treme54's Blog

Day 19 – April 24

On the front stoop
of my house
Watchin’ folks go by
Lazy Days
Chewin’ on ice
We all just waiting on July
And ‘OZ plays Irma
We all know what it means
Rag-a-tag-a rain
City so low
Summertime in New Orleans – Anders Osborne

Jazz Fest – Day 3

We get to Iggy’s earlier than normal as Mike has made Crawfish Monica and it is help yourself to as much as you want. The news has just come through that Jonny Lang who was due to close out the Blues Tent today has had to cancel due to personal reasons. The replacement act will be JOHN MAYALL. How awesome is that. I had pencilled in Jonny Lang as my close out for today but to get the chance to see JOHN MAYALL again will be a blast.

We are straight to the WWOZ hospitality tent for fresh fruit. I have eaten more fruit in the last three days than I have all year. Who said New Orleans was fattening.

We got to the Blues Tent half way through the opening act. Deak Harp is from Clarksdale Mississippi. Wish I had of got to the start of the set as he and his accompanying drummer are awesome. He sounds like he is straight from Red’s Juke Joint. Kate was pretty impressed. Standing ovation. The stage announcer summed it up when he said this was Deak’s first Jazz Fest but it surely will not be his last. I must try and get a C.D. I got to speak to Deak and I asked him if he knew Fiona Boyes as Fiona is a regular in Clarksdale. He said he knew her well

We settled in for Little Freddie King. Freddy is dressed to the nines as usual and I never tire of listening to his infectious grooves. As he sings ‘Ya gotta walk with Freddie, Ya gotta walk with the King’ and we all do.
Got me my first beer and it tasted so good that I get a feeling that today may be an imbibing day. Kate has been hinting to us both that we should go and get her some beignets and we have been ignoring those hints. Well she finally weakened herself and has gone out to buy her own beignets and I am pretty sure that they will not be shared.

Meet up with my friend Gary who I see every year in the Blues Tent.

We then went over to the Acura Stage to catch Better Than Ezra whom my friend Michael Jerome plays with. Remember yesterday I kept missing Michael to say hello. I think Kate thinks I may not really know him at all. Better Than Ezra recently released a 25 year anniversary disc. They are a local New Orleans alternative  rock band and are real popular in this part of the country. Great set. Even more so when they invited four young boys on stage to sing with them. The boys all come from the same Metairie school and they kicked arse as they sang, did a bit of rap and danced like seasoned professionals. These are four rock stars in the making for sure. One of the Iggy’s crew gave us all a home-made jello shot which got us in the mood (so to speak). I think Kate likes the band as they are more to her style.

There is a family standing next to us and the husband asks us if we are Australian. He then introduced us to his wife who is from Wantirna but has lived in N.O. for seventeen years. They have a one year old daughter who was born on Australia Day!

The girls are going to stay at the Acura for Voices of the Wetlands. I decided to try another stage. Not that Voices of the Wetlands are not worth seeing, far from it. I have decided that I need to try and see more bands that I have not seen before otherwise you may be missing out on a new band to add to your list.

I went over to Gentilly for Royal Teeth. A young band with lots of rhythm and enthusiasm. I hung in for a few songs. A young crowd that is in a dancing mood.

I then walked over to the Fais Do Do stage for the Grammy award winning BeauSoleil avec Michael Doucet. The front of stage is pretty packed ,so I had to sit a fair way back, and as the band are not loud rockers they were a little hard to hear mainly due to a lot of bleed from the nearby Congo Stage. Still I found a shaded spot to sit and finish my margarita.

Had a look over the C.D. outlet and believe it or not I didn’t buy a thing. I did however weaken at the nearby book outlet and got a copy of Southern Cocktails. Look out for the next party at Muir Street. Grabbed me some crawfish bread and then headed over to WWOZ tent for a clean pee. If you have been to Jazz Fest you know what I mean. I held the door open for the next guy in line and he said ‘thanks mate’. Now there is a give away. He lives in Yarraville!

I nearly made a big mistake as I left WWOZ. I guy ran after me and had my diary in hand. That was lucky as if you recall in my previous writings I am a member of the CRAFT Club. I Can’t Remember A Fuckin Thing’. If I loose my diary I will have no way of doing the daily blog.

I went back to the Fais Do Do Stage to wait for the Taj Mahal Trio. The girls are going to meet up with me here before they then head over to the Acura Stage for the Red Hot Chilli Peppers. I sit to the side of the stage and a young guy looks down at me and said, ‘How ya’ll doin old fella,’ OLD FELLA, do you mind, sir. He was a nice guy and he asked a lot of questions about Australia. The girls finally found me and listened to the start of Taj’s set before moving on. I stayed put. Just after the girls left, who do you think walked toward me but Michael Jerome (Better than Ezra and the Richard Thompson band.) He was real glad that we finally caught up and he hung around for half an hour and chatted. I told him that I think the girls really think that I have made up our friendship. He said. ‘I can fix that’, and he took a selfie of us and emailed it to me. I left Taj after he finished singing a favourite of mine, ‘Lovin In My Babies Arms.’

