Cajun country

New Orleans, we are here....After setting up the camper we've made our first trip into town. Along the river walk, a short stroll through the French Quarter. Sweet memories. I was here once before in 2002. All by myself. First trip over the ocean, with just a few words of English. Boy, was I proud of myself and all the things I did for the first time. Our hosts at the campground gave us a lot of useful tips, especially where to eat. So we went to a place called Coops. We are not really crazy about fried food, but we have been told to try the fried platter. Mountains of fried oysters, catfish, crab claws and shrimp. Finger-licking-delicious! That was followed by spicy gumbo, more fried stuff (chicken this time) and dirty rice. Aahhh....unbelievable. My mouth waters just by the thought of it. Bringing the evening to a close we found a bar were they were playing really good blues.

It got cold, so we unpacked our space heater once we got "home" and slept warm and comfy. Next morning,  packed with more info from our lady-host we've made our way to the Garden district.

Not to forget we payed a visit to my always favorites places, the cemeteries. Lafayette No. 1 is my favorite. Dark, decrepit, spooky, even in day light. Love it. Even though I have lived close by in 2002 I never went to the city park and St. Louis Cemetery No. 3. That cemetery is, well, just a cemetery. Clean, clearly laid out and bright.

Lafayette # 1

ditto

  

 In the city park we discovered the sculptured garden. With 49 acre the 5th largest city park                                                                             in the States. Very nice, but see for yourself......

monkeys

my absolute favorite

 

 

Will he disappear into another dimension? 

any more fried food and I will look like this lady ;-)

Thursday was all cloudy and rain was threatening all day. We strolled one last time around the French Quarter and the French Market. More fried food...it's just so good. As we walked to our car it started raining. Lucky us. Made it "home" dry and contemplated on our impressions of New Orleans in those days. You could easily compare it with Key West. But, KW is tame, civilized, clean and you can feel safe. A lot has changed in NO since I was here last over 10 years ago. Not to the best, I hate to say. Nevertheless, we had fun and enjoyed our stay!