled.  Turns out it was transporting another wedding party.  Our $3 all day bus pass was our savior.  Made the switch to the St. Charles line and we were hotel bound.  Met a bunch of guys from Canada doing a golf tour.  Had a nice conversation about health care.

A group of girls from Florida A&M seemed lost.  The spousal unit stepped in to save the day.  They decided to ride the St. Charles to the end of the line and back with us.  Along the route we had to make a transfer to a bus for a couple of miles.  The spousal unit was taking several selfies as we made our way down the line.  She began to laugh at the pictures.  Turns out we had the same photo bomber in each one!

We had a nice little chat with him before he exited the ride. I noticed that he was covered in makeup and lipstick.  Turns out he works at the Lancome counter at Macy's at the Lakeside Mall.  He lives with his grandmother that has a house on St. Charles.  As he exited the streetcar you could not help but notice that he was carrying a purse!  The FA&M girls got a big kick out of that!

We made out way to the end of the line.  Got a big laugh at those girls trying to figure out what was happening next.  The driver told them that if you are staying on, head to the back of the car.  The looks on their faces was priceless.  I began helping the driver with flipping the seats.  I just about cracked up when the light bulb in their heads went off!  The driver then took the time to tell these girls the history of the Garden District.  It was interesting to hear it from a local that wasn't a tour guide.  At the bus transfer location, they all gave him a hung and took selfies with him.  He reminded them to enjoy the remainder of their stay in his city, and to always stick together!  Spousal unit gave him a nice tip for the entertainment.

Dinner ended up at Mr. John's Steakhouse at the condo complex.  Steaks cooked under 1800 degree heat!  Melt in your mouth!

       

The gumbo was to die for and the beer was ice cold.

Tomorrow, the zoo and more adventures!