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Published: January 25th 2014
Lafayette, LA
Prejean's Restaurant. Big Al. The gumbo was wonderful!Jan. 21. We left San Antonio late morning and headed east on I10. I waved hello to Houston, but we didn't stop. Houston has a very impressive road system and we were very glad that we drove through it at 1:00 PM and not at rush hour. As we were expecting a long and boring ride on I10, we put an audio book, The Goldfinch, on and listened to it all the way. We crossed the border into Louisiana and got our first Mardi Gras beads at the LA Welcome Center. After about 6 hours on the road, we stopped for the night at the Comfort Inn & Suites in Lafayette. We have stayed in several Comfort Inns this trip and they have all been very nice & comfortable. The girl at the front desk recommended we eat at Prejeans Restaurant in Lafayette. She even gave us a coupon for a free cup of gumbo. It turned out to be a great suggestion. This is our first time to Louisiana so we were not familiar with Cajun food. The gumbo turned out to be very flavorful; a little hot, but not mouth-burning. Jim had Shrimp Sassafras - two shrimp stuffed with
pepper jack cheese, grilled Tasso (Cajun pork), wrapped in bacon, fried and served with a crawfish sauce. I had Eggplant Pirogue Louis - half an eggplant fried and stuffed with shrimp, crawfish and crab in a creamy Louis sauce. It came with rice dressing (a little hot) and corn macaque choux (not sure what that means, but it was corn in a slightly sweet sauce and served in a pastry shell). While we were eating, a zydeco band started playing. I went over and took a picture. Jim teased me and said that I'm such a tourist. 😊. We ended the meal with Acadian bread pudding with Jack Daniels sauce - feeling stuffed, but happy. We talked to family and friends in New York about the snowstorm there. They have about a foot of snow! We are very happy to be here!
Jan. 22. Headed east on I10 toward Baton Rouge and then took a smaller road down through the bayous and past some of the old plantations along the Mississippi River. I wanted to take LA18 along the river as I thought it would be very scenic, but we couldn't see the river because of the levees. We
On the Road to New Orleans
We saw these oil refineries everywhere.
did see lots and lots of oil refineries, tho, and lots of smoke. Some of the smoke seemed to be coming from the fields. We wondered if they were burning the chaff to get ready for new planting.
We got to New Orleans about 12:30 and found the hotel, the Prince Conti, without any problem (thank goodness for our GPS). I was very upset because I had booked the hotel on booking.com for what seemed like a good price, but then found out from the hotel's website that their price was actually about $20 less per night. The hotel very graciously gave us their lower price. Everyone was very accommodating. I like this hotel because it is right in the French Quarter, has that New Orleans "feel" and is not just a regular "cookie cutter" hotel. I had requested a room not looking over the street, but it probably wouldn't have been a problem as it certainly wasn't crowded here. We brought our bags up to the room and then headed right out for the streets of the French Quarter. I had a layover here my first year of flying, but that was many, many years ago. I did
New Orleans
Our hotel, The Prince Conti remember Café du Monde for café au lait and beignets so we headed there first, stopping into many little shops along the way. We had to sit inside because it was so cold. But after fortifying ourselves with caffeine and powdered sugar, we hit the streets again. We stopped in the Visitors' Center to get some suggestions of where to eat. He gave us some great suggestions and also some pamphlets with walking tours and good places to listen to jazz. I wanted to walk along the river for a little bit and we then headed to Jackson Square and the Cathedral of St. Louis. As we entered Jackson Square, I heard someone playing the trumpet and tried to include him in my picture of the square. He saw me and yelled at me that if I was going to take his picture I should at least pay him something. Huh? We saw many more buskers on the streets, but I kept my camera inside my pocket. We just meandered around the French Quarter, stopping in a few shops and museums along the way. We probably would have been better off following some of those walking tours we picked up
New Orleans
Gotta love the narrow streets and balconies at the Visitors' Center, but we just decided to wander. I wanted to see the St. Louis Cemetery that was just a couple blocks from our hotel, but got there about 5 minutes after it closed at 3 pm. I had read about Restoration Hall and the jazz music that is performed there every night so we stopped by to check it out. The first show was at 8:00 pm and they said the line starts about an hour before. As it was only about 4:00, we went back to the room and tried to plan our evening. The man at the Visitors' Center had recommended Coop's Place on Decatur St. between Ursalines and Gov. Nicolls Sts. as a good place for Creole food so we went there for dinner. It turned out to be a really good suggestion. We got there early, but probably didn't have to worry too much. The streets really weren't that crowded. I think we got there well before the Mardi Gras rush. Most of the tourists seemed to be middle aged couples like us. I ordered Coop's taste plate which included a cup of seafood gumbo (really good, but we both agreed we liked
New Orleans
The trumpet player yelled at me for taking this picture. He thought I should pay him the gumbo in Lafayette better), shrimp creole, Cajun fried chicken, red beans and rice and rabbit and sausage jambalaya (my favorite). Jim ordered a plate of fried mushrooms with horseradish sauce and a side of coleslaw which were both really good. We asked about a good place for dessert, but opted against it once we got back on the street. I wanted to go for a drink, so we looked for Pat O'Brians. We found it and it wasn't crowded, but decided to keep looking. A man on a bicycle stopped and offered us both beads. Once we took the beads, he demanded money saying we had to pay a homeless person. I gave my beads back. At that point, all I wanted to do was go back to the hotel. I'm not used to getting yelled at by buskers and homeless people. Maybe we're just too old, but the whole French Quarter scene didn't really appeal to us. I probably should have done my homework better and it would be nice to tour New Orleans with someone who knows their way around the city, but besides the pretty balconies and courtyards and the really good food, I think I'd
New Orleans
Looking out over Jackson Square and St. Louis Cathedral rather hang out in Greenwich Village. I felt very safe in San Antonio and I'd have no problem walking in Greenwich Village alone, but in New Orleans I was sticking very close to Jim. Once we got back to the hotel, we decided that it was too early even for us to go back to the room so we went into the hotel's bar/restaurant, the Bombay Grill, and ordered a drink. Bri, the bartender, was very good and quite personable, so we had a nice time. She made a very good martini. A piano player came in and played some Gershwin and Cole Porter classics, but I kept thinking that my friend Nancy could have played a lot better. Yep, Nancy, I wish you could have been there. Could be a great new career for you. :D
Thursday morning, we got up early and went for breakfast at a 24 hour diner, the Clover Grill on Bourbon Street. I was very happy with the grits, but the amount of butter on my plate was quite intimidating. We left the French Quarter, looking forward to the fresh air and open spaces of the Gulf Coast.
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