Met up with the girls at the Blues Tent for John Mayall. John was born 29.11.1933 making him 82 years of age.  John Mayall & the  Bluesbreakers had some of the up and coming great guitarists go though his band in the 60’s. Guitarists such as Eric Clapton, Peter Green, Mick Taylor, Mark Almond, Walter Trout and Harvey Mandel cut their teeth in John’s band. We got seats in the third row. Guess who is playing guitar, no other than the legendary Walter Trout. John was magnificent.
Everyone in attendance was blowin’ away by John and his band. He swapped piano for guitar and then harp and vice versa. The extended jam of Parchman Farm drew a standing ovation. For a man of 82 years of age (although looking his age) he played like a man half his age. What a highlight.

We had a real long wait at our pick-up spot for the shuttle back to Iggy’s. The road is in gridlocked going both ways. We did not get back until after nine P.M. but who cares as the day was sensational and one thing you need to have in this city is patience.

Day 18 – April 23

Saturday night and I just got paid
Gonna fool about ain’t gonna save
Some people gonna rock some people gonna roll
Gonna have a party to save my soul
Hard headed woman and a soft hearted man
They been causing trouble since it all began
Take a little rice take a little beans
Gonna rock and roll down to New Orleans – Speed King – Deep Purple

Jazz Fest – Day Two

Finally got the washing done. It is going to be a hot one today. Sad news (yet again) as I just read that Lonny Mack has passed. Still remember seeing Lonnie a long time ago with Mr. Smith. Who is ‘Going to  Satisfy Susie’, now that Lonnie is gone?

We got to Iggy’s right on time for the shuttle. The first order of the day once inside the fairgrounds is some food for me. The girls loaded up on vegemite toast before we left. Two Natchitoulis Meat Pies for me and then some fresh fruit at WWOZ and I am ready to go into battle. There is not a cloud in the sky and a hat and sunblock are going to be mandatory as well as staying hydrated.

We went over to the Gentilly Stage for Bobby Cure & the Classic R’n’B Revue. Guest vocalists are  the legends of 50’s N.O. music. Clarence ‘Frogman’ Henry, Robert Parker, Al ‘Carnival Time’ Johnson, Sammy Ridgley and Jo ‘Cool’ Davis. All are in the late 70’s or older and age has wearied then but they are all up to each sing two of their classic songs. Another good start to the day.

We stayed at Gentilly for Big Sam’s Funky Nation. It is around 1:15 and the crowd is building up. You can feel the sun torching any bare skin and I must remember to keep applying sun screen.
1:50 and the girls go off for some food and I chill in the Grandstand where you can escape the sun and do some serious people watching. I am pretty sure there would be no better city in the world to people watch when there is a gigantic party in play.

We are back to the Gentilly for Wendy to watch her hunk perform. The Cajun heart throb Tab Benoit. Just so happens he is an incredible musician and I always enjoy seeing him play.

Overhead a small plane has just drawn a big smilie face which is most appropriate as there are not many here that ain’t smiling.

Back to the Blues Tent for John Hammond. Very surreal to see him up on stage in front of thousands and to think back a little in time to when we were privileged at WOW to have the very same blues legend on our small and humble stage. John put on a passionate set and the crowd lapped it up.

Wendy is staying in the Blues Tent for Boz Scaggs while Kate and I head back to the Gentilly for Van ‘the man’ Morrison. The crowd is as big as I have ever seen on this the second largest of the Jazz Fest stages. The race track is also packed but we managed to get a vantage spot. Van was terrific and his band was spot on. He eased his way into the set and then brought the crowd to a frenzy as the the first strains of ‘Brown Eyed Girl’ rang out which segued into ‘Baby, Please Don’t Go’ then into Parchman Farm and finishing back with ‘Brown Eyed Girl’.

Another great day at Jazz Fest. We didn’t stay at Iggy’s when we got back as it is starting to get a little dark and we wanted to get back to the apartment for a much needed shower.

Now if you’ve ever been down to New Orleans
Then you can understand just what I mean
All through the week, it’s quiet as a mouse
But on Saturday night, they go from house to house

You don’t have to pay the usual admission
If you’re a cook, a waiter or a good musician
So if you happen to be just passin’ by
Stop in at the Saturday Night Fish Fry – Louis Jordan – Saturday Night Fish Fry

Jazz Fest Yeah

Up at 8:30 to do some washing before heading off for the first day of Jazz Fest. Gotta have clean underwear. Bugger, the laundry is not opening until 3 P.M. today. Guess it is getting close to Anzac Day back home so I may have to go commando today. Sorry to all if I have made you ill at breakfast with that thought.

We walked around to Iggy’s at 10. We have been invited to avail ourselves of the Iggy’s shuttle bus again this year which makes getting to the fairgrounds a much easier task. I am wearing my Iggy’s t-shirt (it’s Jazz Fest every day at Iggy’s) and Mike was happy to see me so dressed. Told him I am wearing it with pride, dignity and grace. He told me that we would have to turn that thought around.

