BigWeather's Blog

We were a bit slow to awake in the morning.  Michelle and I both had headaches and I didn’t sleep very well the night before.  Regardless, we had big plans to make it to the Algiers Riverfest by noon in order to see the Mardi Gras Indians and I didn’t want to miss it.  After our showers we headed off to breakfast.  As Genetta and I wanted beignets but Michelle and Addison wanted something a bit more substantial we ended up compromising and going to Cafe Beignet on Royal near the NOPD station.

It’s a neat spot, with almost a WWII London subway (ahem, tube) bunker feel — despite the flora painted on the ceiling and the pleasant breeze (helped by overworked ceiling fans) blowing in from the courtyard.  We had quite a wait, though, as it was absolutely packed with basketball fans (as the cafe is near Canal, the side of the French Quarter nearest the Superdome and the CBD).  Regardless, I had a solid breakfast of four beignets and water while the rest of the family (including that traitor Genetta!) had a heartier breakfast of eggs, grits, and bacon.

Cafe Beignet on Royal Street, French Quarter

After breakfast we walked to the ferry at the end of Canal and had only a short wait.  If any of my readers ever decide to come to New Orleans definitely take the free ferry from the French Quarter over to Algiers Point.  It is a nice ride, offers great views of the Quarter and the river, and is blessed with the nice breeze often found while on the river.  We saw a huge cruise ship docked just short of a bridge there is no way it could pass under.  My father told me the day before that piloting the cruise ships the 105 miles to the Gulf had become a profitable side business for the tugboat and riverboat captains.  The river at this point is at its deepest along the entire 3,500 mile length — 200 feet.  In fact, the highest point in the state is just over 500 feet in the northern part — I bet no other state has its lowest point below sea level nearly as much as its highest!

The Riverboat Natchez

Saint Louis cathedral from the Algiers Point ferry

Algiers is a nice neighborhood, the second oldest in New Orleans having been founded in 1719.  Unfortunately we walked the wrong way for a few minutes and didn’t realize it until about 12:15p, fifteen minutes after the Mardi Gras Indians were to parade.  We high-tailed it back the other way, showing up at the festival (which was located near the old location of Mardi Gras World) at about 12:30p.  Luckily for us they were still parading!  There were about ten or so Indians from the “Mohawk Hunters” in full regalia, including the chief, medicine man, flag boy, and spy boy.  It was heartening to see several youths participating in the tradition — it is great that it is being passed on.  They were singing and dancing and it was quite the spectacle.  One of the songs contained the lyrics “won’t bow, don’t know how.”  As they wrapped up and paraded to the levee (pausing for photos from those that wanted them) I was just so happy to have witnessed them.  Neither my parents nor I, in many visits to New Orleans, had seen the Mardi Gras Indians.  What a treat!

Mardi Gras Indian "chief"

So where did the Mardi Gras Indians come from?  In the mid-1800s African-Americans identified with another minority, Native Americans, in their struggle against the majority.  Some African-Americans would also try to pass as Native American to avoid some of the worst prejudices of pre- and post-Civil War.  Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show increased interest in Native American dress and culture and it is about this time that African-Americans in New Orleans started masking as Mardi Gras Indians.

Mardi Gras Indian "flag boy", note the amazing bead work

The different groups of Mardi Gras Indians, the tribes, have a structure with a “chief”, “spy boy” (who runs ahead looking for other tribes), “flag boy” (who bears the tribe’s standard and communicates between the “chief” and the “spy boy”, and a “medicine man.”  In the beginning (late-1800s and early-1900s) the different tribes would fight when encountering each other.  Over time, however, this tradition morphed into a contest where the tribe with the best suits, songs, and dances would be considered to have won.

Mardi Gras Indians

The suits have thousands of beads, weighing up to 150 pounds.  It was hotter than hell today so I can only imagine how hard it must’ve been to stay in costume, dancing and singing the whole time.  A new suit is constructed every year.

Another Mardi Gras Indian "flag boy"

It is quite rare to see the Mardi Gras Indians outside of Mardi Gras and the Sunday just before March 19 (Saint Joseph’s Day).  One of our favorite HBO shows, _Treme_, follows the story of one of the tribes post-Katrina.  If you have any interest in New Orleans it is an excellent series and gets more right than wrong about this at once very familiar but at the same time very odd city.

