New Orleans: The French Quarter and Street Bands

Today, I'll be posting more photos of our trip last week to New Orleans. (My first, Mark's third. He had been there once before Hurricane Katrina and once directly afterward, in 2006.)

Here are the various posts on our trip:

1) Wonderful Food and Restaurants
2) The French Quarter and Street Bands
3) The Garden District
4) Shopping, Books, and Miscellaneous
5) People and Animals

Enjoy!

We arrived in New Orleans on Tuesday evening at 6 p.m. CT. After eating dinner at K. Paul's Louisiana Restaurant (see previous post for photos of the great food we consumed with joy), we walked a bit and encountered the street band pictured at the top of this post. I loved the sound, the energy, and the way this photo came out with the evening lights. The next day we stopped in at Peaches Record store and, happy to encounter three employees eager to help us find the perfect brass band CD, we left with a copy of Rebirth Brass Band's CD.

At left is a photo of three women taking photos of the musicians. This struck me as interesting. Perhaps I've ended up in someone else's photo as well...



Music was everywhere and at all times of the afternoon and evening. We encountered a young man playing the violin in the middle of a street, another playing a guitar, a woman playing a violin, and another brass band in front of the St. Louis Cathedral (on Wednesday evening). The sound was wonderful and I could listen to this music all day or on long drives...it is so rich and multi-layered. I wish I knew more about music so I could describe it as it deserves.










The oddest thing happened when we were watching this band. An elderly couple walked across the plaza in front of the band and the gentleman was a dead ringer for Mark's father, Clyde. His facial features, hair, posture, walk... It was a bit disconcerting as Dad was back home in Cleveland and not traveling now as he has done so often throughout his life.

Music and food are woven throughout the French Quarter, but so are the beautiful buildings, interesting shops, and lovely plants and trees. (Note: The French Quarter fared well during Hurricane Katrina and the flood. It is situated on the bank of the Mississippi River, the highest point ironically, and was safe from significant water damage, so I was told. As we saw the large amount of shops, restaurants, and hotels in the French Quarter, as well as the Louisiana State Museum, the St. Louis Cathedral and other landmarks, I realized how many employees it must take to keep these places running smoothly and what a struggle it must have been for these workers and business owners to get to or return to work, to keep the French Quarter alive and well and functioning when their own homes and neighborhoods and families were facing devastation.


A few years ago, I read Douglas Brinkley's The Great Deluge and I recommend it if you want a thorough understanding of the events, and also the history of the construction of the city/levees/politics, etc., as well as the local, state and federal governments' response to Hurricane Katrina.)


Above, is the Louisiana State Museum. They were showing an exhibit related to Hurricane Katrina. I opened the door and went in the entry on Wednesday, looked up and saw this display of glass bottles and hands. We returned on Friday to see the exhibit, but it was closed for Good Friday.




Below, is a reproduction of a Mardi Gras ball invitation from the 1800s.



When one stands on stairs in Jackson Square, you can see the Mississippi River to one side and the Cathedral-Basilica of St. Louis, King of France, to the other. The oldest Catholic Cathedral in the United States, the church was established in 1718, the cathedral on the present site built in 1727 but destroyed by fire in 1788. The current church was completed in 1794. I haven't traveled that much and believe this is likely the oldest structure I have ever been in. It was beautiful.

Within the Cathedral was "The Bible of St. Louis."

The Bible of St. Louis belonged to St. Louis IX, King of France, who gave it to Alfonso X the Wise. It was copied and illustrated between 1226 and 1234 in Paris. Life in the Middle Ages is revealed through the images presented in this codex. ... It is a unique monument of book illumination that constitutes both unlimited information for historians and a boundless source of pleasure to the senses.

The original bible is in the Cathedral of Toledo in Spain. Because of its uniqueness, the Chapter of Toledo Cathedral allowed it to be copied in the year 2000. This copy was presented in 2007 to the St. Louis Cathedral.

Below, is the view of the Mississippi River from our hotel room at the New Orleans Marriott (we were very happy with the hotel and the price of our trip, which we booked--hotel and airfare--via Orbitz. In fact, the hotel had a wonderful breakfast, the best hotel breakfast buffet we've had while traveling.)



Homes in the French Quarter, and some restaurants too, are built with inner courtyards that are at times only glimpsed a bit from the street, looking down the carriage driveways and into the courtyard and garden beyond. Sharp-pointed metal work or shards of glass top the walls to keep strangers out of private property.





