Trip Day Two - Writing this on day three due to lack of internet access in New Orleans. We have found that some services are not quite up and running, yet. And that is understandable.
We woke up in Natchtoches and headed south on Interstate 49 to New Orleans. We went first to the Aquarium and enjoyed the visit exceedingly. Turns out most of the fish perished in the storm due to the unanticipated failure of the back-up generator which was supposed to keep the oxygen in the water tanks. The penguins and some other birds were shipped to other aquariums. The facility was mostly back to normal although there were some outdoor tanks that were not functioning.
Our entry into the city was in an area mostly unaffected, at least to our untrained eye. So, so far we have not seen the devastation. Wednesday, I will probably venture into the eastern areas to have a look.
Last night after a swim in the hotel pool. The kids went to sleep and I decided to walk the streets. I enjoy getting out and seeing the people. I walked to Cafe Du Monde and enjoyed beignets and Diet Coke. I didn't choose to partake of the Cafe Au Lait. Not a coffee drinker. I got somewhat disoriented on my return walk but made it safely after witnessing some nightlife that was disgusting.
This morning we rose and drove across the causeway over Lake Ponchartrain to the home of Ted and Nancy Jackson. Here we were joined by other Jackson family members from McComb, Mississippi, where I grew up, and a local family from Ted and Nancy's church. Lunch consisted of most excellent burgers, tender corn on the cob, and beans. After lunch we traveled to Ted's sailboat, Whisper, and took a short jaunt by motor then by sail on Lake Ponchartrain. Back to the house afterwards for watermelon and homemade vanilla ice cream.
Right now, Ted has just finished showing us a slideshow of his pictures during Katrina. Ted was in the city living on the go for the first week before hooking up with family members and then returning to the city for more coverage and rescues. He and the staff of the N.O. newspaper received two Pulitzer Prizes for their coverage. This is in addition to an earlier one won by Ted and a reporter for another story on the overfishing of the Gulf of Mexico. We have talked about old times, old friends, and the stories about the people of New Orleans during and after the hurricane, the stories no one knows. Unbelievable stories. Unbelievable pictures.
Some quick things:
1. Beignets are far, far superior to the donut. Even Shipley donuts.
2. There are albino alligators.
3. Male seahorses have the babies.
4. Maison Dupuy hotel in New Orleans was a very good buy at $70 a night even with some of the services, like internet access, still disabled.
5. People are looking for something so badly that they will look in putrid places to find it.
6. Hearing the local news in a disaster area is different. Here, for obvious reasons, the hurricane dominates everything.
Tomorrow, we will go to the Audubon Zoo and try to ride the St. Charles avenue streetcar if it is operational. We will spend tomorrow night and head back toward home on Thursday.
There is more to write but I need to log off and visit.
We woke up in Natchtoches and headed south on Interstate 49 to New Orleans. We went first to the Aquarium and enjoyed the visit exceedingly. Turns out most of the fish perished in the storm due to the unanticipated failure of the back-up generator which was supposed to keep the oxygen in the water tanks. The penguins and some other birds were shipped to other aquariums. The facility was mostly back to normal although there were some outdoor tanks that were not functioning.
Our entry into the city was in an area mostly unaffected, at least to our untrained eye. So, so far we have not seen the devastation. Wednesday, I will probably venture into the eastern areas to have a look.
Last night after a swim in the hotel pool. The kids went to sleep and I decided to walk the streets. I enjoy getting out and seeing the people. I walked to Cafe Du Monde and enjoyed beignets and Diet Coke. I didn't choose to partake of the Cafe Au Lait. Not a coffee drinker. I got somewhat disoriented on my return walk but made it safely after witnessing some nightlife that was disgusting.
This morning we rose and drove across the causeway over Lake Ponchartrain to the home of Ted and Nancy Jackson. Here we were joined by other Jackson family members from McComb, Mississippi, where I grew up, and a local family from Ted and Nancy's church. Lunch consisted of most excellent burgers, tender corn on the cob, and beans. After lunch we traveled to Ted's sailboat, Whisper, and took a short jaunt by motor then by sail on Lake Ponchartrain. Back to the house afterwards for watermelon and homemade vanilla ice cream.
Right now, Ted has just finished showing us a slideshow of his pictures during Katrina. Ted was in the city living on the go for the first week before hooking up with family members and then returning to the city for more coverage and rescues. He and the staff of the N.O. newspaper received two Pulitzer Prizes for their coverage. This is in addition to an earlier one won by Ted and a reporter for another story on the overfishing of the Gulf of Mexico. We have talked about old times, old friends, and the stories about the people of New Orleans during and after the hurricane, the stories no one knows. Unbelievable stories. Unbelievable pictures.
Some quick things:
1. Beignets are far, far superior to the donut. Even Shipley donuts.
2. There are albino alligators.
3. Male seahorses have the babies.
4. Maison Dupuy hotel in New Orleans was a very good buy at $70 a night even with some of the services, like internet access, still disabled.
5. People are looking for something so badly that they will look in putrid places to find it.
6. Hearing the local news in a disaster area is different. Here, for obvious reasons, the hurricane dominates everything.
Tomorrow, we will go to the Audubon Zoo and try to ride the St. Charles avenue streetcar if it is operational. We will spend tomorrow night and head back toward home on Thursday.
There is more to write but I need to log off and visit.
posted by Brian Miller at 4:51 PM
1 Comments:
Both trip reports are great posts. Please tell Ted I read the article you put in an earlier blog and recommended it to friends. I also began reading his son's blog (I believe - a SWA flight attendant living in Denver, right?). Travel safely.
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