New Orleans Museum of Art

Friday, June 8 - Sandy made a visit to the NOMA Sculpture Garden.  Some very cool art!

Crossfit in NOLA

Friday, June 8 - Ok, ok... So this is my last Crossfit visit on the road trip.  This time I worked out at Crossfit NOLA 504 with Coach Jeff (next to me in red bandana).  Another great group!  Thanks, guys!

And they were all game for sweaty post-workout photo...  Man, was it humid!!

Dancin' in the street

Friday, June 8 - We stumbled upon this little bit of entertainment on Bourbon Street.  Keep an eye on the lady in the white shirt at :16.  Yeah!  Love it!

Sightseeing around NOLA

Friday, June 8 - We had a great day exploring New Orleans.  Some highlights:

We took the streetcar to the Garden District.  This streetcar line is the oldest continuously operated street railway line in the world, since 1835.

Most houses in the Garden District have light blue ceilings on their porches.  

It supposedly is a deterrent for bugs to nest there.

We explored Lafayette Cemetery No. 1 in the Garden District, 

which is on the National Register of Historic Places.

We had an impromptu tour from a caretaker of the cemetery.

We had lunch at the Camellia Grill at the other end of the Garden District.  

Recommended by Sandy's neighbors, Terry and Marty.  Lots of entertaining local color!

A new take on Spanish moss -- Mardi Gras beads!

Green Goddess in NOLA - Must Eat Here

Thursday, June 7 – My sister’s colleague Kim pulled together an amazing recommendation list for us for places to eat and drink in NOLA.  We were hoping to meet up for dinner with my friend Carrie who I grew up with in Michigan and who now lives in Baton Rouge.  She was planning to drive down to meet us until she had car trouble.  I had sent Kim’s list to her to see if anything looked good, and she said that her suggestions were so good that she was going to save the list for future reference, too!

Since Sandy had never been to New Orleans, we started the night with the obligatory visit to Pat O'Brien's for a Hurricane.  I'm not sure if I've had one since I went to Mardi Gras in college... but one sip and it all comes back quickly...  Rum and fruit punch.  Don't drink it too fast... it's dangerous.

Our first pick from Kim's list (other than Pat's) was a tiny little place in the French Quarter called Green Goddess.  In Kim’s words, “Small place, amazing food, great chef, very progressive, inventive.  Also vegetarian friendly.”  We arrived at it’s small, open storefront which is down an alley called Exchange Place, a little after 9pm, not realizing that they usually close the kitchen at 9.  There was only one big table of 6 or so, a couple of seats at a bar and the open kitchen visible. After giving the woman at the restaurant the “oh, no!” look after she said they stop serving food at 9, and saying that our friend had recommended that we come, she said, “ok, go down this hall and take the empty table in the back on the right.  And so we did.  There were only two other tables of two in the back, which was more like a small atrium with stairs and a balcony on a second floor.

The woman who sent us back to the table was Tessa, and we learned that she has a story as interesting as the eclectic items on the menu.  But first, the food:  we had a strawberry and blueberry salad with goat cheese and a caramelized creole tomato with Manchego to start (pictured), and then Crabmeat Isleno with a warm arborio and black rice cake, and South India Uttapam, a savory pancake with curry veggies and tamarind chutney.  All fantastic.

Tessa, in her early 20s, had recently arrived in New Orleans after coming from the east coast… on her bike.  By herself.  Impressive, and brave.  She said sometimes she would knock on people’s doors and ask them if she could pitch a tent and camp on their front lawn overnight.  She had intended to go all the way to the west coast, but fell in love with New Orleans because the city was good for her soul.  We thoroughly enjoyed chatting with Tessa throughout our meal.

When we sat down to look at the menu, we consulted the tips on Foursquare for Green Goddess.  Tips on Foursquare have come in handy throughout the trip, and if they weren’t useful, they were usually entertaining.  In the case of Green Goddess two things stood out: 

1.) mention the “password” to get a special treat, and

2.) Bacon Sundae.   There are many mentions of it.  Our favorite: 

"The Bacon Sundae will make you slap your mama... It's so good!"

Bacon Sundae?  So, we asked Tessa about both.  First, “Do you still have the bacon sundae?”  Yes.  “Ok, we’re in for one of those.”  Second, “does the Password still work?”  There were contradictory tips on Foursquare whether it still worked or not. She didn’t know, but checked.  It turns out there isn’t a password anymore.  It ended when one of the chefs left.  No worries.  However, the bacon sundae was very tasty and memorable: praline ice cream with whipped cream, bacon-infused caramel, and crumbled bacon.  Wow.

It was a perfect start to our two nights in NOLA.

Back in Louisiana

Thursday, June 7 – This was a triple-state day:  Woke up in Alabama, drove through Mississippi, and will go to sleep in Louisiana.  At the suggestion of our friend Chris before one of our road trips a few years ago, we try to always stop at the state Welcome Center/Rest Area after crossing a state line.  As we saw in Mississippi, you never know what you’re going to get.  (After the Mississippi Welcome Center, the next-best Welcome Center was probably in New Hampshire as we drove up the East Coast in 2010.)  Another added bonus:  they often have a great state sign for good photo-ops.  (We’ve found this to be the case more in the South than in other parts of the country.)

OK, so admittedly, this picture is pretty cheesy.  But heck, it’s rather appropriate given that the start and end of this trip was in Louisiana, right?  We are not embarrassed…

Once again, another storm was a-brewin’ as we crossed Lake Ponchartrain.  We’ve seen these storms daily since hitting the Charleston/Savannah area.

