I left home via Vancouver cab at 3:30am
to PDX for 6:00 flight to Seattle. I
had a really long walk through the Seattle/Tacoma Airport to catch my flight to
New Orleans. I met Ben Thomas with the
music group Jovino Santos Neto - musicians from Seattle on their way to a gig
in Mississippi. I had a window seat in
bulkhead row. I arrived at New Orleans
about 3:10pm. I took the Airport Shuttle
to the InterContinental Hotel, 444 St Charles Ave. I was given a room on the 8th floor with a
large balcony overlooking the courtyard and three breakfast vouchers. I had a light meal and fell asleep early.
There was a full mini bar in a cabinet which
I did not touch. Also there was a
container with boxes of Chocolate Chip Cookies, Chocolate Peanut M&M's,
Roasted Cashews, Pringles Original, Dark Chocolate Almonds, Pringles Sour Cream
& Onion, Twix Minis, and Kit Kat Miniatures. And there was a bottle of wine: Kendall
Jackson Vintner's Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon 2016 and a large bottle of Fiji
Natural Artesian Water. I put the
container on the top shelf of the closet and the two bottles next to the coffee
maker inside the cabinet. Out of sight, out of mind.
Wednesday, Feb 20
A historic 1865 house on St. Charles Avenue burned in a
massive seven-alarm fire this morning.
The 8,785-square-foot house at 2525 St. Charles, known as a toasting
spot during the Rex parade, is unfortunately a catastrophic loss. It was first reported at 7:44am. It wasn’t
considered under control until about 1:45pm, six hours later. The fire appears to have started in the basement
and quickly spread. The house’s age presented a challenge. Newer houses are
typically built with “fire stops” designed to prevent flames from spreading
quickly. This house had no such stops.
When I rode by on the St. Charles Streetcar two days later on Friday
morning there were still fire trucks at the scene.
I woke at 6:00am. I had a buffet breakfast in the hotel restaurant. I caught a Lyft at 9:30 to the New Orleans School of
Cooking, 524 St Louis Street. Chef
Brandon Moreau was the chef. He grew up
in southwestern Louisiana. He has French
and Acadian Ancestry. He made Gumbo,
Jambalaya, King Cake Bread Pudding with cream cheese sauce (I had two helpings)
and Pralines. I caught a shuttle back to the hotel at
1:20pm. I had a glass of Chardonnay at
Trenasse at the hotel at 5:00. I watched
"Survivor" and it was off to bed early.
Thursday, Feb 21
I woke at 6:00am. I had a buffet breakfast in the hotel
restaurant. I caught a Lyft to 873 Canal
Street. I found several Virtuals in the
French Quarter: Ignatius J. Reilly ("Confederacy of
Dunces"), Edison Place, Menu Venue, The
Founder, A Shining Example, Whose Funeral is it? and Lafitte's Blacksmith Shop. I got the traditional powdered sugar beignets
and a glass of milk at Cafe Beignet near Jackson Square. I caught a Lyft at St Ann Street back to the InterContinental
hotel at 5:00pm. I had a glass of
Chardonnay at the hotel restaurant. I
purchased some food for dinner at nearby Starbucks.
Friday, Feb 22
I woke at 6:00am. I had a buffet breakfast in the hotel restaurant. I rode the St. Charles Streetcar to Loyola
University and back. I tried to get a
Greyhound ticket on line several times on my IPhone but it would not work. So I caught several streetcars to the
Greyhound Station, 1001 Loyola Ave. I
went to the restroom. When I got to the
ticket counter it had just closed! Back
to the hotel. On the way I found the
Virtual Survivors Park, New Orleans.
The Road Scholar New Orleans Program
began at 4:00pm with Registration in the Gentilly Room. There was an Orientation meeting. We had dinner in the Trenasse Restaurant in
the hotel lobby at 6:00. I had White
wine and Shrimp & Grits. Tonight's parades were Oshun, followed by
Cleopatra. The second parade was
better. Then it was off to bed.