Yes, Mr. Smith we arrived early (before the gates opened). Once we were in I headed straight for my favourite food outlet to get me a serve of Ya Ka Mein. Can proudly say I purchased the first Ya Ka Mein for the 2016 Jazz Fest. If you are interested I can make ya’ll some Ya Ka Mein when we return as I do make a good version if I do say so myself.
We headed over to the Gentilly Stage for the opening act. Johnny Sketch & the Dirty Notes. Real good N.O. rock. It did take the sound guys a little time to get Johnny’s voice and guitar right but that is understandable. A great start to the next 7 days of music.

Back over to the Fais Do Do for the Deslondes, they are a little too country for the girls but I very much like what they are doing. Kate agrees that the harmonies are excellent.

Need more food and grabbed another favourite of mine the sausage and jalapeno fried bread.

Then over to the Blues Tent for Eric Lindell. When we got there we heard that Eric has had to pull out as his baby son is very ill and is having major surgery. We wish him and his family all the best and hope his son pulls through o.k. So we then decided to
take advantage of our Brass Passes and headed to the WWOZ hospitality tent for some fresh fruit and an iced coffee.
Back to the blues tent for Alvin Youngblood Hart and he did not disappoint. Playing in a trio he really powered through some blues rock. We nearly had Alvin at WOW a little while back but the tour was cancelled due to the falling Australian dollar. Hope we pick him up when he does tour next as he will bring the house down.
We are staying in the blues tent for the N.O. legends the Subdudes I caught up with some of the security staff that we have become friends with from previous years and gave then a small Australian souvenir each. They were all very thankful. The girls have the first strawberry daiquiri at 2:30.

The Subdudes are a N.O. institution and they receive a standing ovation as they come on stage. Fantastic set of original music, towards the end of the set I said to Kate that I hope they sing my favourite song. They did indeed finishing up the set with ‘All The Time In The World’. I got me a cooling Coors Beer and it is appropriate that I am using my B.B.King coozie (stubbie holder) as the Blues Tent is the last place that I got to see the King perform. Kate has called for an umbrella, it is not raining in the Blues Tent but they do have the mister working overtime and we are getting pretty wet.

We went over to the Acura Stage to catch up with the Iggy’s crew and listen to a bit of Michael McDonald (Doobie Brothers). He sure has aged (like I ain’t) and with his white hair and beard he looks a little like Kenny Rodgers. He is O.K. but a little to smooth for me. Kate spotted the Aboriginal Flag flying just behind us. I went over to see where in Australia they are from. They ain’t from Australia but are locals who worked for Continental Airlines in the 80’s and spent a lot of time in Sydney where they got the flag. They have been flying the same flag at the last 20 Jazz Fest and told me that this is the first time an Australian has come over to say hello. They wanted to take my picture! The lady gave me her business card. She owns/operates Johnny White’s bar in the Quarter, the same bar we went to catch up with Pat and Gentilly Jnr. the other Friday.

The girls stayed at the Acura to catch some of Steely Dan and I headed over to the Gentilly Stage for Gov’t Mule. Saw Geoff walking the same way and we sat up shop on the racetrack to listen to the guitar maestro Warren Haynes. Great version of the Fleetwood Mac song ‘Does She Make You Cry’ with guest vocals from Grace Potter. Also did a version of Prince’s ‘When Doves Fly’ with some nice Weather Report riffs added in.

I just realised it is 6:20 and I have only had one pee all day. Must be the weather.

It has been a great day and it is only day one of Jazz Fest. Wendy bought me a back pack that also doubles as a cooler and a seat. Best $15 she has ever spent as it has really made it more enjoyable for me at the outdoor stages where I can sit and not have to stand in the heat which zaps my energy pretty quick. Not to mention my poor old aching knees.
I meet up with the girls at 6:30 at our rendezvous point at the Gospel Tent and we walked around to get the shuttle bus back to Iggy’s. We had a cleansing ale with the crew and debriefed the days events.

Day 16 – April 21

I’m on my way to New Orleans this mornin’,
Leaving out of Nashville, Tennessee,
They’re always having a good time down on the bayou, Lord
Them Delta women think the world of me. – Allman Brothers- Ramblin’ Man

Rain, rain go away

Kate is finally off to Electric Ladyland for her tattoo and Wendy is going to keep her company. They are then going to head on down to the River Walk Mall for some nail work of the finger variety.

Good chance for me  to catch up on 3 days of blog. Rather than sit in at the apartment and write I head down to Belle’s Diner for some food as well. If only I could touch type I would have the job done in a quarter of the time. As it is my fingers are so fat from arthritis that my two finger typing more often than not hits multiple keys.

