NOLA TRIP PIX

 Dear George, 

We’re recently back from a weeklong family Thanksgiving trip to New Orleans. It was a special time to visit. Our family has recently moved from Mid-City to their new Uptown home. Our grandkids, A and L, are in their final year of junior high and will soon be taking a big test to get into the high school of their choice. K’s parents, Linda and Ted, have both recently returned to New Orleans, Ted staying in J and K’s basement apartment for the winter months and Linda in her nearby apartment complex. Here are some of the highlights of our visit.

On our first full day K took us to see the newly established Museum of the Southern Jewish Experience. It’s a very excellently done coverage of the adaptation of European Jewish immigrants to the rural South, often in situations where they were the only Jewish family in the community. Many tears and smiles and highly recommended if you visit NOLA.

 

On Thanksgiving Day J roasted a 20-pound turkey, filling it with butter under its skin, and other family members prepared sides for the holiday feast. Here are a few of the hard-working cooks (Katja, L, and A).

Before Thanksgiving dinner J took a group of us to the horse races at the fairgrounds where the local citizenry dress up in colorful and wacky costumes. My reckless associates lost all of their bets on the horses.

Here is our group at dinner: (from the left), A, Conrad (a family relative), Eddie (as family friend), our daughter-in-law K, K’s dad Ted, the back of my head, L, Linda (K’s mom), and J taking the photo. A happy and filled up bunch.

New Orleans, of course, is a great town for eating out. We had family dinners out at Dat Dog (with the fanciest hot dogs on the planet) and La Crepe Nanou, an elegant French Restaurant. We lunched at the Redfish Grill on Bourbon Street (raw oysters for Katja, a fried oyster po-boy for me), Freret Faire at Rouse’s Market, and Ted’s Frostop, a 1950’s style diner. Above is Katja enjoying her oysters at Redfish Grill, a happy trio at La Crepe Nanou, and Ted’s Frostop.

J took the kids and us to the Historic Orleans Collection which featured a digital tour of the Notre Dame Cathedral post-fire renovation, and then we visited M. S. Rau Fine Arts and Antiques on Royal Street (Picasso, Chagall, Matisse, etc., with price tags up to $2 million, including a million-dollar ornate chess set).

J also took us to see the top high school football player in the nation and University of Texas recruit, quarterback Arch Manning (Peyton’s and Eli’s nephew), in his last home game for local Newman High. Unfortunately Arch had an off day and his team got blown out by upstarts from Baton Rouge.

 

One of our favorite places is the New Orleans Art Museum. This time we saw an exhibition of Black studio photographers in New Orleans and works by surrealist painter Louise Bourgeois. 

Our week went by too quickly and we miss our sweet family. Hopefully we’ll be back in the spring. 

Love, 

Dave

FAST TIMES IN NOLA

Dear George, 

 It felt like ages since we’d been to New Orleans to visit our family (i.e., before the pandemic), so our recent trip was very special. Here are some photos that capture the highlights. 

Love, 

Dave

J and K recently bought a spacious new house in Uptown, close to Tulane University, Audubon Park, the kids’ school, and an excellent restaurant strip on Freret St. All our family members are overjoyed with their new home.

Katja and I enjoyed eating at Dat Dog on Freret St. which has the best frankfurters, bratwursts, and alligator sausages we’ve ever tasted. We went once, and then Katja treated the whole family there for a second visit.

We went to see the Queen Nefertari’s Egypt exhibit at the New Orleans Art Museum in City Park. A trip to ancient times. In front: L, A, J, Katja. In back: Ted, K’s dad.

Then we went next door and visited the Bischoff Sculpture Garden, our favorite outdoor place in New Orleans. The Sculpture Garden has recently doubled in size.

Getting beignets at Cafe du Monde in City Park is a lot easier than in the tourist-crowded French Quarter location.

We missed Iko a lot, but his little brother Lil Paws was just as much fun.

Here is our group enjoying dinner at the chic Israeli restaurant, Saba. I had Harissa roasted chicken, and Katja had lamb kofta. From the left: Katja, A, K, L, J.

On Sunday we picnicked at Audubon Park, famed for its live oaks. J and L practiced distance running, in preparation for the upcoming Crescent City race.

Monday J took us on a trip to Biloxi and to Ocean Springs, Mississippi, where we visited the wonderful Walter Anderson Museum and the Shearwater Pottery.

Dickie Brennan’s Bourbon House on Bourbon Street in the French Quarter is one of our favorite oyster places.

Katja and I went to the Historic Orleans Collection in the French Quarter where they were featuring a “Streetcar Named Desire” exhibition.

We lunched at Pesch in the Arts District, A stranger asked Katja if she could take her picture because she looked so pretty in her outfit.

We loved the paintings of Luis Cruz Azaceta at the Ogden Museum of Southern Art.

J and K took us to the concert by Louisiana Philharmonic cellists and dancers at the Marigny Opera House.  Eight cellists, no less.

On Thursday St. Andrews Episcopal School had Grandparents Day. These are the seventh graders, including A and L, performing a song with the bells. We were very impressed with the school and our grandkids’ accomplishments.

