New Orleans - NOLA - N'awlins - The Crescent City

I won't lie - I'm in love. With a city. Its hot and swampy and muggy and ...hot. And absolutely lovely. Folks are so very nice, so strong. I saw a bumper sticker on a parked car yesterday that read "New Orleans - Proud to swim home".

Arriving by train on thursday we passed Slidel before crossing lake Pontchartrain and entering New Orleans. Four years later and vast swaths of NOLA are still peppered with boarded up homes, rotting slowly in the heat. Trailers still sit in front of some houses, while others simply bear now-faded "X's" spraypainted across doorways in the aftermath of Katrina. In some ways the sight hasn't changed much since I was here two years ago and this fact makes me very sad before I find it churning into a quiet rage. How did we let this happen?

In wealthy and more touristy areas you'd almost never realize the storm hit. The french quarter is booming, bustling, and beautiful. On friday I spent a whole day winding through historic neighborhoods, admiring the diverse mix of architecture, scouting out blues clubs for later. Then there's the music... oh the Music! Stroll down Frenchman street (less touristy than Bourbon st, a younger crowd, and the really good jazz you'd expect in New Orleans) after nine o'clock and it's jazz/blues heaven. With names like Marsalis and Neville as regulars its hard to go wanting. Many joints have no cover, and ten bucks'll be enough to get in just about anywhere.

Tonight I saw Rebirth Brass Band play a free show outdoors, later I fulfilled another dream by making it out to Tipitina's ... where I saw the Mardi Gras Indians funkin' it up n'awlins style. Headresses and feathers and beats that just wouldn't quit. And such a night is everynight in NOLA, far as I can tell. If I disappear someday soon you'll have a good idea where to find me....

Tomorrow I'll ride the streetcars (vintage, oldest running cars in America) to tour uptown, grand St Charles street homes, cemeteries (above ground because the water table is so high... I'll post pics to explain), and hopefully city park. Then I leave Monday for Los Angeles. 48 hours through Texas and the southwest before I transfer to San Diego and the pacific ocean.

I've still to post photos from Boston and DC... oh time, you just won't quit! You'll see them eventually, though probably once I'm on the west coast. I'll have something to do while rolling through Texas! Best Wishes to All! Love from the Crescent City.

New York

Dear NY,
Nearly a week in your midst and I still cannot wrap my mind around the behemoth city that is you. You scare me and amaze me; I'm glad I don't have to stay but somehow I'm sure I'll be back. Maybe one day we can meet eye to eye but for now I'll take my leave and swim in a smaller pond.
-Best Regards
The Lakeshore Limited line rolls through wooded upstate NY before following the Hudson River south towards the city

Who would have guessed NY was so green?! Someday I must return to explore the Catskills and the Adirondacks

Catchin' up on a few winks... getting better at sleeping on the train And here we are... the Jungle! Dead center on Manhattan Island, no joke. Who'd have guessed Central Park could look like this??

Earlier I'd seen an egret flying over the city; later that day I found her again, fishing

New York's HI (hostelling international) hostel - largest in the US. Busy place to call home for 6 days!

Teamed up with a motley crew of internationals (ozzie, kiwi, french) to catch a Yankees game. They lost to the Rangers but still a good time!

looking toward the south end of Manhattan while on the ferry to Liberty Island

Woohooo!!! Thank you France! We like it. love, america

awww.... copycat

the coast guard lets ya know they don't play around over hereOn to Ellis Island - now a large (and amazing) museum documenting the rich history of American immigration

The great hall used for processing millions of immigrants as they first entered the US.

Tina and Chris, new friends from Germany and New Zealand, ridin' the Metro after our trip to Ellis and the Statue of Liberty

We sort of had to stop for cheesecake... It is NY and I had a tip on the "best" place in town. We weren't disappointed (i think it took 3 days to finish off all the leftovers)

Times Square!

Deck chairs on the pedestrian mall?! Ingenious!

A somber visit to ground zero; the rainy day seemed fitting.

Also a gloomy visit to wall street and the ny stock exchange. The place appears more like a military installation than an economic center, what with all the gates, fences, and security.

A very wet walk across the Brooklyn Bridge... woo!

The financial district as seen from the bridge

Midtown in the fog. Also taken from the bridge. More big city everywhere I look.

Free day at the MOMA, and Picasso!