I got to the diner around noon and as the girls are not with me I decided to have the most disgusting thing on the menu. Some things just have to be done once in your life. I ordered the Fried (yes fried) Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwich. Seeing as this is a 50’s themed diner and the King (Elvis) is blasting out of the juke-box I think it most appropriate. A wicked sandwich for a wicked person and it tasted delicious although I did sense a hardening of my arteries on the second bite. Long live the King – that is if he was still alive. Also just found out that Prince has passed on which is sad. I might not have been a big fan but I do acknowledge his creativity. Way to many musicians have passed this year already.

After my indulgence and with only one blog to catch up on I strolled over to the French Market for a Tropical Smoothie which I hope will unclog my arteries. Real pleasant sitting at the market and typing away. I sort of felt like Hemingway but without the talent. The sun is out and it is looking good for the start of Jazz Fest tomorrow. People are starting to come on from all over the U.S.A. and the four quarters of the globe for the start of 7 days of music heaven.

I was back at the apartment by 2:45. You know how I said the day was looking fine, well now a storm is brewing and by 3:10 it is raining. Not overly heavy rain but enough to annoy you. Although the locals take the rain in their stride having been used to the weather down here.

I am waiting for the girls to get back when Wendy sent me a message to say they are still at the Mall. Time for a snack and I went to the Quarter Master for a small bag of Zapp’s Potato Chips – flavour being Drago’s Roast Garlic. Drago’s is a local restaurant famous for its Charbroiled Ersters (now you should know  what ersters are if you read yesterdays blog)

Very heavy rain most of the afternoon which is not what we want as once the infield at Jazz Fest gets muddy it never recovers.

Day 15 – April 20

Straight off, I bought me a through train ticket,
Ridin’ cross Mississippi clean
And I was on that midnight flyer out of Birmingham
Smoking into New Orleans. – Promised Land – Chuck Berry

Blue Nile

Mickey has gone off for another NCIS shoot. William is getting ready to walk his dogs. He has left me with the key for the apartment next door in case the new tenants arrive while he is away.

We walked around to Frenchman to the Louisiana Music Factory where WWOZ has an information counter. I want to pick up our Brass Passes for Jazz Fest. The Brass Pass gets you into each of the seven days of the Fest plus gets you access to the WWOZ hospitality tent where you can relax and avail yourself of the free iced coffee and fruit salad. Opps I forgot you have to pick up the passes at the radio station itself.

Kate and Wendy have gone over to the nearby Electric Ladyland where Kate wants to get a tattoo. Bad luck for Kate as the tattoo artist has up and left for Texas without telling anyone he was going. They have taken our cell number and will call when another artist is available.

We have missed breakfast again so I decide we should go and eat at the Praline Connection which I know from the past is a fine soul food restaurant. The girls have gone for a serve of ribs with sides of potato salad and cheesy mac. Guess who is having the cheesy mac. I am pretty sure that neither of them will be able to eat all their ribs. I went for two starters instead of an entree (don’t get confused as an entree is the main meal). I ordered BBQ oysters (that is pronounced ersters) and spicy chicken wings. The ersetrs came out swimming in a very tasty sauce with four pieces of bread for dipping. I got six pieces of chicken. Kate asked me after the first bite of chicken if it was hot. ‘No’, i said. I spoke a little to quickly on that as after the second bite I was on fire. The chicken was fanatasticly finger lickin’ good. I went through 6 paper napkins for my hands and two root beers to help put out the fire. I was real proud of Kate, after yesterday weakening and going to Maccas, today she has eaten corn bread and liked it. I was right the girls only managed to eat half the ribs and we have to get another doggie bag.

Williams came in to have a chat. When we went into the Microsoft store yesterday he was looking at a new HP tablet. He bought in his old Nexus Tablet as I told him I would have a look at the specs for him to see if he really needed to upgrade. Of course we had a couple of ciders to help the process. W chatted for an hour about all sorts of things and I tried to explain our political process. He was very surprised when I told him that the Queen of England had the power to dismiss our government. It sounded ridiculous when explaining it to William and it looks ridiculous when I am writing this down. Bring on our Republic I say. Long may the King reign (Elvis that is – for more on Elvis see tomorrows blog).

Cheryl and her crew from California have arrived and it is good catching up with them all. They have been coming down for Jazz Fest for over 10 years and always stay in the apartment next to us.

We left at 4:30 for the walk down to Lafayette Park for the free music in the park. We will meet up with Carol and Stew. We got there just after the music started with the support act being Alexis & the Samurai. Caught up with Carol and Stew and spotted a few Aussies that are in town as part of the Brian Wise tour group including Ann who comes to our Way Out West gigs.

The main act for the night is the Honey Island Swamp Band a real favourite of Ian Fraser and me for that matter Great set as always. I spoke to the singer from the first band as I noticed he had a tattoo of the world wrapped around his bicep. Asked him if Australia was part of the tattoo and he said yep and showed me, even had Tassie and New Zealand featured,
I got a beer and was walking back to where the girls where when I heard a voice call out Rob (in a southern accent). Turned around and it was the actor Rob (forgot his last name) who was in the Treme series and the film 12 Year a Slave. He wanted to welcome me back to N.O. and came over to say hello to Wendy and Kate. Kate went over to one of the artists stalls and bought a collar for our pup Gumbo. He will look resplendent in his Fleur Dis Lis collar. The free Wednesday night concert series which is held during Spring is always a lot of fun. Lots of locals, families, eccentrics, dogs and party goers in general. Blankets and picnics and just a hint of the herb in the air. The Honey Island Swamp Band rocked and Ivan Neville also jumped up for a couple of songs on the Hammond.

