Day 7: Taking it easy in the Big Easy

A countdown of 12 things about New Orleans

12: the number of beignets ordered and eaten at the Cafe Du Monde

Randi: “Best dinner ever!”

11: Time in the am that we made it to brunch at Cafe Atchafalaya (15 minutes late due to the…)

10: Total number of Purple Dranks + Hurricanes from Lafitte’s Blacksmith Shop and Patty O’briens on Saturday night

9: Number of drinks the next morning for brunch at Cafe Atchafalaya. This included 3 teas, 2 coffees, 2 bloody Mary’s, and 2 mimosas for 5 people and was entirely due to indecision on everybody’s part. At one point the whole table was covered in drinks. My bloody Mary (from the make your own bloody Mary bar) went perfectly with my omelette made from shrimp, alligator sausage, and cafe Atchafalaya tomato sauce. I also tried the eggs Atchafalaya which had dried green tomatoes… Delicious!

cafe Atchafalaya yelp

8: number of stops on our Haunted History tour. If you want to learn some New Orleans history but also want to be a little creeped out, check our these tours in the French Quarter. Highlights: the Lalaurie House where Delphine Lalaurie tortured her slaves to death before mysteriously disappearing from the record, the ghosts of little boys who take pictures of you while sleeping, and the old headmaster who reads and talks to guests at the following hotel. Do you see him? (Just freaked myself out a little bit)

Please check out our tourguide’s blog about creepy ghost stories:

americanghoststory.blogspot.com

7: number of kids in the amazing street band that spontaneously played for us while we ate said 12 beignets at Cafe Du Monde. They consisted of two trombones, 1 snare drum, 1 bass drum, 1 trumpet, 1 saxophone, and 1 tuba. A kid dance party broke out with a from out-of-town tap dancer going head-to-head with a local new orleanean, resulting in a cultural exchange of dance moves among the 12 year olds. Props to the band for making some extra cash during the summer and showing some tourists new Orleans street music

6: the number of hours I just drove from New Orleans to Houston, which is why this post is a little late. Sorry readers!

5: number of bars we tried on Bourbon Street looking for zydeco music last night, none of which were playing due to the essence festival. But, we got to see this:

But what we did find was awesome jazz with the Jamil Sharif band which led to…

4: times we had to sing the opening to “When the saints go marching in” before Jamil Sharif was satisfied with the audience participation. The whole set was amazing so here I am, giving them a plug:
http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=qTEfiAWM4ys

3: the number of hours we napped on Sunday afternoon after brunch (we were taking it easy –>; see blog title)

2: number of obviously men dressed as women seen on Bourbon Street. What is sad is while this guy owned it:

The other guy lost the “obvious guy dressed as a lady” contest.

1: awesome experience in n’awlins! We had a great time! Also number of creepy Jesus shadows we saw:

And now I sign off… We are officially in Texas now so be prepared for cowboy boots and line dances, y’all!
– tech talkin’ and walkin’