Hard Times in the Big Easy: Avenue Garden Hotel, New Orleans 6/5/08

We got up this morning and headed over to the Midas shop, hoping that the alternator was delivered by 10:30 – it was! We left poor Winnie at the shop and biked thru the city, We had a great time biking at the Riverwalk, along the banks of the Mississippi. We eventually made our way to the French Market and decided to have lunch at the Market Café. The one thing we hadn’t yet tried was a muffuletta. We ordered one, thinking we would split it. This thing is huge! It could easily feed a family of four. We sat outside , listening to live jazz, sipping iced tea and eating the best thing yet in New Orleans. The breeze was blowing off the Mississippi and I was thinking that this was the best time I’ve ever had getting a car fixed. We eventually headed back to Midas and had to wait until about 2 for the car. Finally, everything seemed to check out okay and we were on our way. We thanked the mechanics, they waved us off and wished us well on our journeys. We traveled about 10 miles on I-10 when suddenly the Eurovan lost all power and the instruments froze-up. Ned remained completely calm during the ordeal, got us safely off the freeway. We literally coasted into a gas station. We called the Midas shopand after a bit of a wait, Jim the mechanic, drove to us and checked things out. Turns out the NEW alternator was faulty – DOH!!! We called Triple AAA and had the Mighty Winniemobile pathetically towed back to the shop. (See photo of the magnificent Winnie going down…) So, we now need to order another alternator and hope it arrives by tomorrow morning and it works. The Triple AAA tow driver, Melvin, was a reas gem. He also did some diagnostics and agreed that the alternator was dead. We enjoyed his company (and air conditioned cab) as we traded scary alligator stories. While Ned was dealing with car issues, I went into event planner mode. I called the State Park in Mississippi and changed our reservations from Thurs. to Friday night. I also called my assistant – aka Dad – to help us locate a cheap, safe, clean hotel within biking distance. We settled down in a quaint hotel in the Garden District. I tried getting used to the luxuries of air-conditioning and a private bathroom. To tell the truth, I’m feeling a little claustrophobic and am missing the great outdoors and social camaraderie of camping at State Parks. (Seems weird to walk a few feet to the restroom and not hop on your bike waving to other campers along the way). Well, here’s hoping the Winnie hits her stride again soon and we are on our way.