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Welcome to the city of New Orleans.............Willie Nelson would not be proud of my lack of recollection, but hum the tune while you read this and it might paint a better picture.
NOLA, The Crescent City, The Big Easy, and The City that Care Forgot, the list goes on. We all have a special place in our hearts for this city, anyway you refer to it, at least I do. This was my 4th Mardi Gras, I think, and definitely one of the best. Although I was not under the guise of collegiate maitre d's from Tulane as in years past it was still a great trip. We started off from H -Town with the ol' Nugent mobile choickerd full of the greats. Myself, Francis, Brett, Sam, Sara and some Norwegian guy. The trip up was classic including discussions of Mongolian political matters, why Whattaburger ketchup is so damn good, future rafting trips up the Inner Coastal Highway and so on. As on every mecca, or at least road trip over three hours, beer almost always plays a main cast role,... but of course not for the driver. I believe this is what Suburbans were made for, that and reeking
faith, power and justice
representin the colours of Grand Duke Alexis soccer pads and Hi-C juice boxes.
Upon arrival in NOLA, we finally got to see where we were staying. A nice little hotel on St. Charles called the ***** ** ****'s, ...don’t want to boast. We bombarded like disheveled rock stars into our room that was meant for two people. We were five or six, I can’t remember, but we were packed in tighter than Algeria's annual budget. This was resolved by letting everyone in the hotel know that we were in a band, so they treated us like the monarchs we connived to be and everything was kosher. Brett played guitar and Sam played Navajo pan flute, that was it actually, but I do believe they thought we were a legitimate touring band from Texas. Probably because of the costumes we wore.
After tucking in to Alligator kabobs and Abita Restoration's, we were set to tackle a true Fais Do-Do. I rubbed my Gris- Gris, voodoo charm, and was ready. Being in a hotel this time was a bit different, as I had previously bunked in Uptown the past times, but Downtown has its advantages. One being that you are so close to everything and two being
that...well that’s it, I guess it’s the proximity that’s nice. Floats went by in traditional faire, horns blowing, beads flapping and drinks being a drunken. A grand ol time, yes sir. We finished the night fishing for Bloody Marys at Igors, jamin outside the Maple Leaf and singing to the waxing moon.
The week went on by showing some of our other friends the historical districts and tourist monuments, as it was their first time. This trip was great, because of Francis's parade enthuse, I believe we saw 90% of them. Late night, we tucked into Camilla’s and other local hotspots, followed by 3 hr sleep sessions. Fun stuff when you have 7 people in one hotel room.
The last night was boomed into Fat Tuesday straight from the cannon of Lundi Gras. A true Mardi Gras experience is never complete without a trip to one of my favorite venues, Tipitinas. Scalping tickets was fun as usual, and we finally got everyone into the Galactic show. One of the best things ever conceived by the musical community, a concert that last 8 hours, from 11pm to 7 am. True G's then continue on to Zulu. My third time
and one of the better shows I’ve seen there. The parking lot is always detrimental to your health. It lies across from Safeway and Tip’s, but I always run into show veterans here. This time I saw a girl from a San Diego show, I forget her name, but a strange find in a cosmic collection of people. Bret, Sam and I danced and played Indonesian memory games that sparked a wave of conformity and next thing I knew the whole parking lot was joining in. Oh yhe, it was Brett's Virthday, lucky guy, not everyone gets a birthday that cool.
After the Crescent City brass horns faded away, the sweet siren song of the Bayou City was a callin. H Town bound, we were all tired and smiling. An epic trip had just ended, but we knew there were more to come on the horizon. You can now let Willies sweet song fade away while you smile and think about your next trip to N'awlins.
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