2014 Day Four/Five

Wednesday, July 2nd

First swamp sighting! As we got further into Louisiana, the humidity and the heat really took over.  It really is just swampy everywhere.

We were in New Orleans around 330PM.  Once you get closer to the city, you realize all the lasting devastation from Katrina still years later.  It's a pretty poor area.  Right after checking into our hotel we went for a short drive.  It might have been a longer tour, but when we realized just how depressed the area was, we thought it best to just stay by our hotel for safety concerns.  I did get to pass by Villalobos Rescue Center, for all my Pitbulls and Parolees fans.

We came back to the hotel and decided tonight was an early dinner night.

Grilled alligator bites! Actually pretty good.  Tastes like chicken, really, but maybe a little more rich.  The rest of our dinner wasn't quite as experimental but very good.  I give my recommendation to Oceana's in the French Quarter for their food and really great service.

I should mention this is by far our sloppiest night out on this trip.  New Orleans really really wants you to be drunk.  I really did not know much about the city but it's somewhat reminiscent of Vegas, just without the Casinos on the strip.  People are out everywhere, drinks are allowed outside, and of course we were walking around with our souvenir cups full of cheer.

Toulouse street, where we stayed at Hotel St. Marie.

Just a few pictures near the waterfront area.  This was clearly the nicer part of downtown.

As the night approached, the streets became much more lively.  Bourbon street is open to cars during the day, but closed for pedestrians only at night.  It needs to be, there just wouldn't be enough room for all the people.  As the hours went by, the louder it became.

And then this happened..

We finished our tour of Bourbon street at the southern end, by Canal street, where the streetcar tracks are.  It was a bit of a different world from this view... Fishbowl drink strapped to our shoulder.

The 6 AM alarm clock in mind, it was time to say goodnight to Bourbon street.  What a fun night though.  I can only imagine Mardi Gras.  But one must really keep aware of their surroundings, there is a lot of pickpocketing and hustling about.

Thursday, July 3rd

 

Leaving New Orleans is to cross many bridges and bodies of water.  It was pretty scenic, which was refreshing since most of our drive has just been the same highway view for days.  Tonight will be our last night out on the road, even though tomorrow still holds a bit more adventure.

This southern route along I-10 east will quickly cover several states.  So here we are, in Mississippi just 45 minutes later.  We could have just continued along 10 right into Alabama, however we detoured onto a state route to see the Gulf coast.

This route goes for many miles just along the coast.  Beach on the right, some really beautiful estates or plots of land across from it, and a four lane highway in the middle.  We drove through several beach towns, before I finally had to pull over in Biloxi to see this beach.

It's really quite beautiful.  The sand is smooth, clean, and white.  The water seemed a bit murky, but it was really nice.  There aren't waves here, the water was just still.  No riptide really.  We wanted to stay here insted of continuing on, but we had to go.  Our schedule is still a full one.

Quick stop for some Biloxi coffee, and then..

We were soon after in Alabama.

The Florida panhandle is only about an hour from here, and we had contemplated heading into Pensacola for a bit, but we opted not to.  At the moment we are heading up I-65 north towards Montgomery, Alabama.  Until then!