Thursday November 30, 2006

The rig was packed and ready to hit the road about 9:30 a.m. It is starting to drizzle again. The cold front is pushing south and we are running just ahead of it. Paul had run over to a small donut shop and brought us a couple of deep fried grease nuggets. Why does deep fried grease taste so good?

We got back on I55 once again heading straight south. We stopped at the Louisiana Welcome Center and picked up a bunch of tourist brochures. I would love to go on the Vampire and Cemetery Tour, but it is a walking tour and its after dark, too deadly for moi. Walking is still difficult and forget walking in the freakin’ dark…since I have no balance I have to use my EYES so darkness renders me totally unbalanced…no rude comments please.

I55 into NO is very interesting. About 20 or so miles out of the city, there are bayous along the highway, shrimp boats and houses on stilts. Very interesting. We plan on doing a swamp and bayou tour. I better remember the bug spray or I won’t come out alive, sucked dry no doubt.

We arrived in New Orleans just ahead of the super thunderstorms that are making up the cold front down here. The wind was blowing pretty hard and the traffic on the NO freeways just whizzed by us. I think Paulie was stressed. I cannot describe just how terrible it still is down here as we passed on I10. All the residential areas we passed still had half the houses in repair or disrepair. Roofs missing, windows boarded up. FEMA trailers still stand in a lot of front yards. We passed a strip mall that was still just a pile of rubble. Some homes look like they have been rebuilt already…their insurance must have been good. There are still piles of rubble everywhere, on street corners and even on roofs. Very sad. This was probably not a very attractive area, most likely a poorer area and it just looks like jumbled up shambles.

We finally find Chef Menteur Hwy and get off to find the park. Hmmm, it’s a parking lot with hookups. There is a pool, and a hot tub. I truly doubt if I’d set foot in either one, even if I was dying of the heat and humidity. There are mostly work campers here. It looks like a lot of electric company trucks are here. I suppose if the work is here, staying in a campground is not such a bad deal. At least you go to bed in YOUR bed every night, and can cook a meal. About six blocks from here is the quarry and the main barge landing on the Mississippi. Not the most picturesque place we’ve ever stayed by a long shot, but NOT as bad as my favorite place in Southern Illinois. We are about 5 miles from the French Quarter. First thing tomorrow morning I am shagging male asses outta bed and we are going to the Café du Monde for beignets and café au lait. It IS open 24 hours so I may just steal out in the middle of the night and treat myself.

The rain finally caught up with us at around 5:30 p.m. It was really heavy and came down in torrents blown to and fro by a strong wind. Paul stupidly made himself and grandpa fish sticks for dinner and stunk up the entire rig. No windows can be opened due to the torrential rain, and he makes fish sticks…in the toaster oven. Jeez. Now it smells like Arthur Treachers in here for heaven’s sake. I am lighting candles all over the place. Putz.

Well, that’s about all that’s going on here. It is supposed to rain tomorrow so I am not sure what is on the agenda except for the beignets .

More later

Dee