New Orleans June 13-17 2004
Day 1. Saturday started off to be a great day. My parents had called me that morning that they were coming up to Ottawa and they were bringing me to the airport, that worked out great since if they didn’t I would of had to take 3 buses. The flight over was great and I got some nice pictures that I taken flying over New York City. When I got to New Orleans I had used the ground transportation voucher that I bought on expedia.ca and it worked great. When I got to the Radisson Hotel they were not able to put me in the room that I had booked on expedia.ca but I had it worked out the next day. Saturday night I went down on Bourbon St. walked around for about 2-3 hours. The place was packed and it is exactly what you see on TV. I enjoyed that evening just something to do for a few hours. I got back to the hotel around 12:30 AM.
Day 2. Sunday I had taken the streetcar to the Audubon Zoo. (More than 1,500 species from rare white alligators and white tigers to sea lions and gorillas entertain and educate families year-round.) I had walked through the park and I finally got to the ZOO after 20 minutes but it was a nice walk (but too hot). The streetcar is the best way to get around and it cost 1.25$. A 3 day pass is 12$ . The ZOO was amazing. I was able to get in free with my travel card. The ZOO is so nice and planned out. I loved it. There were so many animals and I spent about 2 hours there. I had taken the streetcar back to Canal St and went to the River Walk Marketplace. There are so many little shops and little cafes to have lunch or supper here. When you walk outside you can see all the ferries and the cruise ship that was docked at the port. When I got back to the hotel Therein had upgraded me to a nice King Size Suite room. I was very pleased and the room was so big. I kind of had to jump on the bed just to get on it. Later that night I had went back to Bourbon St and had some pizza and Daiquiris. By 1 AM I called it a night and went back to the hotel.
Day 3. This morning I was able to a free shuttle from the hotel to the French Quarter. I had gone to the Aquarium of the Americas. (Whether visiting the Caribbean or the mighty Mississippi, this aquarium is like strolling through an episode on the Discovery Channel) I was also able to get in there free and it was so nice. I was able to see the rare white alligator and he looked mean. It takes about 1-2 hours to explore the Aquarium. I also went to go see a 3D movie at the IMAX. I saw the Nascar 3D film. The screen is 5 stories tall. The screen was so huge I would love that in my house. Later that afternoon I went to Café Du Monde in the French Quarter. (The Scene It's no wonder this venerable New Orleans classic is included as a "must-see" in every city guidebook. Its sidewalk location in the French Quarter, where it's been since 1862, is a perfect spot to watch the world go by at any time of the day or night. White-jacketed servers gingerly navigate between crowded tables both inside and on the patio, and street musicians often set up nearby.
The Food Really short and really sweet: beignets (fried, rectangle-cut donuts covered in confectioners' sugar) and delicious, exceptionally strong café au lait (dark-roasted coffee cut with chicory, to take out the bitterness, and blended with 100 percent whole milk). Black coffee and iced coffee are also available, as are fresh-squeezed orange juice, white and chocolate milk, and soft drinks) I really liked this place and we even had a man on the street playing the saxophone. To get back to the hotel I walked up Bourbon St to Canal St and went to the hotel. I went swimming cause it was like 93F, that’s about 33C, plus we also had humidity, which was worst. I went for supper at Praline's at the Radisson where I was staying. I had the New Orleans BBQ shrimp and well it wasn’t that bad but I was not even full so later that night I had pizza haha. That night I took the shuttle again to the French Quarter and went to Harrah’s Casino and played the slot machines. I only played 40$USD but I was tempted to play more, but I knew my limit. It had rained that night and that’s probably where I got my cold. But I am a lot better now, which today is Wed June 23.
