So, what did we do to mark the occassion?
We had researched restaurants to have a special lunch and decided on Clancy's(as I have said in the previous post), as it had been recommended by the emergency room Dr who gave it two thumbs up. So we went...
Well, actually, we put the 'girlfriend' on (GPS ,which actually has a male voice!) and it took us to the restaurant which happened to be closed. My BIG question to Waz was then "DID you check to see that it was open today???"(really!! What kind of stupid female questions is THAT? :) ) "Well," he said..."Who isnt open on a Saturday??"...never mind, there are others!
So, we backtracked and found Magazine Street and drove down that for a short way before finding a parking space...things were pretty busy in Uptown, New Orleans, on a saturday....and we walked back to the restaurant we had seen on the way down the road...The Flaming Torch.
It wasnt appropriate to take photos inside (I do know these things, occassionally!)so you wont see what it was like! sorry!
We started with the French Onion Soup, which we later found out they are famous for. It was excellent, though a bit much cheese. The accompanying french bread was also a bit old. We found out, after our neighbor inquired, that they had run out the night before and somehow had to go for bread this morning, so Im guessing it was day old bread from somewhere.
Waz ordered the Veal liver with Onions and Madeira jus with cheese grits. This was pronouced excellent. I ordered the seafood crepe, which was also excellent...lovely creamy sauce and full of fish, shrimp and crawfish.
We didnt think we could manage dessert, and the selection on offer was pretty standard...white chocolate Bread Pudding and Creme brulee. Waz ordered a Mimosa (orange juice with Champagne...was $5 a glass on special) to go with the meal...I helped drink it:)
It wasnt an inexpensive meal, but this was a celebration, so no matter!It was generally a success, and we were happy with our meals.
We needed to walk it off, so started down the road back towards the city. We had been told not to go River side of Magazine Street, so we stuck to the main drag. We had passed a Whole Foods Supermarket on the way in, and were very excited to see that, so we went there first.
We bought some lovely looking bacon..hard to find in the USA...and some cardboard packaged soups of a favorite brand (we had one for dinner!) amd perused the aisles. We find Whole Foods to be expensive, but the food is beautifully laid out and of excellent quality. We might make a trip back for provisioning just before we leave NOLA.
Once we had walked down the road and up the other side for a good hour, we promised ourselves we would have a Latte at this Community Coffee house. We LOVE community Coffee...so this was an opportune time..and it was 3pm!
What amazed us was that there was not one table available for us to sit at inside. ALL of them were occupied by students (lots of student apartments in the old houses down the street) with their laptops and text books. Aparently it is cram time for exams! The assistant said that most days it resembles Study Hall! We were not impressed and felt sorry for the owners, comsidering most people had dead coffee cups alongside, and you can guarantee they would have been there for more than an hour and probably would be for another, or so...fueled by what little they could afford in order to get free wifi!
Anyhoo..not our worry, but we ended up on the pavement table with all the traffic noise.
On the way down the road we visited a British Antiques store..the owner admitted to Irish/Scottish ancestry from about the 1860's, (her great grandparents) and though we were informed that almost everything in the VERY full store was 50% off, we thought everything should have been at least 75% off, such were the prices. I am always on the look out for unusual silver cutlery, but nothing took my fancy, especially not when many pieces were in the multiple hundred dollar range.
Now...what are these photos of??
Good guess...a power pole with a gazillion staples in it. Not just THIS pole, but most of the poles along the stretch of Magazine Street that we walked down...Rather decorative?? but dangerous if you happen to touch, whether deliberately or accidently! This one was on a street corner, which is why we noticed it...waiting to cross the road.
This has multiple layers of 'bills' stapled to the light pole. Makes for quite a nice photo!:)
The homes down Magazine were much like the homes elsewhere in this old quarter 'Uptown' as it is known. It is just west of the 'Garden District' which is where we went to the LaFayette Cemetery...but more on that one later...
I couldnt resist this lovely little Hibiscus with a frilly petticoat:)
Funky shops...this one selling all kinds of clothing and accessories...but I like the reflections in this photo...including Waz.
Some of the homes had outrageous Halloween decorations, but this simple one was by far my favorite:)
Now..these beads are what get thrown to the public by parade participants along the many different parade routes. One man told us there are something like 17 major parades in New Orleans, per year! We have some of these beads ourselves, from the Wooden Boat festival parade!..along with two plastic cups that were thrown our way.
Many of the churches, schools et al are 'embroidered' with fabulous plaster and wood decorations. This one is on a Serminary and school above the door..next pic.
I have taken so many photos of doors, windows, shutters et al to sink the bismark...but each is unique and this one certainly is. Lovely, though it could do with a good clean!..and paint?
So many of the lovely Victorians are in desperate need of repair, replace or paint. The details are fun and sometimes amazing. Most of the area is ALL victorian homes.
A throne I couldnt sit on...being very wet!
Love this story in this photo...and the colors
Look at the roof!!!
How can you resist a photo like this. See the bats on the cushion?
Halloween is everywhere!
Isnt she lovely?
This too!!!
..and this one:)
...and this one...ooops! it's Waz enjoying his cup of Community Coffee. Looking pretty spunky!:)
And now for the LaFayette cemetery...
I hope you can read this plaque. It is very interesting to note that there are so many Irish and German names in the cemetery. The history is fascinating if you ever want to look it up! One of my online friends told me her husbands family were German/ Irish from New Orleans.
The cemetery was another victim of Katrina. It shows....The Hurricane damaged EVERYTHING in New Orleans. Seriously! You have NO idea, unless you have been here. The city was so badly damaged and it is still in such poor disrepair as a result. We noted that if the city was abandoned for 100 yrs, you might be hard pressed to find it under the jungle that grows everywhere. Heat and humidity have a habit of doing that.
The wrought iron is something you just cannot overlook, anywhere. This one was around a tomb for the Fire Department which has a crypt for all it's men.
This is the FireDept. crypt stone in Marble.
Some of the tombs are just so old...and in such poor repair, I almost wept.
This is the outside of the cemetery wall, just next to where we parked.
We had had enough by 4pm, so started on our way home. We drove back via the Garden District and down St Charles Ave, where so may fabulous Victorian homes are...HUGE, some of them.
We were going to stop and do some more walking and perhaps photography, but we had both run out of battery power and in my case, too many photos and no more cards to insert to take more. Home it was.
We arrived back at the boat around 4.30 and were happy to put our feet up. A long day, but happy one, and no rain to dampen things for us.
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