Today we decided to try to take it easy. I brought four pair of comfortable well worn shoes and still managed to get a blister that made wearing anything but flipflops impossible. I think I was getting my payback for saying all those nasty things about how tired I am of seeing everyone in flipflops.
One thing I have noticed is that the young women in New Orleans are really dressing up, and I saw a lot of high heels. How they manage to walk on these cobblestones I will never know...but more power to them.
George wanted to take me on the free ferry to Algiers, so after a cafe au lait and beignets at Cafe du Monde, we walked to the ferry and took a lot of pictures. The Mississippi is brown and swirling with current. After the ferry we fell panting into the casino to see if they were giving away any more money. They were. I put in $10 and made $40...so we cashed out and used the money to cab it around today and save my poor blistered foot.
After a short rest, we went down to the French Market and the U.S. Mint to catch the Satchmo Summerfest performers. We were standing on the street with a thousand other people, enjoying the ambience and the music, when we realized that the Louisiana Pizza Kitchen was right behind us, they had a table with a window overlooking the stage, and we were hungry! We had a lovely late lunch of hawaiian pizza and ice teas and got to watch most of the set with air conditioning! Amazing.
We walked halfway back and decided to cab it again to the casino. This time they saw me coming and ceased handing out free bucks, but I managed to be there a whole hour and only lost $10, which is almost like making a profit.
Watching the New Orleans Saints on TV is mandatory when you are in New Orleans, so that is what we are doing this evening. The Saints offered hope when hope was hard to find after Katrina. From the stage this afternoon Kermit Ruffins asked for people to remember that they were all blessed to be here to enjoy the beautiful day and go Saints! Amen.
We leave at noon tomorrow but plan to get out of the hotel early enough to have crepes at Petunias, the best place for breakfast in the French Quarter so we've heard. And then it is off to the airport and the long plane ride home.
Have a great night.