Mardi Gras Indian "medicine man", note the bad ass Spanish Moss greaves!

It was getting blazing hot and we set out to get some snowballs.  Genetta and Michelle got cherry, Addison grape, and myself sour apple.  Yummy!  Mom and Dad headed back to the ferry via shuttle bus while we stayed behind to eat our snowballs and watch the Algiers Brass Band play.  The festival wasn’t very crowded — I’m thinking the Final Four and its free concerts must have stolen much of the potential crowd.  A shame, but then again we had fun!

Who dat (sayin' we can't put bounties on opposing players)?! (oops)

Abandoned items near the old location of Mardi Gras World

Algiers Brass Band playing at Algiers Riverfest

We headed back to the ferry by walking along the levee.  Managed to get on the ferry just as it was about to leave.  While on the river (and waiting for a large tug to pass) we heard what sounded like Blondie’s “Call Me” playing.  We later learned that it was Blondie, playing as part of the Final Four festivities.  Caught the riverfront streetcar back to Esplanade and the short walk back to where we are staying.

Cool car parked on Esplanade

After a short rest we headed to dinner at Snug Harbor.  I was really in the mood for a burger and word was that their burgers were as good as Port of Call’s.  After a short walk to Frenchman Street, and being a bit early, we were admitted to the dining area.  We had fried mushrooms with horseradish sauce for an appetizer.  They were amazing!  Next came the burgers (with baked potatoes, not fries, on the side) which were also very, very good.  I had cheddar cheese on mine (which was not a slice but shaved cheese piled high) and sauteed mushrooms on my potato.  I did have a mishap where the first bite shot juices all over my shirt.  Oh well, hopefully the stains will come out.  Worth it!

Returned back to the Courtyard and walked with Mom and Genetta into the French Quarter.  Mom peeled off and went grocery shopping while Genetta and I made our way to the river (where she noted that perhaps it wasn’t the smartest thing in the world for the many people drinking there to be so close to the very fast-moving current) and then on to Cafe Du Monde.  There we had beignets (yes, again!) and she had cafe au lait while I had frozen cafe au lait.  Very tasty!  There were some youngsters there (about college age, I guess — gets harder to gauge the older I get) blowing the confectioners sugar on each other.  I just don’t get it.  That’s the best part!

Riverfront Streetcar at dusk

Headed back to the Courtyards, passing art galleries and stores filled with lots of stuff we don’t see at home.  One of the art galleries had really cool pictures of trees and woods.  We then visited with Mom a bit in the courtyard, and then headed up to blog while the kids watched TV, played iPad,then went to bed.  Even at 1a there is still a healthy crowd at the bar across the street — very different from home where the sidewalks are rolled up at about 8p.  A good day!

I struggled with whether or not to blog this trip to New Orleans.  Not because it isn’t an awesome place to visit (it is!), but because of key differences with my two previous trip blogs, to the American West in 2010 and to Eastern Canada in 2011.

First, I haven’t blogged a spring break before, including the one between the aforementioned trips that we took to the North Carolina mountains.  Not because it wasn’t an awesome trip, but because we only went for a part of the week and part of the visit was a personal visit to a relative.  I try to keep this blog as family neutral as possible.  They’re awesome, but they’re family, if you know what I mean.  That’s personal stuff.  Still, I look back at some prior spring breaks that I wish I had blogged — ’09 to Nashville, Memphis, Hannibal (MO), and Kentucky, the trip to Disney a few years prior, DC, and others — and I think this will have enough material to keep me busy.

Second, the prior two trips were about our discovery of an area and my desire to share the experience.  New Orleans, however, isn’t an unknown.  I’ve been coming here since the late-70s and early-80s and, despite fewer visits even my wife and I have managed to make it here three times in our 18 years of marriage, including a wonderful trip in 2010 with the kids.  So this isn’t exactly new territory for us, and it’ll probably be more relaxing and enjoying the week than even our last visit in which we went to the WWII museum (go there if in town, it is superb!), checked out alligators on a swamp tour, went to the Voodoo museum, and saw an exhibit on the history of Mardi Gras.  Also, as I discovered while blogging about Indian Lake last summer, it is difficult to blog about places that have so much personal history associated with them.  Still, I think we’ll do some interesting things (blog-worthy even!) and I’d hate to miss recording it.  So, without further ado…