We also ran into Ken Gilmore and Lisa and a few newbies to N.O. who are also with the Brain Wise tour.
We left with Carol and Stew just as the band were finishing up to go over to Mona’s on Frenchman for a gyro. Always good Lebanese food here.

After our meal Stew said we should check in for a beer at the nearby Blue Nile. Stew knows the bouncer and we get let in and then notice that we have gate crashed a private wedding. Well this is New Orleans and everyone is welcome. The groom is dressed in a sparkling top-hat with feathers and the bride in in white in a New Orleans styled outfit. We even finished up with some wedding guest to go cups. Got to see the bride though out her bouquet. Stew then took us upstairs to another room which also hosts bands and then we spent a very pleasant half hour or so out on the balcony watching the goings and comings of the very popular Frenchman Street and its music clubs and eating houses. There is a brass band playing down on the next corner with a large crowd spilling out on to the road. What a hoot this was, watching New Orleans and its visitors out and about. Stew told me that a lot of the people are all members of the same Craft Club.  I must have looked a little confused. He said yeah, ‘Can’t Remember A Fucking Thing’. I had to write that down as I think I may be an honouree member of that very same Craft Club.

P.S. To all you grammar Nazis I  am using a U.S. spell checker ya’ll

Day 14 – April  19

Don’t remember much about my baby days,
But I been told
We used to live on Willow near the Garden District
Next to the Sugar Bowl
Momma used to wheel me past an ice cream wagon
One side for White and one side for Colored
I remember trash cans floatin’ down Canal Street
It rained every day one summer
Momma used to take me to Audubon Park
Show me the ways of the world
She said, “here comes a white boy, there goes a black one,
that one’s an octoroon
This little cookie here’s a macaroon, that big round thing’s
a red balloon
And the paper down here’s called the Picayune
And here’s a New Orleans tune – New Orleans wins the War – Randy Newman

Shop ‘til ya’ll drop

We meet William out front at 9 for the drive over to Metairie and more particularly the shopping mall. We got there around 9:30 but as most of the shops don’t open until 10 we sat down and had a coffee. The girls went off to do girlie shopping and William and I wandered around. Seen one mall seen them all I guess but never the less this one is impressive. Not as big as say Highpoint but vey clean and tastefully set out. William and I only ventured into one shop that being the Microsoft outlet. I have a Samsung Tablet which I am very happy with but I most confess that I would love to be able to afford one of the top notch Microsoft Tablets. Oh well, dream away.

After meeting up with the girls we then drove a short distance to Barnes and Noble’s. A very large bookshop of the highest quality and the section of Louisianan and New Orleans books is first class. I now have even more books to add to my library. I have an insatiable thirst for learning as much as I can about this unique city. The more I learn confirms my love of this place. Although as always it can be bad assed. There have been a number of armed robberies in recent days in the Marigney, not far from where we stayed for the first four days of our trip. You just need to be vigilant. As a tourist walking at night you gotta stay on the main streets. Don’t go walking in dark neighbourhood areas as you are courting danger. The perpetrators will get caught shortly and be locked away. Justice is swift here.

Williams needed to make groceries so we drove down to the Win Dixie (think Coles Supermarket). In fact there was very similar signage to Coles plus the staff were dressed in similar colours. It was shortly after that I noticed advertising with Curtis Stone’s face ‘meals under $10’. Even had notices saying ‘prices are down’. Even giving that our dollar is well short of the US$ the price of food and groceries is a lot less than we pay back at home.

We got back home after 2 and are very thankful to William for taking us out to see a different part of New Orleans.
Tonight we are staying in as Mickey should be on the NCIS N.O. episode. It is cool being able to recognise so many of the locations in the show. We didn’t see Mickey but we tried real hard. It was weird trying to look at characters in the background and not concentrate on the main actors.

I went down to the local Verti Mart and got me a Creole Chicken and Cheesy Chilli Fries. Another great day in New Orleans.

I have said it before and I will say it again. When you make friends with locals they absolutely go out of their way to make you feel welcome and are proud to show off their city. We have some real good friends here. Pat and Gentilly Jnr., Stew and Carol, William and Mickey and the crew at Iggy’s, Big Dave, Little Dave, Ed, Mike and many more whose names I can’t remember. All the unknown people that just greet you with a good morning, a how ya’ll doing or a simple nod of the head.

Thanks to you all for making us feel so welcome.

Day 13 – April 18

I met him in a cell in New Orleans I was down and out.
He looked at me to be the eyes of age as he spoke right out.
He talked of life, talked of life, laughed slapped his leg a step. Mr Bojangles – Jerry Jeff Walker

The Rowe’s Get Cultured

Up early for a change and it looks like a nice day with the sun breaking through the clouds at long last.

