Do You Know What it Means to Miss New Orleans?

Noelle has been much better at doing blogging in a timely manner.  She's a good writer, so I don't have much to add to her entries.  So, I've hidden her smart phone to ensure I get a chance to blog New Orleans!  :P

We got to NOLA yesterday afternoon.  As soon as we got settled, we started looking for food.  I'm staying at a friend's house close to Upperline and Prytania Streets. 

Yelp showed me that there was a dozen restaurants on Freret Street, between Jefferson and Napoleon Streets.  When I lived here 16 years ago, this commercial strip was different.  It serviced a large, lower-class, Black community.  In the years after Katrina, this neighborhood was all but abandoned.  Most stores closed down on Freret St.    Apparently, a couple of years ago, this area experienced a rebirth.  The street bustles with the creative energy of new, successful businesses.

We ate at Midway Pizza on Freret, and the food was phenomenal!  It's really hard to put a finger on why food is better in New Orleans.  At Midway, it was a couple of creative flavors in the salad, and a spot on deep-dish pizza, accompanied by some great local beer suggestions.


We took two full pints to go, and we walked down Upperline St to The King Pin and got destroyed in a shuffleboard tournament.  However, we met a bunch of really nice people who were fun to chat with... despite their aggressive shuffleboard tactics.

An omnipresent feature in NOLA is Video Poker machines, at least two in every bar and restaurant.  I have a fond sentiment for the old machines that I used to play in the 90's, and I think others do, too.  However, the old ones are on their last legs. 

 So far today, we've busted out the bicycles, and gone for a little spin.  We went to Tulane, where I checked in on the reborn Tulane Computer Science Program.  After Katrina, CS was cancelled at Tulane.  I got my CSE degree from Tulane in 2000, so I was always sad the department was canned.  I'm excited and supportive of their new start!

Then we went to The Fly to relax and watch the river go by. 

 We followed this up with a trip to the Daiquiri Cafe at the Riverbend.

 And then bicycled back to Audubon Park to enjoy our beverages by the fountain.

 Tonight we are going to Gautreau's for dinner, and possibly to Maple Leaf to watch Rebirth Jazz Band.

As long as I've got the blog, here's a couple pictures from Austin.  Noelle was a hot bridesmaid, and I toured the Texas State House while she was busy preparing.