Aylmer Express "MoHo" Extravaganza 2006

Some more “iffy” weather greeted us again today. I am not liking this trend. Oh how I long for the sunny days of yore. Anyway, we are off to the French Quarter today. That’s right. We are in New Orleans! Chantal has always wanted to see this city and finally, today, she will get her wish. I have been here on a couple of previous occasions but this time I was looking forward to seeing the French Quarter whilst unencumbered by the obfuscation of inebriation. It was Sunday morning this time. One of the people working at the campground used to be a tour guide in this fine city and he gave us more options that we could possibly follow-up on in a single day. So we narrowed our scope down to a few of the options that were suggested and off we went. We started with a short driving tour of the Garden District. We got to see an interesting blend of rich and eclectic on our way through. One place the tour guide mentioned was the house, or should I say “manse”, that John Goodman recently acquired in this area (see photo). We also found one of the, typical for New Orleans, above-ground cemetaries. We then cruised on to the French Quarter, found some free parking (yes!) and proceeded on foot. We strolled down Bourbon street where Chantal picked up a few articles for her Halloween costume. We continued to meander about reveling in the architecture and quaintness of this Acadian enclave. As I mentioned previously, I have been to the French Quarter but, unfortunately, in both cases, having been slightly “over-served”, I was not able to fully appreciate (or possibly even focus on) the intricate details that define this beautiful area. And in spite of it being Sunday afternoon, we did spot many people who had managed to indulge perhaps a little too much already. Some things never change. As we continued our stroll we came across a wonderful foursome of musicians playing some typical Dixieland jazz that somehow seemed to envelop you with the spirit of this place. The music seemed to surround you and float you away into that Big Easy state of mind. Check the video I uploaded to see for yourself. We grabbed some lunch at a place on Bourbon Street and partook in a little Jambalaya and Shrimp Gumbo with an appetizer of Gator Bites. A wonderful way to immerse a little more in the local culture. Unfortunately all of the historic houses that are typically open for tours are closed on Sundays so that was not an option. But we did enjoy the rest of our tour around “the Quarter”. We then jumped back in the car and made our way to a plantation not far from our campground in hopes of catching a tour there. We found out that they, too, close on Sundays so the plantation tour was also out. On our way back I looked closely to see if I could recognize the place where, we were told, they filmed the final scene of the movie Easy Rider. No luck, but it was kind of cool to think that I was driving down the same road where Jack Nicholson and Peter Fonda were driving their choppers thirty some odd years ago. Then it was back to the campsite for a laid back evening of reading to the kids. Today we finally finished Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince which we started not long after we left on this trip. I am not sure what we are going to start reading now. I was kind of hoping the next Harry Potter book would be ready by the time we finished … and at the rate we read this one, it was possible!

Today’s word:
manse \MAN(T)S\, noun:
1. A large and imposing residence.
2. The residence of a clergyman (especially a Presbyterian clergyman).