Leaving for New Orleans tomorrow!

waaahhhh!

Early spring? Eva, I envy you. Hold your dominion.

Have a beignet and some Luzianna-style coffee for me.

Thanks, guys!

I will have a cafe au lait for George while holding a beignet and my dominion for Noddy. Hope I don't drop anything!

Do you like haunted tours? There's a good one that leaves from the front of the church in Jackson Square and walks you all through the French Quarter. Another one will take you around the Garden District -- you may have to ride the streetcar to get down there -- to Lafayette Cemetary (that's where they filmed the LSD scene in 'Easy Rider'; all the tombs are above ground). The cemetary is across the street from Commander's Palace, which is one of the best restaurants in the country, not to mention the city. Its prices reflect that, so if a really lavish and pricey meal doesn't happen to be on your agenda...

...there's a little hole-in-the-wall diner in the Quawtah -- not far at all from Cafe Du Monde -- called Tujaq's (Too-jacks) that I recommend highly. Very famous with the celebrities (their photos line the walls) and the locals for reasonably priced comfort food.

Be sure and visit the Strand district in Galveston, and especially the Railroad Museum as well as the period homes on Broadway (Bishop's Palace, Ashton Villa). There's another haunted tour there which tells the tales of the cannibalistic natives of Galveston, the Karankawa Indians, the pirate Jean Lafitte, souls lost in the Great Hurricane, and more.

My current favorite restaurant there is Shearn's, on top of the Moody Gardens hotel. But there's also Rudy and Paco's in the Strand (Latin and Jamaican cuisine, not Mexican) and a great martini bar directly across the street named 21. Two stand-bys for great seafood on the Seawall are Guido's and Fish Tales.

Go to MSN's City Guides (link on the msn.com home page) for more.

Have a great time, Eva! I can't help you with any great tips. I was there ages ago and remember enjoying early coffee at Cafe du Monde, also finding some very interesting hole-in-the-wall stores. If I were to go there again, I think I'd want to get on a boat and feel what it's like to be floating on the Mississippi.

Full report when you come back, please!

OOoh fun! Have a blast!

My Mom and I went to NO twice when I was in Law School. A few things we did (aside from Café du Monde and the like):
* the racetrack (I don't know quite why, but it was fun)
* ferry tour of the Mississippi
* walking around the older houses (it wasn't an organized tour)

New Orleans is just fun, and so much is different there from pretty much anywhere else in the US. Enjoy!

Darn, I wish I'd seen this before you left, Eva. I would have tried to persuade you to stop here in Houston and have a drink with me!

Maybe next time...

Please tell us how your trip goes.

I hear there are great thrift and antique shops...

Have a brilliant time, Eva! Now is a great time to be in Lousiana.

Have you any specific plans for your time there, or will you be visiting places randomly?

Hey everyone, I'm back!

Had a wonderful trip for the most part. Glad to be home, though.

Stayed with old friends in Baton Rouge for a couple of days. We hadn't seen them since their daughter was 13. She's a ballerina with the Austin Ballet now and perfectly gorgeous. Good to catch up. B.R.'s St. Patrick's Day parade was a hoot...they were still throwing beads, coins, etc. from the floats just like Mardi Gras. They never get tired of it down there. My son caught five bags full of stuff and made us drag it all the way home. Now he is asking the predictable age-old question: "What do I do with it NOW?"

They boiled live crawfish for us, made shrimp & andouille jambalaya and even gumbo. All homemade. Everything was delicious. Then it was on to New Orleans.

We'd been there several times before, but never stayed in the French Quarter, so that was a new experience. Found a European-style boutique hotel there, very nice. Did some VERY early Christmas shopping along Royal St. and stuffed ourselves for several days. Cafe' du Monde's beignets and cafe au lait the first morning, followed by a Central Grocery muffaletta for lunch, etc., etc. Pralines, po-boys and mimosas and more...Found several one-of-a-kind local restaurants that were outstanding. Best of the bunch was Mr. B's Bistro (owned by the Brennan's family). Also great was the Bon Ton Cafe' in the Warehouse District. Superb food and service at both places. Highly recommended.

Toured historic homes and plantations. Can't get enough of them! Oak Alley Plantation along the old River Road was outstanding. I have some wonderful photos I'll try to post...is the gallery up & working again? (I saw Craven's announcement about that.)

We had planned to go on to Galveston next, but the friends in Baton Rouge invited us to spend a couple of days at their hunting/fishing camp in extreme south Louisiana instead. My husband & son were thrilled, so I very reluctantly agreed. This place was waaaaaay out in the bayous. We're talking serious swampland here, folks. Accessible only by boat. Cabin had a generator for electricity, a cistern for rainwater. Just us, the alligators, the snakes and the mosquitos...or so they told me. I spent most of the time holed up inside the cabin with my nose in a book trying to forget how we were completely cut off from civilization (shudder). The boys, however, had a great time fishing, boating, shooting rifles...one bad note, though. A gun accidentally went off too close to me. The doctor says my hearing should return in a few days.
(No kidding. Stop laughing.)

It was NOT the sort of place one would ever envision taking the Goddess of Love. (sniff) I shall NOT go there again.

We came straight home after that so I could see the doctor. He said if my ears haven't cleared up by Wednesday, I should start worrying.

Not laughing, believe me.

Eva, I'm glad you had a good trip with good food, good friends, and shopping even. (Did I ever tell you that I grew up in Baton Rouge?)

Please let us know about your hearing. That sounds scary!

Yes, it IS scary! However, my doctor acted like it was no big deal, so I'm trying not to worry too much. Everything sounds like a radio that's in between stations...a lot of static.

No, I didn't know you grew up in Baton Rouge! My husband lived/worked there for five years in the '70s before he moved to Tulsa and met me. Actually, the friends we visited in B.R. lived in Tulsa then, and they talked him into moving here then they moved to Baton Rouge! Small world... Oh, it was already very warm there. In the 70s. Azaleas blooming already.

Yes, the early Spring is very nice. Fragile, new green everywhere and blooming fruit trees.....good weather.....except for the hail.

I hope your hearing improves. Let us know when to worry. I have a policy to not worry until I know I have to. It must be worrisome for you.......but as you say, probably ok. Keep us informed.

And don't make such a big mess around the table.

Eva, your trip sounds like heaven--except for going to the outback, swampy, isolated, awful place with a gun going off too close to your ear. Good luck with that. Please let us know how it turns out.

Looking forward to pictures.

Now don't you wish you had prevailed upon the men to get you to Galveston?

Hope you get to hearing better soon.