We went to New Orleans for our very first time! It was sooo much fun. By the way, New Orleans is pronounced N'awlins. Pronouncing it Noo Orleens is a dead giveaway that you are a northerner or a tourist! Check out our trip below...

THURSDAY, MAY 9, 2003

5:30 pm    I depart Pensacola in the Saturn to head east 1 hour to Mobile, AL where Dan works.

6:30 pm    I arrive at Dan's workplace, where the Saturn will stay for the next couple days. We both hop in the Honda and head to Subway to grab a quick dinner.

7:00 pm    Depart Mobile for New Orleans

9:15 pm    Arrive in New Orleans and find the Sheraton on Canal Street, which is on the edge on the famous "French Quarter". Hotel parking is $30 a day, but is one of the cheapest parking options in the long run. At least the car is valet parked. We check in at the front desk to get our key cards for the suite we will be crashing in, thanks to Harry, the District 15 Commander (who is also a member of our Pensacola squadron). After situating ourselves in the suite, we head out to explore the city.

9:45 pm    First stop in Harrah's Casino, which is just a few blocks south of the hotel. After wandering around, we sink $10 worth of quarter into the slots. Of course, that didn't last very long.   

10:00 pm    We decide to head south on Canal Street to check out the riverfront. Who do we see but Harry himself! He suggests we check out "the street". I am so naive, I ask "what street?" He answers "Bourbon Street!". Duhhh!! So we head the few blocks north to Bourbon Street where it starts at Canal street and heads west for 14 blocks. Bourbon Street is the French Quarter's most famous and notorious row know for "anything goes". At some point in every tourist's trip to The Big Easy, most folks will head down to this street, if for no other reason than to see it with their own eyes. It's an eclectic mix of music clubs, Daiquiri bars, gay bars, strip clubs, jazz clubs, along with a healthy smattering of nice hotels, and wouldn't be complete without an all-encompassing aroma of urine. No mandatory closing time for bars and clubs means they are open all night on through the morning. Walking down Bourbon street, I saw a sign on a balcony that said "Rent by the day or night". At one of the stip clubs, there were a few scantily dressed girls throwing beads down to a huge crowd on the street. And of course, there were your street vendors selling "Big Ass Beers to Go". I was surprised at the wide range of ages wandering the streets, from teenagers to people in wheelchairs. 

10:45 pm    We had just about reached the end of Bourbon Street when we stopped at Fritzel's Jazz Pub, a hole-in-the-wall bar no bigger than a 20' by 40' room, to get a round of drinks and listen to some jazz. 

11:30 pm    Since tomorrow was going to be an early morning and the hotel's water was going to be shut off from midnight to 6 am (some sort of plumbing emergency), we headed back to the Sheraton. We meet Blanche from the Jackson, Mississippi Squadron who is also crashing in Harry's room.

12:00 am    After setting up the sleeper sofa, we fell asleep.

FRIDAY, MAY 10, 2003

6:00 am    Alarm goes and we start getting ready for a busy day.

7:45 am    Dan and I head down to see the US Power Squadron exhibits and go to a couple of morning meetings.

8:45 am    We are bored and want to have some fun, so we just sneak out of the meeting (there are different meeting throughout the day until 5:00 pm).

9: 15 am    With the help of a couple of different locals (everyone is so nice) we find our way to the nearest streetcar stop for the Garden District Streetcar Tour. It's a real electric streetcar and only costs $1.25 per person. The streetcar rumbles and clangs down scenic St. Charles Street and is a good way to see handsome mansions, the lush campuses of Tulane and Loyola Campuses, and huge arching oaks. 

10:00 am    The streetcar reaches the end of the track and stops. We are all asked to get off, get back on what was now the front of the streetcar, and pay another $1.25. Dan and I assumed it was $1.25 round trip, so we didn't have exact change! The streetcar conductor says to go across the street to the bank to get change, then catch the next streetcar back.

10:45 am    We arrive back on Canal Street from the Streetcar and decide to continue exploring the city on foot. Decatur Street looks like an interesting street, so we head down that way.