Empire State

The Chrysler Building, my personal favorite due to its unique architecture and the gigantic gargoyles leaping from the upper reaches

Manhattan Island, etc. Looking south from the top of the GE building (74 floors) in Rockefeller Center

Looking north over Central Park. Wow!!

I've seen that before! Home Alone, was it? The Park Plaza hotel from central park

A hot day in the park - like the beach without the water

Awww... they're almost too picture perfect!

coming soon...

A quick update: I'm currently in Boston following six relentless days in new york. Big City!!! ...it's true: the place never sleeps. At least I hardly did, and it wasn't for lack of trying: 1.6 million people on the island alone means Manhattan hums day and night. I'll put up pics as soon as I can; but I took plenty and it may take a few days to get through them.

So far Boston has been great. I've caught up on much needed rest and also been able to explore the historic sights. Today we wandered through the north end visiting Paul Revere's house and the north church, famed for lanterns lit in it's steeple to alert townspeople to the advancement of British troops. "One if by land, two if by sea...". Tomorrow I hope to see Harvard ("hahvahd") and more of the north end.

So far I'm very pleased with this trip. It's a work in progress, and like any good project things often get complicated, confusing, difficult. Some days I find myself totally worn out. I think it wise to allow one day a week to relax, read, rest up. Planning alone eats up many an hour! Nearly all my down time seems devoted to researching hostels, booking and rebooking trains, trying to make connections with friends, planning routes. There's nothing like a good plan, but good plans take time. As I said, always a work in progress. I'm learning, though, and overall that's what matters.

That and patience. Things have a funny way of working out, though often unexpected.

~ Best wishes to all ~

Chicago

Well, now that I've been in New York for five days, I think it's about time I posted pictures from Chicago! These were taken during the last week of May, I hope you enjoy.....


I was fortunate enough to stay at a friend's place just 3 blocks from Wrigley Field. The Cubs played home games all week, so the neighborhood was abuzz with the hustle and bustle of baseball fans.

Chicago has fabulous museums... this one was the Field Museum of Natural History. They had a special pirate exhibit documenting the life of a the Whydah, a real pirate vessel that sailed during the 1700's. It was built as a slave ship but was captured by pirates and then used as their main rig.

The exhibit was created by national geographic, but they wouldn't allow any photographs... so I didn't take any. But it was a PIRATE exhibit, and somehow this one snuck in there??....
Another shot from the museum... with real T-rex bones!

Michigan Avenue

Chicago has an amazing system of parks accompanied by neat public art displays. My favorite was "The Bean"... this giant mirror-clad legume in Millennial Park.

That's me... I'm magic. (and using a flash)

More Bean effects...

I love it!

The El train rolling thru downtown

Later I went to the Museum of Science and Industry, which was probably too big to see in a week. I did visit an exhibit about green living/building. This house was built as a model of sustainability... notice the wind turbine in the yard.

Another exhibit documented the capture of a German U-boat by American forces during WWII. These were propaganda/recruiting posters of that era.

The entire U-boat is housed in a special basement exhibit. It's huge! And the only one ever captured (not sunk) by allied forces during the war.

Various knobs and controls inside the sub

I don't know what it does, but it looks pretty cool... and its all in German.

Downtown Chicago, looking over the Chicago river. The old Tribune building is just left of center in the photo.

I took a day trip to Joliet to meet long lost family

We visited a church in an outlying town that was started by an old family friend

...Even drove by the Joliet Prison. This is the same one from the beginning of the "Blues Brothers" when Jake gets out and is met by Elwood. The facility is no longer in use and likely will become a hotel/tourist attraction.

Back in Chicago, the Sears tower, tallest building in America

This is the top of the John Hancock building, reaching for moon....

The John Hancock building, from the ground
Another giant tower....

This was taken from the top of the John Hancock, looking south. Ninety-four stories up!! That's lake Michigan on the left.

So, umm, this is another pic of that same building, with a T-Rex tearing thru town. It was madness, I tell you, absolute madness. And entirely built of Legos.

Steel and glass, water and sky

I threw this one in because it reminded me of that chase scene at the end of Blues Brothers when Jake and Elwood are cruising at about 85 mph underneath the El tracks... after seeing it with my own eyes I can understand why that was the last time the city allowed such a stunt!

My last day was perfectly sunny so I rented a bike and cruised along the lake. Blue water!
This one was taken from the north side, looking south at the skyline

Almost looks tropical... but trust me, it was chilly! (I didn't go swimming)

One more shot, looking North

Buildings everywhere!