This is one of those days where we didn't do as planned, but the unplanned stuff became great fun. We had planned a cruise on the Natchez riverboat ... that didn't happen because someone had reserved the boat for all of Saturday and Sunday. We had planned to visit Preservation Hall ... that didn't happen because we just didn't get there.
We walked the riverfront toward the Convention Center and took the free Canal Street Ferry over to Algiers and back. As we waited to board, Carol complemented another passenger on her colorful pair of New Balance sneakers ... a connection was made with Sherri Rosen (from New York City) and her friend Carla Leftwich (from New Orleans). More about them later.
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| Crescent City Connection over the Mississippi (I-90 Business) |
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| Creole Queen Riverboat |
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| Natchez Riverboat and French Quarter wharf |
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| IMAX Theatre, Aquarium of the Americas (looking toward Canal St.) |
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| empty tanker heads out |
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| Waiting on the ferry for a return from Algiers |
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| New Orleans riverfront from Algiers |
We returned from Algiers, got on the Riverfront Streetcar and rode by Woldenberg Park to the Toulouse St. stop. Surprise ... Sherri and Carla had taken the same route (to and from Algiers, then the streetcar)! They offered a recommendation for lunch - Ralph & Kacoo's Seafood Restaurant. Carol had gulf shrimp; Dick had catfish. The atmosphere, service and the meals were outstanding.
After lunch we roamed around listening at various music venues.
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| This group was one of our favorites |
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| The violinist in the background must have been professional |
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| The performers above were at Toulouse St. and Royal St. |
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| This fellow wasn't much of an artist, but he was a work of art |
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| Bourbon St. was our least favorite. It specialized in bars and drunks. |
One of the music venues was in Irvin Mayfield's Jazz Playhouse at The Royal Sonesta Hotel. It was a really classy place in the midst of Bourbon St. chaos.
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| Brass Band Jam |
Next, we made our way through the sea of people to the United Airlines International Stage. We saw our favorite group here yesterday, but weren't that fortunate today. The group was described as "International" ... International Falls, MN.
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| This group was mostly noise. |
The Riverfront Streetcar offered a break from walking and from the noise. We rode to the end of the line at the Convention Center, then back to the transfer point and caught the Canal Street Streetcar with intentions of going to the cemeteries. Progress was too slow and we got concerned about missing our campground shuttle. We hopped off and walked back to Toulouse St. and to Vic's for gelato. Guess who walked in ... Sherri and Carla. What a treat! We had a nice visit, exchanged cards, then said goodbye.
It was a long, very nice day. We leave reminding ourselves there's much more to New Orleans than the French Quarter and Bourbon St.
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