Mickey has had a call from the casting company for NCIS N.O. and he will be a hostage in an episode to be filmed tomorrow. Mickey has had bit parts in 10 episodes of series two. William has very kindly made a time for tomorrow morning to drive us over to Metairie so the girls can go shopping at the mall.

Lunch today is to be at Mother’s on Poydras Street which is a good half hour walk through the Quarter then over Canal Street and down into the Warehouse District. I have eaten at Mother’s before and they are world renown for their Po Boys. I wanted to get there before noon as it is very popular with the local business people. We got in around 11:45 and the girls were a little confused with the ordering system. As soon as you walk in you are handed a menu at the door and then directed to line up for the cashier. The idea is you select what you want as you get closer to the cashier. It was easy for me as I knew I wanted a Roast Beef Debris Po Boy but the girls felt rushed. Being a Monday Wendy has gone for Red Beans & Rice and Kate just wants a drink. Once you have paid for the meals you sit at a table with your receipt. A waitress then comes by and fills your order. The walls are adorned with photos of locals and celebrities who have dines at Mothers. Bit of a fluke that we sat at a table where Kate spied a signed photo of Steve and Terri Irwin, the establishment has now been given her stamp of approval.. I was more impressed with the signed B.B.King and Dr. John photos. I am glad I only order the small Po Boy as I could manage to eat half only’

We continued walking away from the Quarter as I want to go to the Civil War Museum which is across from the very impressive World War Two Museum. I should have known better that on Mondays many of the smaller museums are closed. Bugger, but all is not lost as a few doors down it the Ogden Museum of Southern Art. I have always wanted to visit this place but it took some convincing of Kate. Of particular interest to me was the photos of Louisiana for the period 1865 – 1945. I thought I heard Kate mutter that she was back on a school excursion! Then she got confused, thinking a normal table was a piece of art. The exhibition that really took my fancy was the surreal sculptures of New Orleans native Arthur Kern. His work is worth checking out. http://ogdenmuseum.org/arthur-kern-the-surreal-world-of-a-reclusive-sculptor/
I also picked up a fantastic book at the gift shop entitled ‘Unfathomable City – A New Orleans Atlas’ to add to my (if I do say so myself) impressive library of Louisiana/New Orleans books back home.

We got back to Canal Street around 2 and Kate has decided that she needs a Maccas fix. Oh well she has been trying different foods over the last couple of weeks so I guess I can let here fall off the wagon just this once.
We walked past Cafe Beignet (after Maccas) on Royal Street and just had to call in to see if their beignets are as good as Cafe Du Monde. They were!

Wendy is leaving Kate and I to our own devices tonight as Pat is picking Wendy up just before six for a girls night out. I am sure my ears will be burring at some stage later in the night. Pat being a local knows all the great spots to dine out and Wendy told us that she had a great time at the classy Bacchanal Fine Wine and Spirits. By the way Bacchanal means ‘an occasion of wild & drunken revelry. I can see why a puritan like me was not invited. http://www.bacchanalwine.com/#about-marquee Wendy was very impressed. You select from the refrigerators a bottle of wine, salami and your cheese of choice. Then hand over you supplies to the staff who then bring them back to your table on a wooden board with added goodies such as olives and dips. Plus there is live music. Very civilised indeed.

Day 12 – April 17

Deep down in Louisiana close to New Orleans,
Way back up in the woods among the evergreens
There stood a log cabin made of earth and wood,
Where lived a country boy named Johnny B. Goode
Who never ever learned to read or write so well,
But he could play a guitar just like a ringing a bell.- Johnny Be Good – Chuck Berry

Hurricane Time

Another overcast day and again on the cool side. The weather suits me but I know that it will soon be hot and humid and uncomfortable. Just hope that the change to more New Orleans like weather is later rather than sooner.
There are four new guests next door. One of the ladies asked me where in Australia I was from. When I said Melbourne she was pleased. She had been a high school exchange student and spent a few months living in Canterbury. Said she cried when she had to leave Melbourne. I told her that it was the reverse for me as I shed a tear when I have to leave New Orleans.

Breakfast is getting later each day. We headed down on Decatur and I picked a place that I have never eaten in before. Monty’s. Nice looking establishment and a little more upmarket than a diner. I went for the house speciality omelette (the Jackson Square) – cheese, shrimp, lump crabmeat, crawfish tails, red peppers, caramelised red onion all topped with the house made creole sauce and a side of hash browns and 2 anti gout pills. Now that is a big breakfast and I will not have to eat again until later tonight.

We made groceries at Rousse’s and tonight we have planned for a home cooked meal.