11:00 am    First stop is the the Cigar Store New Orleans. It is really neat. There are about a dozen guys making and rolling cigars. The humidor is to the rear of the shop, and a young woman explains to Dan the difference between their cigar selection. Dan chooses one to have after dinner that night.

11:30 am    We pass by the Jean Lafitte National Park Visitor Center and decide to stop by. The first exhibit we view is all about the Louisiana Purchase in commemoration of it's 300 year anniversary. Next stop is the main exhibit where we learn a little about the history of the local area.

12:00 pm    It's time for lunch so we choose to stop at the "Bubba Gump Shrimp Co". We get to sit outside on the second flood balcony and watch the crowds of people and horse-drawn carriages go by. The food is good and the waiter plays "Forrest Gump" trivia with us. The specialty drinks are listed on a ping-pong paddle. There are two license plates at ever table that you can flip through depending on if you need the waiter to come to your table. The "Run Forrest Run" license plate means you don't need anything. The "Stop Forrest Stop" plate means you need your waiter.

1:15 pm    After lunch we head down the block to the Jackson Brewery, which we think might be a brewery. Instead, it's just an four-story indoor mall with a bunch of really cool shops, bars, and restaurants. Even though I am not big on malls, this one was enjoyable. We found out later that the building is over 110 years old, and USED to be the largest independent brewery in the south.

2:00 pm    We walk through Jackson Square, the heart of the French Quarter, and by the beautiful St. Louis Cathedral. Surrounding the Square are local artists painting and sketching portraits, a pedestrian mall, as well as a odd assortment of fortune tellers and people spray painted all in silver. Also in this area is Cafe du Monde, a cafe famous for it's beignets (yummy french doughnuts) and coffee with chicory.

2:30 pm    After circling Jackson Square, we walk back to the hotel via Chartres Street, which also has some neat shops.

2:45 pm    We make a quick stop in our hotel room to put on our bathing suits, then hurry to the 8th floor outdoor swimming pool for a refreshing dip and also a great view of the city and the Mississippi River.

3:45 pm    We shower and get ready for evening Power Squadron receptions.

4:30 pm    Our first reception is the "First Timers Reception" for Power Squadron members who have never attending a national meeting. All the national board members were introduced and Dan even one a door prize!

5:30 pm    We head back to our room. Since Harry is the District 15 commander, the suite is transformed into a "Hospitality Room", as is all of the other District Commander's suites. By 6:30 pm, the suite is packed full and you can barely make it to the food table or the bar!

7:30 pm    I can only be social for so long, so we sneak out and head for the Riverwalk Marketplace, right of the Mississippi. After looking at the riverboats for a bit, we go inside to Riverwalk Indoor Mall and windowshop.

9:00 pm    The mall closes and we head back to the room. The party is still going!! But luckily it is much less crowded.

10:15 pm    The last guest leaves and we turn in for a early night.

SATURDAY, MAY 11, 2003

7:30 am     We get to sleep in! As we are getting dressing, we hear a knock on the door. It's Dean, commander of our squadron. Her and her husband, Al, aren't going to be using their Breakfast tickets, so they give them to us.

8:00 am    The Sheraton has a great all-you-can eat breakfast buffet, complete with made-to-order omelets and baby belgium waffles. Yumm!  

9:00 am    While heading back in the elevator to our room, a Power Squadron member offers us free tickets to the Audubon Museum and a River cruise. We gladly accept!!

10:15 am    After arriving to the Audubon Zoo via the Garden St Streetcar to the Audubon Park and then a shuttle bus from the park to the zoo, we walk all around to see the animals. We were very impressed.

1:00 pm    Audubon Zoo is up against the Mississippi river, where we catch the John James Audubon Riverboat seven miles to downtown New Orleans, about a 45 minute cruise.

2:00 pm    I have not yet had any beignets (bin yah), which is a must, so me head to Riverwalk Marketplace, where there Cafe deMonde has a little cafe. The beignets are delicious! 

2:45    We arrive back at the hotel to pack up and check-out. While checking out, the say our $60 parking fee has been "comped". They are not sure why, but oh well!

3:00 pm    On the road for the two-hour trip back to Mobile to pick up the Saturn, and then on home to Pensacola.