Here are the pictures Sergio took of us Monday night at Jackson Square and at our delightful dinner at THE COURT OF TWO SISTERS:
Now, on to today:
Eric and I got up very early today and took the GRAYLINES SUPER CITY TOUR advertised as a tour where you “travel through three centuries of history, legends and romance as you encounter “The City That Care Forgot!” We went through the French Quarter, Jackson Square, a historic cemetery (where we got out to photograph the old tombs and crypts), drove by Lake Pontchartrain, drove down St. Charles Avenue, and the Garden District. The driver was also our tour guide and he never stopped talking for two hours, telling us stories of Voodoo and piracy on the Bayou St. John, the waterway used by Jean Lafitte and his band of pirates, and told us about the architecture of all the beautiful mansions we passed.
After the tour, we walked around the French Quarter, visiting streets and stores we had not yet seen. We did some serious shopping today, and it was fantastic! My favorite shop was called ROAD KILL boutique on Rue Decatur, where I bought the most fabulous purse. It’s made of a fabric with skulls and crossbones and roses.
Then we went to a great restaurant called COOP'S PLACE for lunch. We had another fantastic meal of New Orleans cookin’! We both had cups of gumbo, fried mushrooms with horseradish sauce, fried crawfish, and I had a shrimp remoulade salad, while Eric had the fried shrimp sandwich with French fries. YUM!
We walked around some more, including the Flea Market, where I bought a great eyeglass case for my sunglasses, a cute top, skirt and a t-shirt, and Eric bought two CDs of New Orleans music. Then went to Café du Monde (again) for more café au lait and beignets!
Betty Boop is VERY popular in New Orleans. We have seen her on tons of souvenirs, including purses, t-shirts, wallets, and figurines. Here's a big statue we saw in a shop:
As we were walking, holding hands, enjoying all the sights and sounds of this beautiful city, Eric said, “I love this place.” It really touched me, because he’s not usually as enthusiastic about things as I am, and I can see he really loves New Orleans as much as I do. It has definitely been our favorite city so far. I can’t imagine anything topping it, but we have a long way to go!
We walked and shopped some more, Eric bought a t-shirt with skeletons drinking on it, and then we hailed a cab to take us to the post office. Eric and the driver waited while I ran in and got a bunch of post card stamps, and then we came home. We were both exhausted, but Eric started doing maintenance and washing the RV and I did two loads of laundry!
It is now only 9:00pm, but we are both ready for bed, especially since we’re leaving VERY early tomorrow for OAK ALLEY PLANTATION, a national historic landmark built in 1839. It’s an hour’s drive from New Orleans, and we want to get there in time for the “plantation planter’s breakfast.” This is yet another place our friends, Sergio and Lourdes, recommended to us, and we are really looking forward to it. After that, we are heading to our next destination – Memphis, Tennessee, so we can visit GRACELAND! So, it’s early to bed and early to rise (and let’s hope we’re healthy, wealthy and wise!).