Katja and I enjoyed our annual oyster lunch at Desire in the Royal Sonesta on Bourbon Street.

On our last day we had a family brunch at the Ruby Slipper in the Marigny. That’s J, L, and Jayme, K’s sister who arrived from California. J’s artwork is on the rear wall at the right.

Our last big outing was to the Audubon Aquarium. A very attractive facility with many interesting fishies.

It looks like we needed a nap by the end of the trip.

OLDIES ON THE ROAD

 

Dear George, 

Katja and I are just back from a memorable family visit in New Orleans. We hadn’t been on an airplane since before the the pandemic began, so it was more eventful than usual. I think our traveling skills have gotten rusty since we had a rocky journey. We left for the airport about 30 minutes later than I’d planned, and I was annoyed to find that the daily charge for long-term parking had increased from $7 to $11. We took the shuttle bus to the airport terminal and got in the TSA security line. I’d printed out our boarding passes at home so I gave Katja hers. The line was pretty long, and, when we’d gotten about halfway through, I suggested that we get our driver’s licenses out. Much to her consternation, Katja couldn’t find hers. She looked through her purse, her wallet, and her pockets. It was baffling because she had checked in the car to make sure she had it. I looked through her purse and wallet too, but with no luck. Deciding that she must have left it in the car, we got out of the security line and began to head back to the shuttle bus — a perilous choice since we didn’t have surplus time. However, an airport employee was standing nearby, and I explained our dilemma to him. He said that we could get through security with credit cards or similar I.D. with Katja’s name on it and advised us to go back into the line. 

The security line was a bit longer the second time around. When we got halfway through I suggested that we get out our boarding passes. Katja looked in her purse, but she couldn’t find her boarding pass there, and it wasn’t in her pockets either. I looked in her purse too. No luck. This was crazy — she had just had the boarding pass in her hand ten minutes before. We knew that they could print out boarding passes at the ticket counter for a $5 fee, so I suggested that Katja go back there while I stayed in the line. She said she would call me on her cell phone when she got the new boarding pass. 

Going through the security check I failed to take my cell phone out of my pocket and set off the alarm bells, so the guy had to give me a full-body putdown. Then I got confused and left my carry-on bag on the conveyor belt until a TSA lady pointed out that the purple bag was mine. At first I thought it wasn’t but the tag had my name on it. In the meantime I hadn’t heard from Katja, and I was getting worried about the time. It was a long walk to our departure gate, the very last one in the terminal. I explained to the airline representative at the check-in counter that my wife had had to go back and get a new boarding pass and that I was worried about her getting back in time. He said that the airplane door would close in exactly twenty minutes and there were no exceptions. If she didn’t make it back by then, we would have to reschedule. Their next flight to New Orleans was in three days. 

I got more anxious by the minute, but Katja did finally make it with seven minutes to spare. All the other patrons had boarded at least fifteen minutes earlier. We breathed a sigh of relief and took our seats. Katja said she had intended to call me, but she hadn’t been able to find her cell phone. Apparently she had left it in the car. A few minutes later she opened up the paperback book she had brought along to read. Much to our surprise, there was the original boarding pass that she’d lost. 

Our New Orleans visit was thoroughly enjoyable and proceeded without incident. We worried a bit about our return flight since Katja still lacked a photo I.D. However, since they’d accepted other forms of I.D. in Cincinnati, it seemed sensible that they’d do the same in New Orleans. That wasn’t exactly true. We went through the security line in the New Orleans airport, and Katja explained to the TSA official that she had left her driver’s license in our car in Cincinnati and only had other forms of I.D. She gave the man her Medicare card, her covid vaccination card, her American Express card, and her Macy’s credit card. The man, however, said these weren’t adequate because none of them listed her home address. Katja carries dozens of cards in her purse. She started going through them, and the TSA official started looking through her wallet too. None of the cards had a home address. Then, suddenly, the TSA man said, “Well, here’s a surprise.” He held up Katja’s driver’s license which he’d found in one of the deeper pockets of her wallet. Problem solved. 

Our 8:37 p.m.flight to Cincinnati was delayed 45 minutes for unknown reasons. Then, once we boarded the plane, we sat on the ground for another two hours, waiting for a worker to replace a filter in the rear lavatory sink. We arrived in Cincinnati about 3 a.m. I had some trouble with the automated checkout system at the long-term parking lot, but a human voice eventually came on an intercom and guided us through it. A thirty minute drive to home. We slept till noon the next day. Our air travel had its ups and downs, but I have nothing but happy memories of being in New Orleans. 

Love, 

Dave

NOLA Doings

Dear George,

Katja was too wary of the heat and humidity to consider a summertime trip to New Orleans, but I was all set to go.  (Being from northern Michigan, I consider extreme heat a novel and exciting  experience.)   I flew down in early June.  J and K, as always, were wonderful hosts.  K’s mom, Linda, has moved to New Orleans and has an apartment in the Esplanade at the edge of City Park, about a mile away.  The family is always busy doing exciting things.  I think the kids have the best lives imaginable.  On weekdays J and K were at work and the children were at camp, so I had the run of the city.   Here is a report of my trip highlights.

