New Orleans | Jude Travel Park

Monday - 11 November 2002: New Orleans, Louisiana - Thank You, Veterans! Good thing I had that cough syrup-induced nap, because I was up from 3 a.m. until 6 a.m. with Snickers. Just when you think it can't get any steamier, Mother Nature gives you a thunder storm. First, it was only lightning, but it woke Snickers and he slithered up on our bed and crept up to my pillow. Time to get up. I went out to the "living room" with him for about an hour. He cowered, the coward. The lightning was constant, silent strikes, like a flickering bulb. Finally, thunder and pouring rain appeared, and the stoopid beagle was beside himself with fear. In the bathroom, there are no windows, only a ceiling vent and skylight over the shower - the darkest room in the house. I closed the door to the bedroom and to the living area, and Snickers and I spent two hours on the floor of the bathroom. He was quivering. I was comforting. DT was in bed, sleeping. Finally, just as daylight was appearing, the storm calmed enough that I could go back to bed and Snickers was relaxed enough, he could sleep on the floor next to the bed. I didn't hear another thing until about 8:30. I think it was the smell of the French roast that woke me...

The entire campground was just a soggy mess. There was no wind with the storm, so nothing blown about, but everything was just so drenched. We had the air conditioners running all night - not necessarily to cool - but just to circulate the air. My hair was now standing at a 90-degree angle. We didn't have far to go, the campground was not full, so there was no need to hurry. We had coffee and then gave Goldie a good cleaning. Snickers slept. No matter how close the vacuum came to his head, the beagle was not budging. He was tired. For goodness sake, he had been up half the night!

(Side note: DT was kind and did not mention - all day - that my Mother volunteered to take Snickers while we took this trip.)

The drive to New Orleans was uneventful. We did drive over Lake Pontchartrain, which is the largest inland estuary in the U.S., at 610 square miles. It also has the world's longest over-water bridge, the Lake Pontchartrain Causeway, a 24-mile drive connecting the New Orleans suburb of Metairie with Mandeville on the north shore. We stopped at the Louisiana Visitor's Center and looked through the brochures and the "greeters" were most helpful in our choice of krappy RV Parks: They are all awful, and all along the same street. You decide.

We decided and have definitely stayed at worse places than Jude Travel Park. The owners are friendly and have all the hookups. Jude Travel Park is four miles from town. First we had to find a kennel for the Dawg for a few days. The place I had chosen from home sounded a bit dodgy when I phoned to inquire. Seems they let the dogs all play together (I like that) and let them sleep where they crash (I like that). But, they are unsupervised all night (visions of beagle guts all over the floor in the morning) and they only take them out to pee three times per day and "if they have an accident, we are behind them to clean it up" (visions of re-house-breaking-an-11-year-old-dog). Luckily, I was able to find a nice vet clinic in town that boards! They were more than happy to take my old boy. Snickers went off with the technician, his tail wagging. Bye, Mom, whatever.

In the French Quarter - Jackson Square and St. Louis Cathedral

Dog-Free, we headed to the French Quarter. There is one thing any Parrothead worth her "salt" must do in New Orleans. You must have a beignet at the Cafe du Monde. A beignet, pronounced BEN-yea, could be described as a doughnut, but it is much more. The light dough is refrigerated for at least 24 hours and is fried, after a little rising time, in hot oil. At Cafe du Monde, the dough is cut in squares, deep fried, and literally dredged in confectioner sugar. When you bite into the hot beignet there is an explosion of powdered sugar (like when you eat a cannoli). Fifty-cents each. Since our FIRST beignet was the BEST beignet, we are now ruined. Cafe du Monde is all messed-up, as they are filming a movie scene here - something with Dustin Hoffman and Gene Hackman - and there are camera crews and catering trucks (guess actors don't eat beignets) on the street. (Added later: Runaway Jury.)

Beignets

We spent the evening walking around the French Quarter. So many shops, so many bars, so many restaurants. Of course, we went to Jimmy Buffett's Margaritaville Cafe for a cocktail and a walk through the gift shop. I was restrained and only picked up a few highly-over-priced post cards. I figure he only has two more kids to put through college, and then prices should drop.

We had fun walking around, looking in shops and reading restaurant menus until we settled on a touristy Italian/French/Creole place (seems most restaurants kinda have the same menu), Original Pierre Maspero's Restaurant, so we could dine in the same room where the Battle of New Orleans was planned. It was a beautiful room, and though I am sure Jean Lafitte and Andrew Jackson did not have air conditioning (or ice cold Santa Margherita Pinot Grigio), I bet they had redfish. (Mine was pecan-crusted.) We had adorable waiters - one boy was 18, a senior in high school and headed for the Marines - good service and a decent meal. Original Pierre Maspero's has a "tourist trap" reputation, but our meals were quite good. Tomorrow we will hopefully do more research and make reservations for another nice meal. There is little in New Orleans for someone who does not eat pork or shellfish... so I will have to be very careful, or just eat beignets for a few days.

RV Park: Jude Travel Park