Blogs from New Orleans, Louisiana, United States, North America

I rode 450 miles in 11 1/2 hours (8 on bike). What started out as a nice leisurely ride ended up being not so leisurely. Expected to get to the motel at 2 pm, didn't get here till 5. Tired and hot (not sore, I took Tylenol at 2). I am going to nap and go into the french quarter for dinner and entertainment, so I will not be writing a blog tonight. I do have notes and will add the blog as soon as I am able. In the meantime, I am curious about who is following this blog. The Blog tells me the number of hits, but it can't tell me the number of people (it could be one person reading it many times or many people reading it once) and it can't tell ... read more

Day 14 May 17, 2013 I left Tallahassee early, the sky was still dark and it was cool. When I got on he highway there was very little traffic, it almost seemed like I was on an open road in the west (almost). I am excited to be riding without all of the congestion. I love watching the sun rise, the period of time before the sun actually rises and the sky is starting to get light, is very beautiful and peaceful. As I mentioned, it was very cool and my hands got really cold. After about a half an hour of cold hands, it occurred to me that my hands would be warmer if I turned on my heated handgrips. It is about 1600 mi from New Orleans to home and 7 days to do ... read more

Hi, All -- My first couple of days in Louisiana were spent driving around the outskirts of New Orleans with Sandy (Sandy driving), visiting a couple of plantations and enjoying the countryside. The first plantation stopped at, Houmas Plantation, has an outstanding garden and that's where we spent our time as the plantation house didn't look that interesting. The second -- Laura: A Creole Plantation -- is well visited as you can see from the sign. On a good day, hundreds and hundreds of tourists pour through the house and grounds. The poor tour guides were bumping into one another on the day we were there. Fortunately, our tour guide was excellent, quite a good story teller. And there's a lot of story to tell here. By the way, this is where Br'er Rabbit originated. According ... read more

Sunday - Easter Sunday - we walked to the famous Cafe Dumond for their famed beignets and cafe au lait. There was a huge lineup but we got take out quickly and ate them for our breakfast on a park bench. The famous French donuts smothered in icing sugar were ok but not all they were cracked up to be. We caught the Charles St. trolley and went to the National World War II museum. It is reputedly one of the best WWII museum in the country. There are three pavilions - The Boeing Center with WWII aircraft hanging and 4 levels of walkways where you can view from any angle. (Marv - Larry didn't know where the Douglas SBD was used in the war. Do you?) The Pavilion that has the exhibits of ... read more

We arrived in New Orleans at about 4:30 into a traffic jam. We are staying at the Quality Inn just beside the French Quarter. I asked if they could upgrade our reserved double queen room and we got a king suite on the corner! Scored! Walked to Bourbon St for supper at Oceana as recommended by the hotel. Looks like it will be expensive to eat and drink in NO. First impression of Bourbon St is that it is full of debauchery and all that is decadent (including people) and tourists. Hugely noisy and busy. Apparently it is like that day and night. Food and drink are a big part of experiencing New Orleans. So far we've tried a Mint Julep at the plantation, (bourbon with sugar syrup and mint) - liked it; a ... read more

NEW ORLEANS FEBRUARY 22 - I flew in from Tampa via Atlanta arriving at 5:30 (CST) as scheduled. I had a nice surprise, I was upgraded from economy to first class. The mileage programs pay off! What a pleasure it was. The cloud formations were exceptionally beautiful! A shuttle to the Hilton Riverside was good, the only problem I experienced was the long lines at registration of this big hotel (they had a weekend competition for elementary and middle school age cheerleaders going on). I survived and got to my room and changed before going to dinner at Emeril’s. I walked from the hotel to the restaurant and made a stop at Gordon Biersch for a great draft beer. What an experience Emeril’s was! First class in every way. I sat at the chef’s bar and ... read more