Last Tuesday I was trying to get the family packed and ready for our trip to Jazz Fest in New Orleans. Just as dusk was approaching I decided that I had to at least mow the front yard before we left. I pulled the mower around to the front of the house and got started. As I was mowing the side of my house next to my neighbor, the lawnmower struck a stump from a bush in my yard that my neighbor cut down (another long story). The blade bent badly. My yard was half mowed, it was getting dark, and I was leaving town in the morning. I ended up using my weed whacker to finish the job.
The next morning we were able to get everyone and everything packed into the car headed for the Amtrak station in Birmingham, AL. On the way down to Birmingham the van started acting up. The check engine light came on and then started flashing. When we looked it up in the manual it just said “go directly to a Mazda dealer”. We made the decision to risk burning up the van and getting stuck on the side of the road for the chance to make the train. The last 100 miles to Birmingham were nerve wracking.
Luckily the van made it all the way to the train station. We found a parking space and got our tickets with barely enough time to check our bags. It was a matter of minuted before we were piled on to the train. Henry was crying, the bigger boys were hungry, and I was worn out. It was a long and somewhat stressful ride to New Orleans. All of that dissipated somewhat when we got to Slidel.
I have not been back to New Orleans since Hurricane Katrina. It was pretty sad to see how much destruction was still visible. Once we made it across Lake Ponchatrain it was much worse. The foundations without houses, the houses without occupants, the spray paint on the houses from the rescue effort. It was all very sad.
We got to the train station just as it started to get dark. The hotel was only 10 or so blocks from the train station, but my recollection was that those were not the safest 10 blocks in New Orleans. The thing is, it is hard to pile into a cab as a family of 8 with luggage. So we did what anyone would never do, we walked. There we were pushing strollers and pulling luggage through a dark and unpopulated part of New Orleans at night. I am pretty sure it had to be a scary sight. Fortunately we made it straight to the hotel thanks to Google Maps and a GPS enabled blackberry curve.
Thursday morning we all got up and went for a walk around the neighborhood. It was a good way to kill time and get everyone acclimated to their environs. The down side was that it wore the kids out early. My dad and sister went on to Jazz Fest and Sabrina and I set out to take the kids to the Audubon Zoo via the St Charles street car (btw, they are no longer all named “desire”). We walked through Audubon Park on our way to the zoo. In the park I stopped to take a picture of some birds when the kids noticed an alligator hanging out on a log in a pond. The gator was staring down some turtles. It was the first time I have ever seen a wild alligator in the city. Very cool.
Friday we went to Jazz Fest in spite of the threat of rain. We got rained on, but everyone still had a good time. Luckily I planned ahead and had ponchos for everyone.
Saturday morning Sabrina and I took the kids into the French Quarter for some beignets. After breakfast the entire krewe went down to the Fest.
My cousin Dan was touring with the Salvador Santa Band and they were playing on Sunday. So Saturday night Dan and Quincy joined us for dinner at a really good and cheap restaurant outside the quarter called Mother’s. If you are ever in New Orleans and you stumble upon Mother’s without a line out the door, you must take advantage of your good fortune. Otherwise it could take an hour to get through the line. Later that night I went out on the town kidless (thanks dad!) with Sabrina, Sarah, Dan, and Quincy. Sabrina and I took them to The R Bar which is where Sabrina and I really got to know each other for the first time when we first met (get your heads out of the gutter). It was the first time either of us had been back to The R Bar since that night. We also spent some time on Frenchman Street which is one of the coolest parts of New Orleans.
The weather on Sunday was phenomenal. The kids were pretty worn out though so Sabrina and I took the kids back during the early afternoon. We got to see some great music and the trip was a really nice change of pace.
The trip home was interesting. The train departed at 7:10am so it was a struggle to get everyone to the train station on time. However the train ride was much less stressful on the way home. Unfortunately I still had that issue of the check engine light being on in the van. When we got to Birmingham we took the van straight to a Mazda dealer. It turned out that one of the valves was shot. Sabrina, Henry, and Zavier hopped in the car with my dad and sister and I checked into a hotel with Carter and Jacob to wait for the van to be fixed. Luckily they were able to fix it by 11am the next morning and we got home without any further issues.
All in all I think it was a great trip. It was not a week of rest and relaxation, but it was really great to be able to share that with my family. My dad and I have been to Jazz Fest plenty of times so having to sacrifice a few great acts was not a big deal. I am sure I will take the kids to Jazz Fest again, but maybe next year it will be an adults only trip.
