Bourbon Street and all that Jazz! New Orleans, LA

Friday,September 20th to Monday, September 22nd  Days 112-115

Neither Norm nor I had ever been to New Orleans, so we just had to spend a couple of days here to experience this city renowned for its music, party atmosphere, and of course, the food.

We needed to get our windshield leak repaired, and since there was not a single place that would work on it in the state of Texas, we located one in New Orleans. Because they couldn't work on it until Monday  we decided to stay long enough to get it serviced, no matter how long it took!

Is it a Marina?  Or is it an RV Park?  Pontchartrain Landing is both!  Awesome!

The man at the glass company recommended for us to stay Pontchartrain Landing, a lovely place right on the water that was reported to be very safe, which he stated was paramount here in New Orleans. 

When we arrived we decided to splurge on a campsite directly on the water, and boy it was worth it! Probably the nicest spot of the trip! Perhaps the best of all our travels! We could watch the fish jump, enjoy the gentle breezes, and were fortunate to have the sites on either side of us empty, which gave us plenty of room.  There was a marina right there so we could hear the lovely “dinging” of the sailboat masts and watch the boats come and go.  So incredibly peaceful!

We quickly set up and jumped on the shuttle bus to Bourbon Street! (So much for the “peace”)! Neither Norm nor I have ever been here, so we were anxious to check it out.  I would have liked to have showered and changed, but hey! We “seized the moment”!  After all, it’s New Orleans!

This place is such a Hoot!  The streets were jammed packed with people walking around carrying enormous drinks in very weird glasses, singing, hollering, and of course loud music emanating from every bar! The revelers were in every stage of dress (and sometimes undress ).  Men dressed as brides, woman dressed as men, and sometimes Norm and I were not sure what gender we were watching!

Bars with funky names on every corner and half-way
in between!

We met up with our friends John and Peggy from The Villages in a fabulous courtyard bar that featured a group actually playing Jazz.  I understand that jazz in no longer played in many places anymore, so we were thrilled to get the New Orleans experience we envisioned.

I watched as Peggy danced with a younger man celebrating his birthday.  I am so envious of both her dancing ability and self-confidence to get up there and enjoy herself!  I need to definitely work on that!

Alison " Tickling the ivories" with "Fats" Domino

Norm and I left and wandered the streets gaping at the sights and found a very nice Italian restaurant with seats on the balcony overlooking the mayhem below.  It was terrific!

After dinner we wandered some more, stopping to listen to the fabulous bands, a violinist, and to witness a wedding party parade right down Bourbon Street!  Unfortunately our shuttle bus was to pick us up at 8PM, so we could not spend as much time as I would have liked.  But Boy, I just loved it!

Norm wanted to see the famous War Museum there in New Orleans, so we spent the next day going to that.  It was quite interesting, but I have seen three War Museums lately, so I got bored rather quickly, and went outside to wait while Norm enjoyed this huge museum.

Monday, September 22nd

We brought our RV first thing in the morning to the Auto Glass Company so they could try to find and fix where the leak in the windshield might be.  It was going to take all day, so Norm and I decided to take the tow car drive along the river and check out the old mansions.

It was very disappointing  to discover that from the road we were on, you could not see the water because of a huge berm! 

 I pictured a meandering river with large oaks and draping moss with mansions standing proudly at the end of long, tree lined  driveways.   Reality revealed a road more like a highway with industrial buildings and giant parking lots, lined by  fields gone to seed, and abandoned buildings.

Evergreen Plantation in Edgard, LA. Reportedly the most intact plantation complex in the South.
It was mostly constructed in 1790 and renovated to its Greek Rival Style in 1832.
It was extensively restored in the 1940's 

We were able to explore several of the orignal 22 slave quarters. 

After a couple of hours of driving, we found a historic mansion that was giving tours.  We ran for lunch then came back to take the tour.  I personally thought it a rip off.  The tour guide was an extremely unmotivated young woman, who could not answer the most basic questions.  The home had been renovated to such an extent it wasn’t even an accurate depiction of the life so long ago we wanted to learn about! 

We finally received a call from the repair facility, which reported that it was not the windshield at all that was leaking but the running lights above. He fixed the light that was actually leaking, but warned us that the rest of them should be addressed at a later time.  We authorized the repair, then headed back.

It was nearly 5PM when we left the glass company, and headed toward home during the evening commuter traffic.  Norman handled it like a pro, while I looked online for a place to spend the night a couple of hour’s drive away.  At this point, we just wanted to get home!

We found a convenient place to stay at Oaklawn RV Park in Biloxi, Mississippi.