Also shown here is an example of the beautiful metal work that adorns the buildings in the French Quarter, as well as a glimpse inside a shop window. There are many beautiful antique shops and galleries in the French Quarter.

One such shop we visited was M.S. Rau Antiques on Royal Street. Mr. Lasiter welcomed us into their museum/gallery/showroom and we saw everything from beautiful paintings to exquisite silver pieces to the skeleton of a Russian bear (150,000 years old) to a large-scale model of a ship, the United States. Beautiful furniture sat in their showroom waiting for the perfect spot in a historic home...seeing these beautiful things made me wish that my mother had been with us as my parents enjoyed several years as antique dealers, traveling to the best shows and instilling in their youngest daughter a love of all things beautiful.

The photo above of a view through a shop window, gives a glimpse into another antiques store/curiousity shop. And below is of the window of another store and shows a beautiful partner's desk.

This painting of a girl listening to a Victrola while small birds sat on her back caught my eye in a shop window. I absolutely love this print!


Near Jackson Square, one can see this statue of Joan of Arc.


Another thing I noticed in the French Quarter was the interesting use of font design on many of the businesses and buildings. I could have taken dozens of photos of signage alone!












Please bookmark www.appalachianmorning.blogspot.com or subscribe to this feed so that you can read and see all the photos from our trip to New Orleans. Next up, the beautiful homes of the Garden District. You'll be stunned when you see these beautiful homes and gardens.

A Few Days in New Orleans: Wonderful Food and Restaurants

Mark and I had a great time on our short trip to New Orleans this past week. We walked, shopped, ate, listened, and learned the many reasons that folks from near and far love this wonderful city. Mark had been there before and already had a few favorite restaurants to share with me: The Court of Two Sisters, Emeril's, K. Paul's, and Johnny's.

With a Cannon PowerShot A2200 in hand, I was shooting right, left, and center and stretched beyond my comfort zone a bit, but getting closer to subjects than I typically would, hiding in a way, behind the camera. I'm sure I was not in the least invisible, but I did feel the ability to be bold in order to get the photo I wanted. Sometimes I missed it, but other times I was thrilled with the results, and tangible evidence of our happy time together in a place that seemed magical to me in a way, so infused with history as well as new energy and music embedded into the very mortar of old bricks, possibly bricks from Ohio, and cobblestones from Europe.

The flowers and trees whispered to me louder than the tubas, trumpets, and drums. The gentle paint colors of the Garden District and the gaudy brightness of Mardi Gras decorations in the French Quarter enticed me to take just one more picture. And woven around our time there was the Mississippi River, something I have always wanted to see.

I've many photos to share, so I'm going to break the posts up by category.

1) Wonderful Food and Restaurants
2) The French Quarter and Street Bands
3) The Garden District
4) Shopping, Books, and Miscellaneous
5) People and Animals

Enjoy!

On our first night in town, we had dinner at K. Paul's Louisiana Restaurant. Above is a glimpse into the kitchen. Below is a photo of Mark perusing the menu, followed by the beautiful pear salad we enjoyed. I had to ask them to leave off the bleu cheese (allergies), but it was still super-delicious! Mark had a cup of gumbo and proclaimed it a winner (I had a spoonful and it was wonderful). For the entree, I had Blackened Beef with Debris Sauce, and Mark did as well.

Below is simply a window scene I liked very much. (I do not know what restaurant or kitchen this is looking into). Throughout the French Quarter there are many shops of all sorts and most of them have intriguing windows. If I lived here, I would spend one morning a week window shopping!

On Wednesday morning, we took a carriage ride (see "our" mule, Brown Derby, below) around the French Quarter, then stopped at Cafe Du Monde for coffee and beignets. Ah, they were divine!

At lunchtime, we headed over to The Court of Two Sisters. Below is a photo of the street view of the restaurant (taken later, in the evening). In the entryway hang many flags, including the one I've photographed.

Then, one goes through a welcoming area, past the sumptuous buffet, then out into a beautiful courtyard, resplendent with plants of all kinds, a large fountain, a canopy of woven tree branches and large umbrellas, and lovely tables set with linens. And, of course, music!

On Wednesday afternoon, we donned our swimsuits and I splashed around in the pool with a girl of about 10 or 11 who was happy to find she could touch bottom in the 5' deep end of the non-kiddie pool. We shared that it had been a long time since either of us was in a pool. After cooling off from the 86 degree weather (with very high humidity), I stretched out on one of the patio lounge chairs, closed my eyes, and nodded off under a sunny sky with a slight breeze.