Day 4. Today I had a walking tour of the French Quarter. The tour started at 1 PM down near River Walk and lasted for 2 hours. I enjoyed the tour as we toured the streets in the Quarter. (Description: Saunter down the banquettes of Royal, Bourbon, and the other streets of the French Quarter. Learn the histories and legends of the Creole people from the Ursuline Convent-the oldest building in the Mississippi Valley-to the New Orleans Pharmacy Museum, constructed in 1823 for the first licenced pharmacists. Admire the architecture of the area homes and buildings. Named after the saints and sinners of New Orleans's European past, the streets of the French Quarter tell the stories of the Creole people who walked them long ago. Follow in the footsteps of Jean Lafitte, William Faulkner, and Tennessee Williams en route from Washington Artillery Park and the Moonwalk located along the mighty Mississippi to Jackson Square in the heart of "The Quarter." Visit the Ursuline Convent, the oldest building in the Mississippi Valley, and the amazing herb garden that provides the Bella Luna restaurant with fresh herbs. The New Orleans Pharmacy Museum, constructed in 1823 for the first licenced pharmacists, houses remedies of the times including live leeches, leech jars, "blood letting" devices, "gris-gris" potions used by Voodoo practitioners, and rare patent medicines. The newly renovated courtyard contains an herb garden that showcases the traditional uses of the plants for medical purposes.) The tour was nice but what was bad was it was so hot. I think we all got sunstroke that day. There were 11 people in the tour group. I went to the Hard Rock Café for lunch and had a Cajun Grilled Chicken Spicy Sandwich and it was great hmmmm I was so hungry. I went to the “Ripley’s Believe it or Not Museum” and that was a lot of fun. That afternoon I had bought some souvenirs, t-shirts, shot glasses, beads and postcards. I had taken the streetcar back to the Radisson Hotel and the streetcar is a wonderful thing to use in New Orleans. I went swimming for about 3-4 hours and enjoy the hot weather. The pool was on top of the building, which was great since you can see Canal St and all the planes flying over your head. That night I went to the Sports Grill Bar at the hotel and watched the NBA final, poor Lakers didn’t win.
Day 5. This morning I started off with breakfast at the hotel. Oh yah I loved having the eggs, bacon and that orange juice so delicious. I ended up going on a Swamp Tour. I was able to get an agent rate, which was great. The people at the Swamp Tour pick you up and drop you off which was an added bonus. The tour it self was 2 hours. The tour director was able to hang over the boat and kiss and touch the alligator and it didn’t do anything to him. The name of this alligator is “Hercules”. I guess he has been doing the tour for a long time so it knows him. There were 2 alligators that were fighting in the water and at one point I was able to hold a baby alligator. But don’t worry it was really small and cute. The alligators in the water I didn’t touch and I was glad I didn’t. At one point we had 7 alligators around us. The director was feeding them marshmallows and pork, and those mouths were HUGE. That was a great day and by 4 pm I had headed back to the hotel. I got there by 5 PM and I went swimming till about 7 PM and then had supper. When I came back to the pool I had something that I would never forget. A man was swimming but he didn’t know the pool went down 8 feet so he was swimming and he ended up going under the water. My first instinct was this isn’t happening but it really was. I had swam over right away and had tried to move him but I went under the water also but when I got up another man and myself was able to get this gentlemen to the side and we asked him was he able to breath and was he oka. It was a shock I had since I was the first person to see this. All night I was watching out for a little boy and 4 girls. I wasn’t able to forget what had happened. I ended up talking with a couple that had 2 of the 4 girls and had told them what happened and we talked about traveling and things to do in New Orleans of what to see and what to do. After about 1 hour we had left the pool and that night I was thinking about that man that was in the pool all night. I wasn’t able to forget it.
Day 6. Well today is my last day in New Orleans. I did everything that is possible haha. I went to the airport and my plane was delayed till 6:30 PM. There was a big storm in the New York area and we were delayed and so was everyone else in New York so I ended up staying in New Orleans at the Ramada Inn hotel, which is near the airport. My plane was supposed to leave at 2:50 pm but at 5 PM I was told to stay in New Orleans. I went to the hotel which took forever to get to since I was waiting for a shuttle bus with other people but the hotel was nice and I had a good supper and went swimming since, Thursday was like 34C.
Day 7. I tried the same thing again today, which was going great, but then the plane was delayed again. This time because of air traffic in Newark, NJ. We finally took off at 5:15 pm but then I was going to miss my plane in Newark to Ottawa, but when I got to Newark I was able just to get that flight just in time. I finally got into Ottawa around 11 PM but my luggage was still in Newark due to the short time of the connecting flight. I finally got home at 1:30 AM Saturday went to work for 9 am for 12 hours and got my luggage at 11:30 pm Saturday night. I worked Sunday 12 hours and also Monday 12 hours. I had Tuesday and Wednesday off and now I am finally able to breath and enjoy my time and looked back what happened in the last 7 days.
Was the trip wonderful? You bet it was.
Leaving Ottawa Airport.
Flying to New Orleans.
Stroll down Bourbon St.
Balcony's on Bourbon St.
Street Car on St. Charles Av.
Elephants at the Zoo.
A View in the French Quarter.
Oldest Bar in New Orleans on Bourbon St.
Feeding the Alligator on the Swamp Tour.
