(no subject)
Oh yeah, I went to New Orleans for Halloween-
Hotel-
We flew in via Huntsville on Wednesday and took a cab to the Hotel Monteleone. Beautiful old family-owned place in it's fifth generation of proprietorship. It's the first place I've stayed in with a concierge and a hotel bar that had a revolving bar.
We threw our stuff in the room (small, but with a wonderful view of the street below and a very nice bathroom), and wandered out for our first view of the French Quarter. Okay, my second, but it was thirty years ago and in the company of my dad, so I missed out on all the really interesting stuff aside from the farmer's market.
My impression of Bourbon street was that it consisted of spring break bars and black tie restaurants. It was an amazing variance. $35-a-plate entrees, or loud pop music and drunken college kids. Either/or. I found a restaurant that looked like it might not be too crowded or pricey, though, and we had our first taste of the local cuisine. I'd recalled hearing that oyster po'boys were something not to be missed, so I ordered one.
It tasted like something fried on a bun. Couldn't really taste the oysters, it was just... fried something.
Cemetery tours-
Second day, we saddled up early(ish) and headed out to sign up for a cemetery tour. We wandered the quarter a bit, met up with Melissa's friend who'd recently moved to N'Awlins, and joined the horde that was going to be heading into Saint Louis Cemetery #1.
Just to give you some idea, these tours are Big Business. In the evening, you can't walk a block without seeing a ghost tour or a vampire tour or a haunted house tour or a historical walk tour. They are thick as flies in the Quarter.
Anyway, we were lucky enough to get Ernie, who was a 9-year veteran of the biz. He was engaging, funny, and kept to the point of the tour amazingly well.
We visited a number of local sites on the way to the cemetery, but once we got there, the real fun began. We learned how a city of so many people can bury their dead in such a tiny amount of space. Gruesome, yes. Pragmatic? Very much so.
Saw Marie LaVeau's tomb. Or at least, her reputed tomb, since there's a certain degree of doubt that she died, or that if she's dead that her family would leave her someplace where her bits could be plundered for gris-gris. I left a little gift and made a wish. (The second day we visited, I got to watch a voodoo priestess pay her respects at the tomb while dodging asswipe tourists.)
Then we wandered the Quarter and the waterfront together. Visted Second Skin Leather, a bunch of other shops, inspected the levee, and ended up at a bar called Pravda, a nice little Soviet-themed goth bar with an assortment of absinthes. I managed to alienate the bartender somehow. I think it was the fact that I was wearing a white T-shirt.
Had dinner, which consisted of a plate of shrimp alfredo. Yumzor.
During the trip, I think we managed to walk up and down almost every street in the Quarter.
Eating-
I gotta respect a cuisine that's based so deeply in seafood. Muffalettas, however, seem to be a bit rich for my stomach.
Touring-
We took a driving tour of the Garden District. It's the Old Money district, and shows it. The entire district was full of lovely old houses, any one of which I'd love to own. We visited the Lafayette Cemetery, and learned the difference between a good tour guide, and a drunken rambling one. Oy.
Drove through the 9th Ward. There's still rebuilding going on, but at least the piles of bodies and dead refrigerators are gone.
Halloweening-
Halloween night was pretty crazy. We dressed in our costumes (harem queen and harem boy), and took to the streets. It was astonishing. I think that *maybe* 5% of the people out there weren't dressed in costume. And it was PACKED. Louisianans obviously take their masquerades seriously.
We felt a little old to be part of the throng, but it was all good.
Police-girls seemed to be the hot ticket this year.
When we finally packed it in, we were serenaded by another French Quarter tradition: street musicians. We had musicians playing six floors below us every night. The ensemble on Halloween was even good.
Street-cleaning:
The morning after, we packed up and headed for the airport. As we stepped out of the hotel, there was an almost-overpowering floral/chemical scent.
Apparently New Orleans has combined their experience with Huge Street Parties and their knowledge of epidemics, and decided that the aftermath of big celebrations involves disinfecting the streets. So they send out the street-sweeper trucks to douse the streets with industrial disinfectant. This is awesome. I mean, I was already pretty clear with the idea that Streets Are Dirty And You Don't Lick Them. But to actually sanitize them? AWESOME.
Gothness-
Yes, There were Goths. They were all over the place. Cute couples in black with hair out to there, lots of velvet... it was heartwarming.
Melissa & Heather
Cast-Iron Cornstalk Fence.
It's a big deal, if you like cast iron fences.
Yay! Absinthe museum!
We went in later for the tour.
I like absinthe.
KITTEH WOULD LIKE SERVICE PLZ.
I approve of bars with cats in residence.
The levees are currently keeping the wet part separate from the dry part.
Bourbon Street.
Guah, big fence. Hotness.
I see dead people houses.
This is the lobby of our hotel. Not a hovel.
Where are the windows? Could this be a LAIR OF THE UNDEAD?!?
View from the ferry.
Part of the heavily-modded hearse.
Lafayette Cemetery. The pointy bits are intended to disembowel anyone crawling over. BUT FROM WHICH WAY?
We are cute. Admit it.
Rev Zombie's Voodoo Shop. Aw yeah.
This band sounded and looked like they should have been backing Tom Waits. In fact, I made up a Waitsian song on the spot.
But I am not Tom Waits, so it didn't count.
Pretty well-maintained grave.
Not-so-pretty less-well-maintained grave.
Me, leaning up against the Italian Society tomb where Peter Fonda and Dennis Hopper boinked Karen Black and Toni Basil. It's rumored that Dennis Hopper has the heads of the three statues on the other side of this tomb on his mantle.
Our hotel from a few blocks away.
The Italian Society tomb again.
Just FYI, making a mark on this tomb is jail time.
