2010 New Orleans, Friday

We got up early this morning to take full advantage of all New Orleans has to offer. Since we were on a budget, big ticket entertainment was not on the plan for us. We chose instead to do some educational activities.

As a musician, but not a huge jazz fan, I had decided that it was my musical duty to explore the Jazz History of this fantastic city. So, I started with the New Orleans Jazz National Historical park website where you can go to download an audio walking tour of historic New Orleans Jazz sites. I got the tour downloaded to my mp3 player and printed out the tour map.

After a quick breakfast at Krystal burgers, we were off. We actually started out on Bourbon Street and found Edison Place a.k.a. Musician's Park where there is a little cafe that also serves breakfast. Wish I'd known that before we at at Krystal burgers!!! I quickly got my photo with Fats Domino, Al Hirt, and Pete Fountain before venturing off towards Louis Armstrong Park to begin the audio tour.

Can you imagine my disappointment when we arrived after walking 10 miles to find the park closed!?!?! It was 110 degrees out there at 9 a.m. and I was already dying from the heat and lack of thirst! No, just kidding, it wasn't 10 miles or 110 degrees....But I was very disapointed that I couldn't enter the park to see the Louis Armstrong and Sidney Bechet statues and learn all about Congo Square.

Instead, I took this lovely photo of the gates of Armstrong Park. Hopefully, it will be open again soon so that I can visit.

Next up on the tour is the Basin Street Station a.k.a. Basin Street Visitor's center.

On the corner of N. Rampart and Dumaine streets is this building, built around 1835, with the galleries most likely added in the 1850's. In 1944, J&M Amusements acquired the building and Cosmio Matassa soon opened the J&M Recording Studio.

Oscar "Papa" Celestin, Danny Barker, and the Dukes of Dixieland all recorded Jazz here. The "New Orleans Sound" developed from pioneering rhythm and blues and rock and roll recordings made here between 1947 and 1956 by Paul Gaytin, Annie Laurie, Roy Brown, Dave Bartholomew, Fats Domino, Professor Longhair, Smiley Lewis, Joe Turner, Guitar Slim, Shirley & Lee, Lloyd Price, Jerry Lee Lewis, Ray Charles, Little Richard, and others. Sadly, this building is now a laundromat.

We wandered around some more and found Preservation Hall. I was looking forward to sitting and resting in the shade a bit but, unfortunately, Preservation Hall's operating hours are only in the evenings. Preservation Hall was founded in 1961 to protect and honor New Orleans Jazz. It is also a great spot to take the kiddos and introduce them to the great Jazz music. Admission is only $12!!

We rested in the shade a little before heading out to our next stop at 1026 Conti street. This building was the site of the last operating house of prostitution in the once thriving Tango Belt. Once an area of respectable theatres and cabarets, it quickly supported the milder side of the "sporting life:" prize-fighting, proto-jazz music, alcohol, and dance halls. When Storyville's future became uncertain, sub-rosa drugs and prostitution completed the picture here.

Our next stop was 401 S. Rampart Street, where we learned a little about Black Storyville/Chinatown where this building housed Jake Itzkovich's Eagle Loan Office until about 1907. When he relocated, Frank Douroux opened his 2nd tavern on the block in 1908 and named themselves after the saloon - the Eagle Band, which was Buddy Bolden's band...sans Bolden who at that time was institutionalized in the state insane asylum. The third floor was the ballroom for the combined Odd Fellows/Masonic Lodge which had this lodge in an adjacent building at 1116 Perdido Street. Buddy Bolden's, John Robichaux's, and Buck Johnson's groups played for dances in the ballroom. Looks sad doesn't it?

After all that walking around and education, we stopped for a mid day nap in the air conditioned hotel room and then went down to Felix's for lunch. Dahlin' chose one of his favorite meals, a dozen oysters on the half-shell. They arrived and he doctored them up for his consumption.

Here he is doin' the doctorin'.

After the doctorin'.

I played it safe with this scrumptious looking grilled shrimp sandwich. It was the best tasting thing I've ever eaten!

We wandered around some more and while waiting for the Canal Street trolley, I took this pic of some stray Mardi Gras beads just hanging around for next year's party.

We did a lot more but since it's currently 2 a.m. here at home, I think I'll stop posting and opt to edit this later.

2010 New Orleans - Thurs aftn

About a month ago, I had planned a little getaway jaunt to the Big Easy to celebrate Father's Day with my Dahlin'. I didn't want to bother him with having to drive down and find parking for the weekend, so I got Amtrak tickets and rode the choo choo train. It was my first ride on an official train!!! I got to update the baby book that my mom started for me way back in the '60's!

While we waited for the chariot to arrive, I stood outside of the depot and took a pic of this little mama who was busily trying to distract us from her nesting area.

Inside the depot.

This is REALLY cool!!! It looks just like a painting doesn't it? But noooooo! It's a for real scene that we passed by while riding the train!



We arrived in New Orleans about an hour and a half later and got situated in our room up on the 39th floor of the Marriott at 555 Canal Street. Here's the view from our room with the French Quarter to the right of Canal Street.

Here's our lovely hotel room. The bed was extra comfy!!!

After we got settled in, there were still a few hours left before it got too dark to see anything. So we tried to get a little sight seeing in. We walked around a bit and ended up down at the River Front. We happened to stumble up on a movie being shot!!! "The Chaperone" (starring some WWE wrestler named Triple H?). This fellow in the shot is one of the actors but I don't know which one, shooting a scene on the River Front.

After observing the film arts in action, we ended up at Landry's Seafood for dinner. When I first walked in, wearing my shorts, tennis shoes, and Tshirt, I felt a little intimidated thinking that perhaps I needed to be a little more dressed up. But, I digress, we placed our order and received the wonderful Shrimp Enbrechette for our appetizer.

Dahlin' order his safety fave, the fried seafood platter. I swahnee, he needs to be a little more ambitious in his cuisine adventures.
I ordered the very delicious Blackened Catfish Atachafalaya with Dirty Rice and fresh green beans. Yum Yum YUM! Can I just say it?
After dinner, we strolled around some more and encountered a few of the Jackson Square characters. Here's one all dolled up in his metallic outfit complete with metallic looking teeth (or grill as they call them now?).

We finally ended up back in the hotel room, ready to pass out from exhaustion, when I happened to look out the window to view the Canal Street and French Quarter at night. What a beautiful end to the beginning of a great weekend!!!

Be sure to read the rest of the 2010 New Orleans posts for more!!!