St. Bernard State Park, New Orleans, LA
Memorial Weekend in New Orleans. Might as well head for the belly of the beast and go right to the French Quarter.
We arrived late morning committed to staying until my dancing sister got to experience another evening swing event.
The best part of strolling thru the streets is hearing the incredible jazz. The woman in this band just owned the clarinet and had a smooth jazzy voice as well. I could have listened to her for hours, except the sweltering sun kept us moving.
After taking a stroll thru the French Market we thought it was time that Gary & Linda were initiated to the wonders of the Muffeletta. As far as we are concerned the Central Market is the only place to go. Proud to announce they are now devotees.
When Gary was in flight school one of his fond memories was putting peanuts in a coke, shaking it up, then drinking it. We all watched as the coke fizzed up and he gave it a swig. He reports it was just as tasty.
We stumbled into the New Orleans Jazz National Historic Park building and there was loud, enthusiastic drumming going on. A woman was explaining the local cultural influences on New Orleans jazz and their very unique Second Line.
They asked for volunteers to do some drumming, and before you knew it Ned and I were drumming away and Linda was joining us in dance before a packed house. OMG - this was so much fun!
We walked from the Mississippi River, all thru the French Quarter, strolling each and every street, eventually ending up on the infamous Bourbon Street.
Along the way, Linda found a vintage shop that specialized in swing dresses, the boys snagged some daiquiris, we popped in several hot sauce places and quirky shops, and we all participated in people watching.
By late afternoon we were ready to take a break in a shady court and have some beignets and ice coffee.
We saw several weddings today, including one ON Bourbon Street and many, many Second Lines with the bride and groom dancing, complete with police escorts. Crazy place this New Orleans.
Just cuz, I put in this collection of signs and things unique to New Orleans. Yeah, I did taste the crawfish jelly. It was pretty good too!
At 7ish we walked over to Frenchmen Street so Linda could put on her dancing shoes and get in some more swing moves. Gary took a couple of turns with Linda then decided he wanted to experience Bourbon Street at night. We left Linda dancing away and off we walked once more to Bourbon Street.
It.was.insane.
Glad to report we survived and made it back to Frenchmen Street to tear Linda away from the dance floor. I'm beat, but my toes are still tapping away to the great jazz sounds we heard today.
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