Deerprocessin

Sunday, May 27 - Just in case you need some DEERPROCESSIN, stop by on one of the Louisiana Scenic Byways in St. Francisville.  They should be able to help you.

And oh, don't take this road out of town.  Pick one with a bridge.

Views from the observation deck

Sunday, May 27 - The views from the observation deck on the 27th floor of the State Capitol were pretty striking:

North: The petrochemical factories in the distance almost look like an alien skyline.  

West and Southwest:  The Mississippi River.

South: The Capitol Gardens with Huey Long's statue and grave, 

downtown Baton Rouge, and LSU in the distance.

East: Formal rose gardens.

Louisiana State Capitol

Sunday, May 27 - We also love state capitols.  We're going to hit a few on this trip.  This capitol is pretty interesting.  Built by the "controversial" Governor Huey Long in the 1930s, it is the tallest state capitol in the country with 34 floors, and is a pretty amazing example of Art Deco architecture.

Quick stop at LSU

Sunday, May 27 - We like to visit colleges and universities along our routes, so a stop in Baton Rouge required a visit to LSU.  We were also hungry, and there are always good food options on a campus.  We had lunch at a highly recommended diner/institution, Louie's Cafe, around since 1941.   We sat at the counter, which is usually great, except when you are in the direct line of fire of the cooking spray for the waffle irons.  We smelled like waffles for hours, but the burger and chicken club were great.  Sandy loved Tony Chachere's Creole Seasoning - "Great on Everything!"


Walking around the edge of campus, we stopped in Bengals and Bandits, a shop for college gear.  The key chain on the Hertz rental car keys was broken, and we needed a solution to get us through the two weeks.  When we went to check out, Sandy we started talking to the students working at the store, Mariah and Chris, and asked them what the festival in town was all about.  Turns out it was the Bayou Country Superfest at LSU Tiger Stadium.  Chris told us that they can usually tell which people in the store were going to the Superfest by the way they are dressed, and then he said, "You don't look like you're going."  I guess with the two of us looking like we walked out of a J. Crew catalog, we're pretty easy to peg.  


It also turns out that both Chris and Mariah are members of Tiger marching band! Which, of course, we thought was pretty great, since I'm also a college marching band alum.  Way to go, guys!  We'll be looking for you on TV in the fall!

Getting the essentials

Sunday, May 27 - The start of a road trip requires an essential stop:  A Target store to get supplies, and most importantly, The Cooler.  Proper Cooler Management is key to a successful road trip, and it all hinges on the ice.  We were lucky enough to hit a Super Target, so we took advantage of having access to  all components in one place: cooler, food, beverages and ice, so we got everything in order even before leaving the store.  We even upgraded to a bigger cooler, since it's so hot down here.

Nottoway Plantation

Sunday, May 28 - Just a few quick things from our tour of Nottoway Plantation first thing in the morning:

1.) it's hot and sticky even early in the morning;


2.) there are grapefruit trees growing in the yard;

3.) the average height of a man in the 1850s when this mansion was built was 5"3", which means that;

4.) they could easily walk out of the "windoors" that open onto the porches and go all the way to the floor;


5.) the plantation was essentially unharmed during the civil war, except for having one small cannonball about the size of a golf ball fired at it from the river, which at the time was 9 acres away.  The ball was lodged in the far left column near the top, until it fell out on its own in 1971.  Yup, it just fell out by itself 100 years later.

Tweeting on the Levee

Ok, so Sandy doesn't actually tweet, but it sounded better than "Facebooking on the Levee" or "Playing Words With Friends on the Levee".

The levee is actually pretty amazing.  It's goes all the way along the Mississippi from New Orleans to Baton Rouge.  It was built in the 1930's after a devastating flood in the 1920s.  It's basically a big hill with a single lane dirt road along the top of it.  When you drive along the real road (down to the left), you can't actually see the river.

This photo on the levee was taken right across the street from Oak Alley Plantation, and is clearly a spot for tourists to grab a photo op of the plantation, which is across the main road to the left.  After we snapped our own photos, up pulls this bus, and out pops about 20 tourists.  That was our cue to high-tail it out of there.

My first question when seeing the name on the bus: "Tour company? Or dating service?"

The River Road

After picking up the car, we headed straight out of New Orleans and up the River Road along the Mississippi to see some plantations.  First stop: the Laura Plantation in Vacherie.  It's a Creole plantation, so instead of being painted the traditional white favored by Europeans, it's painted in bright colors.  We had a great tour guide, so if you ever go, ask for Jasmine.  The main house is built in 1804 high on top of brick pillars that also go 8 feet underground to protect it from floods and make it stable in the silty ground.

The second plantation stop was Oak Alley, which they say is the most picturesque of the plantations along the River Road.  True to it's name, it has an alley of Live Oaks that predate the current mansion by 150 years.  A good first photo op for RT12!

Welcome to Louisiana!

It's road trip tradition to take a picture of the welcome sign as we enter a state, which usually involves slowing down the car or - if it's not life-threatening - actually get out of the car in order to get the perfect sign shot. Flying into a new state usually doesn't give us this opportunity, but we got a pleasant surprise at baggage claim! Not only did we get a welcome sign, but our bags came in on the same claim (Sandy connected through Atlanta).

We couldn't have timed our arrivals more perfectly. We landed almost simultaneously, parked two gates apart, and I was at Sandy's gate 2 minutes before she walked off the plane. Perfect start to RT12!