Later in the evening, Mark and I made our way to Emeril's where the fantastic staff served us a wonderful dinner and dessert. For an appetizer, Mark had the angel hair pasta with crawfish, followed by "Shrimp and Grits." I had Thai lamb followed by a delicious 4-minute egg salad.

Dessert was, for Mark, banana cream pie, their signature dish and "unbelievably good." For me, strawberry shortcake and more fun photo opportunities!










On Thursday, we visited Johnny's for Po' Boys. I'd never had one before and as I was still full from Wednesday's indulgences, I ate the inside of the sandwich and skipped the bread.








We walked, walked, walked all afternoon in the Garden District (you won't want to miss the photos of these beautiful homes) and then went to Dickie Brennan's for dinner. I was less-than-thrilled with Dickie Brennan's, so no photos. The filet was nowhere near as delicious as I'd enjoyed at K. Paul's on Tuesday night, and while the service was excellent and the surroundings okay (like a good steakhouse anywhere), nothing about it stood out to me, and Mark's steak was tough as well.

We stopped in at the "5 Fifty 5" restaurant within the Marriott New Orleans and picked up creme brulee to take back to our room. I had several new books I wanted to look over, and I was feeling a bit sad due to news that morning that my dear friend, David, had passed away.

On Friday morning, I woke early and spent some time editing Jessica Bell's String Bridge.



At 6 a.m., a kind woman opened the door to Starbuck's and in I went for that blessed first cup of coffee.

I have always found baked goods at Starbucks to be dry and disappointing. But here in these glass cases were croissants that seemed to be the epitome of the croissant and muffins so tall and beautiful that I had to grab my camera and take a photo, much to the amusement of the gentleman nearby. I ended up choosing a blueberry scone, and it was delicious.





Our last meal in New Orleans was lunch back where we'd started, at K. Paul's. Mark had a po'boy and I had navy beans and rice. Yummy!

In our next post, you will see evidence of the walking we did, which allowed us to eat all this wonderful food with little guilt!

Spring Images from Athens, Ohio

Spring has brought sunshine and rain, open windows and open umbrellas, grass and muddy shoes. It has also brought a busy schedule; so for today, just a few photos from our home to yours.

Allison Bell, Jewelry Designer

Talent often runs in families and Jessica Bell (author/singer/songwriter) has a sister, Allison Bell, who is a wonderful jewelry designer. You can visit her blog at http://allisonbelljewellery.blogspot.com/. I particularly like her "Things of Metal and Stone." Enjoy!

The First Street Heat (Band)

Dear Readers, My friend Jan Weckman's son, Nick, is in a band called The First Street Heat. They are really good and in two years have developed quote a loyal following. They are currently involved in an online contest where they can win a spot at Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival, one of the biggest music festivals in the world. First Street Heat is in 34th place out of 700 bands, and they need one last push this week to break into the top 20. All you need to do to vote is download a FREE song from their album. Here is the link: http://bonnaroo.sonicbids.com/BandDetails.aspx?b=26938&sr=false&bn=The+First+Street+Heat Just click the red DOWNLOAD button. It's pretty simple, but you do need a Facebook profile to take part in the contest. You can stream also stream their entire album (recorded here in Athens, Ohio) for free here (I like "Say What You Wanna Say"): http://www.thefirststreetheat.com/ Thank you for helping these talented folks make their dreams come true, and for listening to their music. Janice

12 Top News Stories Sent from My Couch

My mind is still a bit unfocused, or should I say "focused intently on unrelated things for short periods of time" so here goes:

1. Blogger does not accept paragraph returns when accessed through Internet Explorer. Foxfire to the rescue...of my mental health. If you use Blogger you probably know what I mean. If not, please advance to #2.

Thank you to February Grace and Stephen Parrish for the suggestion to try Foxfire (please click on the links and see their fine blogs....in fact, go there soon, because Stephen has a cool video up right now with "Ideal Stephen Parrish" avator...Oh heck, I'll just paste it below and make it easy for you). My son, Jesse, has advised me to use Foxfire for years. One of the companies he's involved with Snipi was first designed for use with Foxfire. And my sister Joan uses Foxfire...all smart people, so I now join their ranks.


2. Still irritated at Microsoft—what's going on with Windows Explorer on my laptop? All of a sudden for no apparent reasons the "View" choice does not show the little mini images of graphics as it always has for-like-ever and now I have no idea which photo "0193283.jpg" is unless I give it a real name that I can remember. If this happens on my desktop, I'm toast. I like my technology to make sense, be predictable and not change unless I ask it to. And then if I do yet should not have, it must be easy to find the solution. I'm thinking of switching to a Mac....

