Dear
George,
This
Thanksgiving we drove from Cincinnati down to New Orleans for a five-day stay
with our family -- J and K and grandkids V and L. It was the longest road trip that Katja and I have done in
decades (806 miles each way), but I like long drives and the trip was
interesting. The sheepdogs got to
come too, which we enjoyed. We got
off the Interstate and travelled on a two-lane highway for a hundred miles or
so in Alabama and Mississippi on the way down and on the way back. We were a little nervous -- me wary
about getting stopped by the sheriff in a small town speedtrap, Katja imagining
what it was like for the Freedom Riders in the 1960s. Katja thought the scenery looked like rural Kentucky and I
was reminded of the U.P., though the scenery differed in various ways. There
were lots of places with Dixie in their names, restaurants serving Po-Boys and
pork BBQ, and a few more gun shops and discount liquor stores than I’m used to
seeing. We traveled via Nashville,
Huntsville, Birmingham, Tuscaloosa, and Meridian but didn’t make any
sightseeing stops. Katja was angry
that I didn’t stop in Nashville to get some of her favorite bread, but I was
intent on covering ground.
We
had worried beforehand about our elderly doggies doing o.k. such a long car
trip, but they were excellent travellers, sleeping or looking out the window
most of the time. It took a
lot of Google searching to find a "pet friendly" motel that would
accept two large sheepdogs, but we wound up with a pleasing motel stopover in
Birmingham in both directions.
We
arrived at J and K's house (left) about 6:30 p.m. on the Monday of Thanksgiving
week. Their Mid-City house is a
duplex, and their tenant, Claire, had gone away for the holiday, providing us
with comfortable accommodations.
The
children, V and L, were excited about our arrival. L gave us a picture he'd drawn of Darth Vader, and V had
done a picture of “Nana” (Katja).
A little later J put on a TV cartoon show, and the children recruited
Katja to watch with them.
V,
L, and I worked on drawing turkeys to celebrate the holiday. Here's V’s product.
There's
a double bed in Claire's apartment, and it took a little doing for two dogs and
two humans to find a good sleeping arrangement. We did work it out though (humans on each edge and dogs
lined up in the middle), and we all slept soundly.
J
and K's Mid-City neighborhood is doing excellently, enjoying a brand new mall
area on Carrollton Ave. and showing virtually no signs of Katrina’s
aftermath. On our first morning
Katja and I enjoyed a late breakfast at the Ruby Slipper, right down the
block.
Thanksgiving
Day is the season opening of the Fairgrounds race track in New Orleans, and
it's a popular event for locals.
Here V is watching the thundering herd come charging down the track.
The
New Orleans crowd comes to the races decked out in all sorts of costumes. Here’s a mysterious New Orleans couple
(along with K’s dad Ted, also visiting for the holiday).
At
Thanksgiving dinner with family and friends, the children and I (as narrator)
did the second annual performance of our “First Thanksgiving” play, with L
playing the roles of Growling Bear and Miles Standish, and V as Flying Squirrel
and Priscilla Mullins. Betsy, a
visiting three-year-old family friend, joined right in with the five-year-olds,
giving herself the name of the “Princess of the Ball”.
The
dogs, of course, got more walk time in the neighborhood than they normally do
at home. The weather was cool
during our stay -- highs in the mid-40's to mid-50's -- and perfectly suited
for sheepdogs.
We
enjoyed lunch with J and K at chef John Best's restaurant, the Peche Seafood
Grill in the warehouse district.
As is her tradition, Katja enjoyed oysters on the half shell for her
appetizer. I had a delicious
entrée of drum fish, fresh from the Gulf.
J
asked Katja what she would like to do most, and, without a second’s hesitation,
she said she’d like to go to Saks Fifth Avenue. She did some shopping there while J and I browsed in a
couple of other stores in the Shops at Canal Place.
On
Saturday I went along with J and V to a 24-hour "draw-a-thon" at the
Opera House in the Marigny district.
Hundreds of kids were busily engaged in one art project or another, and
V completed numerous artworks in the space of ninety minutes.
While
V was drawing, I took a short walk around the neighborhood. It's filled with colorfully decorated
house and buildings, including this one.
One
afternoon Katja and I went to the Sculpture Garden in City Park. The Sculpture Garden, adjacent to the
Art Museum, is set among ponds, bridges, and live oaks and displays works by
Henry Moore, Fernando Botero, Jacques Lipchitz, George Segal, and many
others. It’s the most visually appealing
place that we’ve discovered in NOLA.
While
Katja and I were doing aesthetic things, J took the kids to the City Park
playground. Afterward we all got
together for beignets at the Morning Call Restaurant in the park.
The
dogs, meanwhile, were having the time of their lives. J and K's family dog Iko, a little stray who they rescued
from the neighborhood streets, was excited about having two large playmates. He's peppier and more social than Mike
and Duffy, and he kept the sheepdogs physically and mentally busy throughout
their stay.
One
evening we all went to the Celebration of the Oaks at the Botanical Gardens in
City Park. It's similar to our
Cincinnati Zoo Festival of Lights, but bigger and with more things for kids to
do.
I’d
say the children were most excited about the bumper cars. Here are K and L in the middle of the
pack.
This
is a pretty blurry night-time photo, but that's Katja and V going up in the
ferris wheel. It must have taken
twenty minutes for the operator to unload and load new passengers for each of
the gondolas. V suddenly noticed
from the top of the ferris wheel that her brother on the ground had gotten
cotton candy. She yelled down to
the operator that she was hungry and wanted to get off. He politely accommodated.
We
were scheduled to depart on the Sunday morning after Thanksgiving, and J cooked
up tasty omelets for everybody.
Here's
our group as we're getting ready to leave. I wish we'd had a few days more, and I'm still recovering
from a case of post-vacation blues.
Being together with our family is always my favorite time of the
year. I’d say it’s the time that I
feel most complete. But such is
life, and now we'll look forward to our next get-together.
Love,
Dave
G-Mail Comments
-Gayle C-L
(12-9): David, I have to say, this trip and these
photos are your absolute best!! So wonderful
I don't know
if it's the technology or the simply all the love coming thru but all of that
is there than some;))))
I really felt
like I was there ;)))
And wish I
were!
The one
picture of J making the Omelettes
From my I
phone, he looks so much like a young Peter.. OMG :))
Too Much !!
Thx for
keeping this tradition, one of your great many claims to fame:)
Until the
next trip
Lots of love.
G. ;)
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