New Orleans Adventure: Night 1, the old haunts...

We arrived in New Orleans on a Friday night and little did we know we were in the bee-hive of a large congregation of youth volunteers. Driving up Canal Street we watched as thousands of tweens poured out of the Super Dome, anxiety rising due to the fact that our taxi driver must weave through them to get to our destination. We were later informed there were around 37,000 Lutheran kids there for the weekend to help build up the city (and to our surprise my cousin was there as well!).
We dropped off the bags and decided to trek to the French Quarter. Being that we were on the downtown edge of Canal Street, it was quite the walk and we were going to have to get used to it.

Nothing can express the delight I got on the way into the Quarter that night. While passing the Monteleone Hotel, I saw what resembled carousel lights. A former boss of mine told me to visit the 'Carousel Bar' the past several times I went there and I finally found it! Mom and I went in and sat at carousel, letting it circle about one and a half times and listening to a lonely lounge singer at the back. Beside me was a young man reading a Faulkner book who I talked briefly to. He was so convincing about the read that I decided to pursue Light In August as one of the 'hunts' I had during this trip. I always seem to have hunts in New Orleans (remembering a romantic getaway in which we were dying to see the movie Interview With the Vampire in which my beaux explored the entire French Quarter and finally found a copy for us to watch).

The Carousel Bar

We proceeded to the Boondock Saints Bar (named after the fact that it's owned by the city police and that they play the movie Boondock Saints on replay on one of the televisions), one of my favorite bars due to the lack of crowds and the nice wait staff then went to the Pirates Alley Absinthe House, a tacky-named place that attracts the eclectic locals and savvy travelers alike. I had my bohemian-style absinthe with a lit sugar cube and mom had a few mimosas.
While we were on a roll we might as well visit every damned bar in the French Quarter, because mom felt it a good idea to stay out a bit longer. We went to Lafitte's Blacksmith Shop where just nights before I had a dream where I was behind the little piano table singing a slow version of Love Is A Battlefield by Pat Benetar. Strangely enough that night a lady was playing piano at the bar and I kindly requested the song, sparing her the details about the dream. She played another song but it was by Pat Benetar!

Me enjoying an Absinthe at the Pirate's Alley Absinthe Bar

Now this first night was not intended to be the 'crazy' night but some how we continued to stay out. I had acquired a left-behind toy gator at the bar and talked with a man holding a large cross on Bourbon Street. I apparently danced an entire block with another young man from Houma before he had to return to his late night shift at the A&P.
Greetings New Orleans, it's great to be back!

Videos:
Drunken Conversations on the Carousel