3. WOUB reported that a memorial service was held next to the Japanese trees here in Athens, Ohio. I wish I'd known about this. Here's a nice link to OU's Japanese Student Association. I like that their Twitter feeds show a real interest in the blooming of the cherry blossom trees. Also, this Sunday, April 10th, is the 2011 Sakura Festival in Baker Center, which would be a great thing for locals to attend to celebrate Japanese culture (including food!).

4. Combat to Compost: Soldiers Learn Organic Farming. Cool segment on NPR yesterday. The program is in California. I wish it would come here to Ohio too. Athens is one of the best places in the country for organic farming and there is still room for more vendors in our Farmer's Market.

5. Kathy Morman shared the lost-and-found story of her dog, Brandy, with me for my book (Open Your Heart with Pets, Dreamtime Publishing, 2007). Brandy has been battling bronchitis, but she's turned the corner and is doing much better. This was great news and Tyler, Farley, and Jackie give Brandy (and her sister Gracie) 2 paws up! (See photo of Brandy and Gracie below, courtesy of Kathy Morman.)


6. Why did the weatherman, excuse me meteorologist, just refer to Southern California as "So Cal"? I think weathermen should not use slang, nicknames, or try to be hip with their fancy graphics. But I'm just a grumpy Midwesterner this morning.

7. Driving down Rt. 33 in SE Ohio yesterday near Nelsonville I passed the sure sign of spring, the woodcarver who sets up along the Hocking River. He and two other men were there, with a huge, maybe 6 foot, piece of wood, saw at the ready, something wonderful waiting to emerge. I always miss him when I go by and he is not there. One day I, too, will have a big carved bear or eagle or totem or something in my yard, if only to keep this guy doing what he does.

8. The Wedding: 600 million people are expected to view William and Kate's wedding. I hope she gets the dress right... I also hope they have a marriage of love, respect, fidelity... all that good stuff. Go, young people: Wave, wed, and go do lots of good works. Try not to muck things up.

9. Speaking of things mucked up.... "members of Congress will still get paid" says GMA announcer. The Federal Government, shutting down. Will this be much ado about nothing? Will I notice? There's a "shut down clock" on Times Square. "We are fighting three wars and troops will not get paid." Now that I notice. That is just wrong, in every way. Also, Donald Trump, I do not want you to be my next president.

11. I'm so upset that the artist who created the Bird's Nest Stadium (where those lovely events were held during the Olympics in China) has been arrested. That stadium design increased my love of Chinese art a hundredfold, it was the best visual hook of the entire games and meant more to me than the eerily perfect synchronization of the opening ceremonies. Set Ai Weiwei free, China.

12. I had to go back to the dentist yesterday because a temporary cap came off, and also it was so thin it had a hole in it, which in my mind seemed to have doomed it to fail from the start.

The dental assistant replaced it with a metal temporary, which at one point popped off and went INTO MY THROAT! I sat up and started acting like our Chihuahua, Jackie, when she has a weird "reverse sneeze." All sorts of things went through my mind like: "Am I going to have to have surgery or is this no big deal?" "Could this thing get stuck in my tiny throat?" "What will this metal do in the acids of my stomach?"

But, alas, with determination there was soon a lovely ping! in the dentist's stainless steel sink, a temporary firmly affixed to stubby tooth, and a cold drink soothing my irritated throat and frazzled nerves.

Have a great weekend!
Janice

Twelve April Musings -- A Penny for Your Thoughts

I simply cannot focus on one big thought this morning, (I don't know why but I'm in, not a mental fog, but a mental collage) so here are lots of little thoughts....

1) In answer to the questions: Where is spring? Why is April coming in like a lion, when that is supposed to happen in March? How long till I can plant tomatoes? When will it stop snowing/storming/threatening to pick my house up and whip it into the nearest field? Midwest/Great Lakes U.S. Weather forcast for April from the Farmer's Almanac 4th-7th. Rain across the Great Lakes, then fair. 8th-11th. Squally weather for Ohio River and Great Lakes. 12th-15th. Clearing along Mississippi River. 16th-19th. Turning colder and unsettled. 20th-23rd. Heavy thunderstorms and squalls for Wisconsin, Illinois, and western Kentucky. 24th-27th. Big thunderstorms march east through Ohio River as well as the central and eastern Great Lakes. 28th-30th. Unsettled weather sweeps in from west.