Got back to sitting on my balcony and watching the world go by. Some people come by half carrying a girl who is as drunk as a skunk. It is only 3:45 but I can see what the problem is as they all carrying Pat O’Brien’s to – go cups. Looks like she is another victim of the infamous cocktail called the Hurricane. That reminded me that I had promised to have myself a Hurricane in honour of the fantastic Kerri Simpson. I poked me head into the apartment to tell the girls to get ready to go to Pat O’Brien’s’

We got to the establishment around 5. Kate got aged checked at the door and then the guy asked for Wendy’s age verification. She was pretty happy with that until the guy burst into a big smile!
We ordered our hurricanes, one for me and one for the girls to share and moved into the courtyard to enjoy.
Pat O’Brien’s: The historical building that is home to Pat O’Brien’s was built in 1791 as a private home that became the first Spanish Theatre in the United States. It was later purchased by the Deflechie family as their residence until the building was purchased by Pat O’Brien.

Pat O’Brien ran a speakeasy on St. Peter street until the repeal of Prohibition. He officially opened Pat O’Brien’s bar on December 3, 1933, located on the corner of Royal and St. Peters Streets. In 1942, after Charlie Cantrell joined O’Brien, the business moved to the present location at 718 St. Peter Street.

The famed Hurricane Drink originated at Pat O’Brien’s in the early 1940’s. The name was chosen because the drink was, and still is, served in a glass shaped like a hurricane lamp. Word spread quickly about the potent beverage and Pat O’Brien’s Hurricane was an instant success. How did the Hurricane come about? In the early 1940’s there was a short supply of distilled spirits because the grains and sugars necessary to produce spirits went to the troops abroad during World War Two. There was, however, a large supply of Rum coming into the Port of New Orleans from the Caribbean. Bar owners were forced to buy large amounts of rum, 50 cases or so, in order to get one case of scotch or whiskey, for example. The experts at Pat O’Brian’s began experimenting, and the fruity potent concoction was finally perfected. So what is in a Hurricane? 4 oz. Of rum blended with 4 oz. of Pat O’Brien’s Hurricane Mix.

We finished our drinks then headed into the main bar. The ceiling is adorned with hundreds of beer steins there is an extra large T.V. screen that has on the NBA play-offs with Miami Hat taking on Charlotte Hornets. The Heat are Kate’s favourite team so we propped at the bar. I had a Strawberry Abita and the girls shared another cocktail. This time the aptly named Rainbow. A colourful drink of Grenadine, Vodka, Blue Curacao and Pat O’Brien’s Sweet & Sour Mix, layered to perfection.

We got back to the apartment and Wendy (with Kate’s help) cooked us a simple Aussie meal of steak, mashed spuds and peas. The steak we got from Rousse’s was very tender.

Day 11 – April 16

Well, I wish I was in New Orleans, I can see it in my dreams,
Arm-in-arm down Burgundy, a bottle and my friends and me

Hoist up a few tall cool ones, play some pool and listen
To that tenor saxophone calling me home
And I can hear the band begin “When the Saints Go Marching In”,
And by the whiskers on my chin, New Orleans, I’ll be there – Tom Waites – I Wish I Was In New Orleans

We IS Riding

We are up at 8 to get ready for today. Feeling a little dusty after my session with Gentilly last night but I can’t miss today. We need to leave around 9 to get to Iggy’s bar for  our lift. I was ready first and waited out on our balcony for Wendy and Kate to get ready. I guy stopped to ask a question. He looked pretty dishevelled after a big night. I recognised the accent as Australian. Yep he was. He wanted to know if I knew the name of the cross Streets that ran off Bourbon. I rattled off those I could remember. Asked him why, and he said he got to N.O.yesterday and had been drinking at a Bourbon Street bar all night. His friend (who has an apartment somewhere off Bourbon) left him with a girl. He kept telling me he thought he was doing all right which I guessed meant that he thought he might get his pecker wet. Anyway he now is standing in front of me having had his IPhone and wallet lifted and he does not know where he is staying. I sought of felt sorry for him. What is it with Australian tourists and Bourbon Street bars. Do they not know that for 150 years this street has been known for hookers and pickpockets that will prey on unsuspecting suckers every day of the week.

We got to Iggy’s right on time and meet Bonnie who is giving up a lift. She is an elderly lady who is very friendly and chatted the whole time it took us to get down to Chalmette (about a 12 minute drive). It is raining pretty heavy and we all hope it will clear. Today (drum-roll) we are riding on a float for the annual Chalmette Parade which celebrates the Irish and Italian settlors. It is very rare for an out of towner to be invited to ride. Our float is one of 45 floats and the parade features dancing teams, riders on horse-back and all kinds of interesting people. Our float has a roof and on board porter potty which is handy as the parade takes over 3 hours. We have our own on board band called the Jukebox Heroes and Ed plays bass with the band. Kate and Wendy help with the decorations and all who are riding with us are very friendly and inviting. It is still raining but hopefully it will clear up by the time we roll (around noon). Refreshments and food is stowed away and Bonnie gave us a huge bag of throw beads plus a big bag of carrots and 3 bags of potatoes. I also receive a large supply of plastic flowers which I get to hand out to the ladies and girls in return for a kiss. Kate has on her green and white tutu and Wendy a crazy headdress. We get ready in a large Walmart car-park and just across from us are many horse floats. One group of riders are called the New Orleans cowboys.
As the rain looks persistent we headed to the Walmart to get me a rain jacket .It is the biggest store we have ever seen. Think Bunnings and then some.

