Larry had a convention in New Orleans. The company he buys parts from pays for him to go. He didn't want to go to it but when he asked me what I thought I told him I'd love to go to New Orleans. It's slow at work and so he thought it would be fun to go on a cruise if possible before the show. Well Luck was in my corner and there was a cruise leaving New Orleans, going to Cozumel and returning the day before the show. Yippee....I was excited. I invited Roger and Carla to go with us because they are fun to travel with. They were excited to and so off we went. We left Wednesday morning (Mya's birthday) and got to New Orleans just an hour or so after Carla and Roger. We met them and decided to walk on over to Bourbon Street and check it out. Before we went to far we stopped so that Larry and I could get something to eat. We ended up at a Hard Rock Cafe and got a hamburger. Then we adventured to Bourbon Street because Bourbon Street really is an adventure.
We were warned by our Taxi Cab Driver not to be taken advantage of. We can almost say we weren't. Almost because we did fall for a prank that ended up costing us $5.00. I'm told you shouldn't make eye contact with people...like ignore them....well I can't do that and so they get me. A guy asked Larry if he wanted his shoes shined. We laughed and said No Thanks. The guy kept with us as we walked and told us that he could tell us where got his shoes...what city and state. He was so confident that he said he would give Larry $5 if he was wrong but said that we had to give him $5 if he was right. As I type this I am experiencing a little dajavu....I think we might have heard of this before. Anyway, we agreed and that's when he got us. The man said "you got your shoes on your feet on Bourbon Street in New Orleans, Louisiana. Carla and I got some beads without showing our "boobies" and learned that this little tradition started because people pretended to be wealthy and would throw their riches and jewels to the peasants. We little peasants liked getting the beads and wore them like we were rich too. I didn't see anything too crazy on bourbon street but I know that I wouldn't want to be there during Mardi Gras either! I did have a guy dressed up like a jester come and connect arms with me while I was connected to Larry. He walked with us for awhile and I asked him how far he was going to go with us. He said that usually people will ask for a picture by now. I told him I understood that they charged for pictures and that's when he let go of me and turned around. It was funny and he was a little scary looking so I didn't mind not getting a picture of him.
We boarded the Carnival Elation Friday afternoon. It was a nice ship and there were a lot of people that lived close that took this cruise with us. It was the bounciest cruise I have ever taken and I am really glad that Carla and Roger do NOT get motion sickness since this is their first cruise. I was the only one in our group that got sick and I actually got sick a few times but neither time lasted more than a few hours. We had hit a storm after porting at Cozumel and the ship rocked all night Saturday and most of Sunday. I'm glad it wasn't my first cruise or it might have been my last but since I know they aren't all like that I will go again. I had the meds I needed but might get a few more if we go again. I really hate being sick but I have always been prone to motion sickness since I was a little girl...it's just how I'm put together.
I do enjoy our little towel creations that greet us each night before going to bed. I really prefer a chocolate on my pillow as well but that didn't happen this cruise. The Mississippi River is huge and dirty. It took us hours to get from it to the Ocean. It was cool seeing it and being on it. It's still used for transporting supplies. There are lots of ships and cruisers on it all the time.
It was a nice day in Cozumel. We heard that it was the best day all week. We didn't have real plans and decided to go Parasailing since there really wasn't a beach close by. It was beautiful and peaceful. Larry and I went up first and I couldn't believe how smooth and calm it was even though I have been before. I enjoyed going with Larry and kissing him high in the sky! It was a perfect day. Roger even found a Harley Store and got him another shirt. That's something Roger likes doing whenever he goes somewhere new. He got a shirt in New Orleans at a Harley Store there.
The storm made us 5 hours late on Monday when we returned. That didn't bother us since we were just planning on doing a little sight seeing. We weren't in a hurry and didn't think we'd be able to check into our Hotels until later anyway. When we did get off the ship we went to our Hotel's and checked in. Roger and Carla went to the one we stayed in on Wednesday but Larry and I were at another one since we got it paid for by the suppliers. They were still close to each other and we met at ours.
We ended up going to a buffet at Harrah's casino. It was pretty good. I really wanted to try the gumbo but it looked too gross. I had some in a ladle but just couldn't bring myself to putting it in the bowl. It was the craw-fish that kind of freaked me out. While we were in New Orleans I did try a few other things that are unique to there. Pralines (very good), Po Boy (okay) and Beignet (Good) are all a New Orleans thing and they were good and should be tried. Since we didn't have a lot of time left in our day we decided to buy a day pass for the trolley and ride it around. We ended up riding one trolley to the end of it's line and back again. It was fun and we did see some interesting things. That was pretty much all we had time to do on Monday and so we called it a night and returned to our Hotel's.