After a late night packing and backing up photos we awoke at about 5:30a to finish packing and getting ready for our trip.  After a breakfast of chocolate-covered donuts and some bagels Michelle’s father arrived at 7:15a to take us to the airport.  Got there about 7:45a and just as we’re getting to the front of the check-in line a couple shouts out that they need to be in front, they have a flight in 10 minutes.  The check-in agent wasn’t having any of it and just dropped the facts on them hard.  “M’am, the plane is loading and the door almost closed.  You haven’t been through security.  You need to be looking at a later flight.”  Delicious.  I have an idea — try not showing up ten minutes before departure.  We’d see them later after going through check-in and security, sitting in a corner with a sad look on their faces.  Of course my evil thoughts were paid back almost immediately when we were told our luggage was two pounds overweight.  Removing my jeans (not the ones I was wearing, now that’d be funny!) and putting them in our carry-on fixed that.

Security was fun, as always.  Except this time with the added wrinkle of that full body scanning machine.  I didn’t know I had to put my hands on my head (what’d I do, officer?!) and got scolded for that.  Glad I don’t travel much.  Got out to the concourse and relaxed before hopping on board our Southwest Air flight to Tampa Bay.  Genetta was really sweet and bought Addison book two of that Hunger Games series, _Catching Fire_.

The flight was uneventful, other than it being murder on my trick knee (the trick being, apparently, stabbing pain if it doesn’t move for about fifteen minutes or more) and that I can’t use the tray as my knees are up too high.  To quote Zoolander, “What is this, a plane for ants?!”  Read a National Geographic about the Titanic (100 year anniversary of the sinking happening next month and all) as well as an in-flight magazine article about New Orleans.  I really like Southwest.  So long as you do early bird seating it really does get you on the plane quicker and it’s nice picking out the seats.  We always take a row and then have Genetta in the window seat in the row in front of us.

Landed in Tampa Bay and got lunch at Chili’s Too.  Mainly a hamburger and salad affair, but decent enough.  Had a bit of time to kill.  I almost bought Kevin Smith’s new book but after years of not paying jacket price for hardcovers I just… couldn’t.  Flight to New Orleans left on time and was also uneventful.  I mainly slept but the last thirty minutes or so I was awake — Addison’s ears were really hurting (he had something going on with his ear the prior week).  It is always amazing to see, when flying in, just how much of southern Louisiana is water.  Basically stretches of dry land surrounded by marsh and open water.  Also got to see many of the refineries that line the river and the flames they blow out every once in a while.

Landed in New Orleans and, in contrast to 2010 when the airport was downright sleepy, stepped out to pandemonium.  With the Final Four in town there were greeters showering us with Mardi Gras beads with medallions with the Final Four logo.  People passing out guides to the city.  A “third line” playing in baggage claim.  Many chauffeur types with iPads (apparently the new hi-tech version of the poster board) identifying themselves as being there for Coca-Cola, or CBS, or what-not.  We got our ticket to the airport shuttle (and back) and hastened out of there.

On the shuttle there were a number of older folks flying their school colors — one from OSU, a couple from UK, even a Canadian that didn’t have a team but just wanted to see the event.  The driver accidentally kissed a Jersey barrier but luckily we didn’t crash or anything.  After tooling around the CBD near the Superdome (festooned in banners for the four Final Four participants — Kentucky, Kansas, Ohio State, and Louisville) we finally headed through the quarter to the other side.  Here the driver opened up a bit and was quite talkative about how crowded Baton Rouge was post-Katrina and such.  I’m still very torn on whether or not I want to go visit good ol’ Big BR.  Sometimes childhood memories are best left as memories, I’m thinking.

Got dropped off at The Courtyard Inn on Royal and met with my parents in the courtyard.  They had arrived earlier that morning.  After hauling the luggage up the stairs and settling in we headed out to dinner at the Mona Lisa on Royal.  I had a meatball sub and everyone else had some flavor of personal pizza.  Then we wandered to La Peniche in Marigny where I shared some Oreo cream pie with Addison and the others had chocolate layer cake.  Good stuff!

Entrance to The Courtyards Inn

Fountain at The Courtyards Inn

Stairs to our unit in The Courtyards Inn

Headed back to the room exhausted and crashed while the others amused themselves.  I wanted to watch Supernatural or blog but just couldn’t manage it.  It had been an exhausting day on top of about three hours of sleep the prior night.