We start rolling just after noon and thankfully the rain has stopped. The course takes us out of town and then we do a U-turn for the return journey. The road is more a highway with a wide neutral ground (median strip) and people are lined up on both sided of the out and back course. It was so much fun throwing out beads, handing out flowers to the ladies as well as our stash of potatoes and carrots. Why the potatoes and carrots you may ask. Well this is an Irish Parade and you should gather enough stuff to be able to have an Irish Stew. Some floats are also giving out cabbages, bananas and pineapples. Our float is thumping out great r ‘n’ b tunes. It is so good to see all the smiling faces as you throw out some beads. Some of the crowd barbequing some have couches to sit on and plenty of libations are being taken. The parade took over 3 hours to complete and by the time we got back I was exhausted. It is very tiring having this much fun.

We got back to Iggy’s around 5 for a relaxing drink. I went back with Ed and the girls with Johnny (the singer in the band). Ed told me about his Katrina experience. As we drove back he told me that the area was under sixteen feet of water and if you go back a few streets off the main drag you will still see (after 11 years) abandoned homes. Ed and his wife evacuated the day before the hurricane hit. Their home has major wind damaged and some flood damage as well. He did not return until two months after the storm. There was still no electricity and he told me that it was eerily scary to see N.O. completely black at night. No birds, no dogs all life blown away. The first thing that came back to town were the rats!
Mark Jackson an ex-pat Aussie who we meet last year at his bar down in the Parish for his annual crawfish boil called into Iggy’s for a drink. He told us that he just recently sold the bar. We told him we had a big jar of vegemite for him and he was so excited. Told us that the two tubes of vegemite we gave him last year only lasted a week!
Ed told us some stories about some of the crazy locals that used to call into Iggy’s One such was called ‘Danny the Tranny’ who loved to play pool in stilettos and a mini-skirt. Danny was apparently (in Australian lingo) built like a brick shit-house and was very able to look after his/herself. We met another guy at the bar who had written two hit songs for Willie Nelson and one for Merle Haggard.

We left Iggy’s around 6:30. I am exhausted and my feet are aching real bad but this is one day I will remember for a very long time. New Orleans people are very special and they will go out of their way to make you trip unforgettable. Well this sure was an unforgettable day

Day 10 – April 16

High black water – a devil’s daughter
She’s hard and she’s cold and she’s mean
But nobody’s taught her that it takes
A lot of water to wash away New Orleans – Hurricane – Levon Helm

Johnny White’s and Evil Bob

Another sleep in – Pat is coming over around lunch time to pick up the girls as they have to pick up a few things for tomorrow’s adventure (it is still a secret). Pat is so nice to do this in her lunch hour and she sure does go out of her way to make our trip so enjoyable. I headed to Envie’s for the delectable French toast and fresh fruit. Still some rain about and on the cool side as well.

The girls were back around 12:45 and they headed off for a late breakfast.

When the girls were back we took a walk down to Canal St via Bourbon. It is only 2:30 and the street is already pumping. We walked past a strip club and the bouncer out front invited Wendy and me in for a ‘good’ time. He said, ‘I will babysit for you, meaning Kate’. I thought that was a mighty kind offer but Kate told him she was old enough not to be baby sat! We stopped for a smoothie and Froyo on Canal St.

We walked back down Bourbon and at the same strip joint as before the bouncer apologised to Kate for thinking she was under age. There is a young brass band playing on the corner near Toulouse Street and they have a big crowd. There is a Congo line of all African Americans doing these real cool step that only people born with natural rhythm can do. Us white guys just can’t dance.

We have arranged to meet up with Pat and Gentilly Jnr around 8:30 at Johnny White’s bar. I walked right past the bar and Kate had to stop me. We went in and Pat and Gentilly had not yet arrived but I thought to myself that the bar did not seem right. I had been to Johnny White’s a few times and even have one of the bar’s t shirts. There is a promotion going on. If you buy a shot of Jamison’s then you get a free Jameson’s t shirt. Had to do it as the t shirt is green and that will come in handy for tomorrows adventure (that is a hint). It got to 9 o’clock and Pat and Gentilly had still not arrived. Wendy decided to text Pat and we found out we were at the wrong Johnny White’s! I knew it didn’t feel right. We need to go another block and turn left.

Gentilly saw us straight away but Pat had gone looking for us. We must have passed her on Bourbon which was easy as the street is packed with revellers. The barman is called Evil Bob. A big man that looks intimidating but is a real nice man. Evil Bob welcomed us back and we settled in for a great night of talking and drinking with two real good friends.

We headed home just after midnight as we have to be up early (early for N.O. time) to be at Iggy’s bar by 9:30. Ed has arranged a lift for us down to Saint Bernard Parish (Chalmette) for what is going to be the adventure of a life-time.