Tuesday morning Craig and Rachelle joined us. They came to the convention too so that Rachelle could help Larry with the ordering. We had the morning to do a few things because the show actually didn't start until the afternoon. We decided to go on a City Tour. It was interesting and we learned a lot of things. The driver did a little review towards the end of the tour and even though I couldn't remember everything I did remember quite a bit. We learned that the guy who wrote "You Are My Sunshine" was actually talking about his favorite Horse. The houses are build at an angle so that everyone gets the evening breeze. The cemetery is above ground and if you have more members of the family that need to be buried they take the oldest casket (there can be 2 to 3) and remove the body and put it in a body bag and stack in under the caskets. That casket is burned and a new one is put in. A body has to be a year and a day old before removing it from a casket. We learned about the jewels being thrown to the peasants and the people throwing them pretending to be wealthy. The colors of Mardi Gras mean things too. Purple is for Royalty, God for Wealth, and Green for fate or fame...really I can't remember. There was a lot of information and I didn't take notes so I can't remember it all.
On the city tour we went to a cemetery, a sculpture garden and through town and the French Quarters. Everything was interesting a cool. I really enjoy city tours because you do learn so much information that you probably wouldn't just guess or know on your own. By the end of the tour it was time for the parts show to start. Carla and I didn't want to go to it right away and so we used our trolley pass and rode different trolleys around. We recognized lots of places from our tour. Before we started trolley jumping we went into a CVS pharmacy for some treats. I had heard that we needed to try Pralines and we found some there. Pralines are pretty good. When we came out of the store and was waiting for the street light to change so that we could cross the road I had an interesting experience. A lady asked us for money and I guess Carla ignored her but I smiled and shook my head "NO". The lady had a beer in one hand and a bag of clothes that she referred to as "crap" (not her exact expression) in the other. She then told me that I looked nice and so I returned the compliment and told her that she also looked nice. Then she shared that she was going to the doctor and needed to take her bag of "crap" to him. I should not have commented but I did...I told her that was a lot of "crap" in her bag. She then reached into her bag and I knew....I knew where this was heading. She pulled out a manila envelope and told me that she had to "crap" in that little envelope and take it to the doctor. I laughed and gagged and told her that I really did NOT need to know that and that she probably shouldn't be sharing that with others. The light finally changed and Carla and I crossed the road laughing. I shared this little experience on face book and one of the ladies that we met on the cruise told me that it could have been something much worse pulled out of her bag. I don't even want to know what might have been worse. The trolley that Carla and I rode was probably one that more residents use to get to town. It was fun watching everyone. I was impressed with three nice looking young men that gave up their seats for some older ladies. We had a good time!
We took a trolley that seriously just went down the river walk and back but it did end up at the conference center where we wanted to go. The driver told us we had to get off but that's okay because that's where we were going. The conference center was also right by the port for the cruise. Before going to the show we went to an outlet mall and looked around. I made eye contact again with a guy in the middle of the mall selling face and eye cream. I ended up in his chair having him fan my face after applying some cream to my eyes. The cream did take my wrinkles away but it felt like glue. He applied another cream on my forehead and those wrinkles went away as well...it was amazing. I had told the cute sales man that I never buy on the spot like that. I like to think about it first which he wasn't happy to hear. He was a very pushy salesman and kept trying to get me to commit to one of the creams. They were on sale "Today" for half the price making them only $350-$400 each. Boy....I really had to really think hard about that...NOT! I hated the way my eye felt and the more I touched it the more it looked like it had originally. I figure at this time in my life my skin should look a little older...heck....I earned these wrinkles! The salesman couldn't believe that I had seven children though. I'm not sure if that's because most people in the world have only a few or what...it didn't matter one way or another and I will think it was a compliment. ☺
Carla and I went over to the conference center and Carla was able to walk around and get some free bags and hats and see what it was all about. I stayed with the paperwork and soon Craig joined me and we had a really nice visit. Larry and Rachelle finished up their ordering and we enjoyed a nice dinner provided by the suppliers.
I really enjoyed New Orleans and I'm glad I got to see what it was all about. I would recommend others to go visit there as well. We had a really good time. I still have sea legs from the cruise and find myself balancing from the imaginary swaying I am still feeling.
The kids all had a good time while we were gone and everything was in order when we got home. It's fun having older kids that are responsible. I heard they even prepared Sunday Dinner at our house. I sure do love my kids and hubby! My life is Good!