2) I continue to join the community in mourning the death by murder of Summer Inman and am thinking about capital punishment.... I am also thinking about Guardian Spirit by Sarah Martin Byrd, a book I chose to publish last fall and which is about a woman who escapes her abusive husband. In the book, the woman has kept a diary musing on what is going on in her life. This past weekend the Columbus Dispatch printed an excerpt from Summer Inman's diary. I felt a bit sick to my stomach... Community Mourns Summer Inman

3) US Air. won't be running commercials on CNN anytime soon. CNN morning guy (6:20 a.m.) slams US Airways. Ouch! I usually fly US Airways and they've safely and promptly brought my son to visit me for 10 years now.

4) While I was waiting for the coffee to brew this morning, I looked over at the old water pitcher we throw our change in and noticed two very shiny pennies. I picked them up, looked at the back, and discovered that in 2010 a new penny was unvieled. How did I miss this? Lincoln Cent Unveiling

While this year’s cents were issued to celebrate the bicentennial birth of Abraham Lincoln and are minted for 2009 only, next year’s penny design has no specific end date. It could be seen by generations yet to come. Congress would have to marshal through new legislation for ANY change to occur. From: CoinNews.net

5) Kindle apps are everywhere. Various ebook apps from Kindle (iPhone, WindowsPC, Mac, BlackBerry, iPad, Android, Windows Phone

6) This is interesting to me professionally and personally... my husband's hardcover book The Prophet of Sorrow (Mark Van Aken Williams) is now available in paperback and ebook format, and it has been cool to see, practically in real time, the downloads for it. And, it's a finalist in Foreword magazine's Book of the Year Awards (stay tuned for May squeeing!)

7) I have CCN on (until 7:00 then I switch to ABC until 7:25, then I switch to BBC America while I read news)... Anyway, banner at CNN notes: "Gbagbo reportedly set to cede power: Standoff in the Ivory Coast ." I am struggling to remember who Gbagbo is, because to me it sounds like the name of a children's book character, but obviously it is not. "He's nuts." says announer, quoting source (I think). But here is what is frustrating to me, the mutitasker who is also purusing the web while CNN is on...I look up at the screen, start listening and for FIVE minutes there is nothing in the words or huge banner to tell me what country this is, though I know it's a "big exporter"...but they keep calling it "this country"... people "are suffering" and "for the US this is critical.." OK, what country is it?! Jeepers, am I supposed to know the countries of the Ivory Coast and the spellings and pronounciations of their leaders? Is "Gbagbo" the word she's pronouncing "gij zha bay"?

8) But don't worry, dear reader. I am going to be come more geographically/geo-politically literate. Thanks to the great discussion I had at book club last night with wonderful Sandy and Kathi, I've subscribed to The Wall Street Journal -- which I've always enjoyed in hotels, but did not realize I could get same day delivery here to our home. How can they pay someone to bring me the newspaper for $2.69 per week? Well, I'll let them worry about that, and just enjoy something with more substantial news that the Columbus Dispatch, which is boring me and not covering Lucky Press books ever anyway and our local paid newspaper which is so slight and still leaves me feeling uninformed about Athens (the free paper is more informative).

9) Apparently the US Government is about to shut down. Will the Post Office be open on Friday? I sent a commissioned piece of artwork to someone this week. It went 1,986 miles in 3 days for just under $11, and was insured and tracked. Now that's a deal. Dear Postmaster General: I would pay $15 for this service, so if you need to raise the rates, go ahead. I love the post office (well, except for the long lines because there are only two employees and they ask me too many questions...).

10) "India Graduates Millions but Few are Fit to Hire" (see, I'm already enjoying the WSJ!) The chances I will be able to easily understand the next tech support person I encounter has increased, I think...

11) Kate and William are big news (so I won't bother with a link). The press release will be sent out at a specific time noting the design of her dress; like when she emerges from the carriage, or something (I wasn't listening that closely.) Okay, I'm thinking Kate and William should start a publishing company and get their people on it because the PR for authors would be incredible. On a sidenote, my son Bryce loves Princess Diana (for a few years he had a huge collage of photos of her on his wall). I bought him a pack of five VHS tapes in anticipation of the Big Event. But he can't get the tapes to record in anything but the slowest mode and this is causing anxiety and once again I realize this mom was not technologically savvy enough for this kid... (Don't ask my children about the time I tossed the VCR under the couch. "I can build a website and produce a book but I can't hook up the VCR (fast forward) DVD (fast forward) program your mp3 player with Pee Wee Herman videos!")

12) The 12th muse is you, Dear Reader. I take a moment to give thanks for you. Have a great day, a great week, and a greater weekend!

Janice