Saturday, Feb 23
I woke at 6:00am. I had a buffet breakfast in the hotel
restaurant. We had a class:
"Carnival in New Orleans" by Nellie Watson. We got box lunches which I ate mine in my
hotel room while watching television. I
had Grilled Vegetable Ratatouille with cream cheese spread on French bread. I watched a couple parades. We walked from the hotel lobby to Fogo De
Chao, 614 Canal Street inside the JW Marriott Hotel. I had ribs, veggies etc. for dinner. I watched a couple parades and then it was
off to bed.
Sunday, Feb 24
I woke at 6:00am. I had a buffet breakfast in the hotel
restaurant. We had a class: "Music:
The Soul of Mardi Gras". Bus
departed at 10:45 for Mardi Gras World where floats are built. Not enough time there! We departed for noon Brunch at the Palace
Cafe, 605 Canal Street. I had Andouille
crusted gulf fish with vegetables. I
wandered down to the waterfront where I found the From Distant
Shores Virtual. I caught a Lyft at 4:00 back to
the hotel. I watched a couple
parades. I had a light dinner.
Monday, Feb 25
I woke at 6:00am. I had a buffet breakfast in the hotel restaurant. We
took a field trip via motor coach with expert on-board commentary for an
overview of the city. We had lunch at Superior Seafood, 4338 St. Charles Ave. I
had sautéed shrimp served over Superior cheese grits. I
hopped off the bus at St Louis Cemetery No. 1 to get the Marie Laveau, Voodoo Queen
Virtual. I walked south on St. Louis
Street to the Steamboat Natchez at Toulouse St Wharf for an hour and half ride. I rode a pedicab to Deanie's Seafood for
dinner. I had combo of deep fried shrimp
and catfish served with coleslaw. Food
was terrible. I went back to the hotel
on the tour bus.
Tuesday, Feb 26
I woke at 5:30am. I had a boxed breakfast from the hotel
restaurant. I took a Lyft at 6:20 to
the Greyhound Bus Station to catch the 7:30 bus however the bus broke down
somewhere between Houston and New Orleans.
So I caught the 10:30 bus to Biloxi, MS.
I arrived about 12:30pm.
I caught a Lyft to nearby Ocean
Springs. I toured The Charnley-Norwood House, 509 Beach Drive. It is a summer (winter) cottage
designed by architects Louis Sullivan and Frank Lloyd Wright in 1890 in Ocean Springs, MS on the Mississippi Gulf
Coast. The home was built as a vacation
residence for James Charnley, a wealthy Chicago lumber baron, and its style
represents an important change in American residential architecture known as
Prairie School. In 1895, Charnley sold
the property to fellow Chicago businessman Frederick W. Norwood. In 1897, the main house burned to the ground,
but Sullivan modified and rebuilt it to nearly the same design. The Gulf
Coast National Heritage Area Program manages the property under the MDMR.
The tour guide gave me
a lift to the Biloxi Lighthouse where I did the Virtual. I caught a Lyft to the Greyhound Bus
Station. I walked to Sandbar Bar and
Grill where I got a delicious BLT sandwich and chips.
The bus was 30 minutes late. I
arrived in New Orleans about 6:00 and caught a Lyft. I arrived thirty
minutes late at the New Orleans School of Cooking, 524 St. Louis Street. Our chef was Anne Leonhard. We enjoyed a wonderful mix of Creole food
conjured up in this demonstration class of Chicken and Sausage Gumbo, Shrimp
Etouffe, Bananas Foster, and Pralines. I
rode the tour bus back to the hotel.
Wednesday, Feb 27
I woke up at 6:00am. I had the buffet breakfast at the hotel
restaurant. I watched the open House
hearing on television of Michael Cohen, President Trump's former lawyer while I
packed for the trip home. I had 1:00pm
late checkout. The Airport Shuttle
picked me up at 1:10. My flight left
about 4:15 to Seattle and then on to Portland, Oregon. I had a Fruit and Cheese Platter during the flight for
dinner. It was an interesting trip but
great to be home! I have a stuffed
animal and a sack of colorful beads thrown from the floats.
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