New Orleans - September 2003

Knowing that we would soon be "cleared" for trying to conceive, we decided to use miles and Amex points to take one last "adult" trip before we started a family.  What better place than New Orleans? Tamara had been there twice and really wanted to show Glenn around.  We planned the trip over Labor Day weekend, not realizing that it was also Southern Decadence weekend (New Orleans' gay pride weekend), but that only added to the fun.

The weekend started off great with a first-class flight to New Orleans via Newark, where Glenn indulged in a few bloody mary's to kick things off New Orleans style.  When we arrived, our hotel room wasn't ready yet so we walked over to Mother's for lunch.  After a short wait, we stuffed ourselves on their amazing po' boys, biscuits, and jambalya (and a couple more bloody mary's for Glenn).  Then we took a walk through the French Quarter before heading back to the hotel for a nap.  That night, we had a great dinner at Emeril's Nola and then took in some jazz on Bourbon Street.

On Sunday, after a jazz brunch at Arnaud's, we wandered the city, shopped for art, and filled ourselves with beignets.  For dinner, we went to the classic Commander's Palace.  This trip was all about food and fun!

The next day, we booked a plantation and swamp tour.  The plantation tour was interesting, but nothing special.  Plus we got rained on! (Have you noticed a trend with our vacations?)  But the swamp tour was amazing, even in the rain!  Our guide grew up in the bayou and his grandfather was a trapper.  Not only knowledgeable about swamp life and ecology, he was also brave, as he proved when he got in the water to "play" with an alligator he nicknamed Rudy.  We also got to see territorial Rudy wrestle with another gator who got a little too close in his search for the marshmallows they were being fed.  Glenn and I even got to hold a baby gator!

Later that afternoon, we decided to invest in a little art as a souvenir for our trip.  Next time you visit, look in our family room for a close look.  Before leaving for home the next day, we took in the aquarium and had our last taste of authentic cajun food.

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