Those poor orphans, needing relief...
Hotel-
We flew in via Huntsville on Wednesday and took a cab to the Hotel Monteleone. Beautiful old family-owned place in it's fifth generation of proprietorship. It's the first place I've stayed in with a concierge and a hotel bar that had a revolving bar.
We threw our stuff in the room (small, but with a wonderful view of the street below and a very nice bathroom), and wandered out for our first view of the French Quarter. Okay, my second, but it was thirty years ago and in the company of my dad, so I missed out on all the really interesting stuff aside from the farmer's market.
My impression of Bourbon street was that it consisted of spring break bars and black tie restaurants. It was an amazing variance. $35-a-plate entrees, or loud pop music and drunken college kids. Either/or. I found a restaurant that looked like it might not be too crowded or pricey, though, and we had our first taste of the local cuisine. I'd recalled hearing that oyster po'boys were something not to be missed, so I ordered one.
It tasted like something fried on a bun. Couldn't really taste the oysters, it was just... fried something.
Cemetery tours-
Second day, we saddled up early(ish) and headed out to sign up for a cemetery tour. We wandered the quarter a bit, met up with Melissa's friend who'd recently moved to N'Awlins, and joined the horde that was going to be heading into Saint Louis Cemetery #1.
Just to give you some idea, these tours are Big Business. In the evening, you can't walk a block without seeing a ghost tour or a vampire tour or a haunted house tour or a historical walk tour. They are thick as flies in the Quarter.
Anyway, we were lucky enough to get Ernie, who was a 9-year veteran of the biz. He was engaging, funny, and kept to the point of the tour amazingly well.
We visited a number of local sites on the way to the cemetery, but once we got there, the real fun began. We learned how a city of so many people can bury their dead in such a tiny amount of space. Gruesome, yes. Pragmatic? Very much so.
Saw Marie LaVeau's tomb. Or at least, her reputed tomb, since there's a certain degree of doubt that she died, or that if she's dead that her family would leave her someplace where her bits could be plundered for gris-gris. I left a little gift and made a wish. (The second day we visited, I got to watch a voodoo priestess pay her respects at the tomb while dodging asswipe tourists.)
Then we wandered the Quarter and the waterfront together. Visted Second Skin Leather, a bunch of other shops, inspected the levee, and ended up at a bar called Pravda, a nice little Soviet-themed goth bar with an assortment of absinthes. I managed to alienate the bartender somehow. I think it was the fact that I was wearing a white T-shirt.
Had dinner, which consisted of a plate of shrimp alfredo. Yumzor.
During the trip, I think we managed to walk up and down almost every street in the Quarter.
Eating-
I gotta respect a cuisine that's based so deeply in seafood. Muffalettas, however, seem to be a bit rich for my stomach.
Touring-
We took a driving tour of the Garden District. It's the Old Money district, and shows it. The entire district was full of lovely old houses, any one of which I'd love to own. We visited the Lafayette Cemetery, and learned the difference between a good tour guide, and a drunken rambling one. Oy.
Drove through the 9th Ward. There's still rebuilding going on, but at least the piles of bodies and dead refrigerators are gone.
Halloweening-
Halloween night was pretty crazy. We dressed in our costumes (harem queen and harem boy), and took to the streets. It was astonishing. I think that *maybe* 5% of the people out there weren't dressed in costume. And it was PACKED. Louisianans obviously take their masquerades seriously.
We felt a little old to be part of the throng, but it was all good.
Police-girls seemed to be the hot ticket this year.
When we finally packed it in, we were serenaded by another French Quarter tradition: street musicians. We had musicians playing six floors below us every night. The ensemble on Halloween was even good.
Street-cleaning:
The morning after, we packed up and headed for the airport. As we stepped out of the hotel, there was an almost-overpowering floral/chemical scent.
Apparently New Orleans has combined their experience with Huge Street Parties and their knowledge of epidemics, and decided that the aftermath of big celebrations involves disinfecting the streets. So they send out the street-sweeper trucks to douse the streets with industrial disinfectant. This is awesome. I mean, I was already pretty clear with the idea that Streets Are Dirty And You Don't Lick Them. But to actually sanitize them? AWESOME.
Gothness-
Yes, There were Goths. They were all over the place. Cute couples in black with hair out to there, lots of velvet... it was heartwarming.
Melissa & Heather
Cast-Iron Cornstalk Fence.
It's a big deal, if you like cast iron fences.
Yay! Absinthe museum!
We went in later for the tour.
I like absinthe.
KITTEH WOULD LIKE SERVICE PLZ.
I approve of bars with cats in residence.
The levees are currently keeping the wet part separate from the dry part.
Bourbon Street.
Guah, big fence. Hotness.
I see dead people houses.
This is the lobby of our hotel. Not a hovel.
Where are the windows? Could this be a LAIR OF THE UNDEAD?!?
View from the ferry.
Part of the heavily-modded hearse.
Lafayette Cemetery. The pointy bits are intended to disembowel anyone crawling over. BUT FROM WHICH WAY?
We are cute. Admit it.
Rev Zombie's Voodoo Shop. Aw yeah.
This band sounded and looked like they should have been backing Tom Waits. In fact, I made up a Waitsian song on the spot.
But I am not Tom Waits, so it didn't count.
Pretty well-maintained grave.
Not-so-pretty less-well-maintained grave.
Me, leaning up against the Italian Society tomb where Peter Fonda and Dennis Hopper boinked Karen Black and Toni Basil. It's rumored that Dennis Hopper has the heads of the three statues on the other side of this tomb on his mantle.
Our hotel from a few blocks away.
The Italian Society tomb again.
Just FYI, making a mark on this tomb is jail time.
Those poor orphans, needing relief...