Love,

Dave

-Grandkid story: Turning eleven this September, L and V are taller, smarter, funnier, more grownup.  Both were on the end-of-the year Fourth Grade Honor Roll at St. Andrews School.  L is busy taking piano lessons, and V works every day on her art.

-Doggies: Little Paws was still in residence, but Iko, the family’s first dog, has gone to live with Linda.  Both dogs are much calmer as a consequence of being separated.  Little Paws was happy to see me and I him.  For a tiny dog he has a strong pull on the leash. 

 -City’s best new addition for NOLA residents and visitors:  doubling the size of the Besthoff Sculpture Garden in City Park.

-Great local transportation bargains (a tie): 40 cent senior fare on NOLA trolleys and buses; $2 bus to and from the airport. 

-NOLA community grief and Second Lines: for Creole restauranteur Leah Chase (age 86) and R&B musician Dr. John (age 68).

-Excellent new look: J’s beard (which makes him look sort of like his father did at middle age).   

-Grandparent  education: the children taught me the fast-paced card game, Lord of the Goats, but I didn’t come close to keeping up with them.  

-Best digital slip of the tongue: when J arranged for his friend to drop off the kids to me but I didn’t hear the doorbell, J texted his friend, “He’s in there but he’s dead (sic, deaf).”

-Movie night out: Avengers-Endgame at the AMC Palace (with post-movie explanation of plot subtleties by the youth).    

-Best social outing: family dinner at Linda’s Esplanade apartment.

-Best New Orleans cuisine: sausage PoBoy at Dooky Chase’s.

-Best Louisiana regional meal: catfish dinner with J at Middendorf’s Seafood Restaurant in Manchat, La. 

-Best international meal: lamb kafke kebob at Shaya, the acclaimed Israeli restaurant on Magazine St. 

-Most misleading restaurant name: Chez Pierre French Bakery & Restaurant (serving exclusively Vietnamese fare). 

-Sports thrill: watching the Warriors defeat the Raptors, 106-105 (game 5 of the NBA finals), with J at Finn McCool’s neighborhood bar.  The crowd was cheering for the Raptors.

-Big Easy wickedness: ladies of the night at the cheesy motel on Tulane Ave. 

-A touch of spirituality: St. Louis Cathedral on Jackson Square.   

-Funniest sitcom watched: Parks & Recreation. 

-Children’s favorites: Harry Potter movies.

-Most impressive craftsmanship: Kenny fitting a new prosthesis for L’s leg.    

-Shopping disappointments: no T-shirt purchases at Goodwill (Mid-City), St. Vincent de Paul (Hammond), or Goodwill (Hammond).

-Least successful afternoon trip: to the JCC for swimming (but closed); to the public library for the weekly book sale (but wrong day); to Cosco to buy hearing aid batteries (department closed); battery purchase at Walgreens (dead; expired in 2014).  

-Most curious nature encounter: fish jumping on all sides as we swam in the Gulf of Mexico. 

-Most nervous nature encounter: family picnicking on the bank of St. John Bayou where a 9-foot alligator had been spotted a day or two before. 

-Best photography exhibits: “Photography and Place” and “Timothy Duffy: Blue Muse” at the New Orleans Museum of Art.    

-Most emotional museum experience: touring the D-Day wing at the World War 2 Museum during the 75^th anniversary week of D-Day.  

-Best NOLA history exhibit: history of gay carnivals at the Presbytere.     

-Most unusual art museum:  the Walter Anderson Museum in Ocean Springs, MS.  Anderson regularly rowed 12 miles in the Gulf of Mexico to Horn Island to commune with nature and paint watercolors, as well as riding his bike from the Mississippi Gulf to and from Philadelphia and other distant destinations.

-My personal favorite art exhibition: “Self-taught, Outsider, and Visionary Art” at the Ogden Museum of Southern Art (plus surreal and abstract art by Dusti Bongé and videos by Courtney Egan).

-Pleasant and relaxing: the NOLA botanical garden in City Park featuring outdoor sculptures from the WPA era by Enrique Alvarez.

-Most exotic costumes: homeless youth in the French Quarter.  

-Cool jazz: street bands on Jackson Square.  

-Sweet tooth treat: dark chocolate at the French Quarter candy store on Decatur St.  

-Signs of climate change: we took a look at the Spillway they’d opened outside the city (with resultant flooding of farmlands) to relieve the dangerously high waters in the Mississippi.   

-Saddest moment: Time to leave. 

NOLA Thanksgiving

Dear George, 

We are just back from an eight-day vacation in New Orleans with our sweet family: our son J, our daughter-in-law K, and our grandkids V and L.  Also K’s dad Ted had just arrived from Michigan, and her mom Linda had recently moved from Michigan to the Esplanade apartments at City Park.  This was the first time that all four grandparents had been together with the grandchildren — a special family occasion.  

We arrived on Monday, and Tuesday was Grandparents Day at St. Andrews School.  Here are the third and fourth graders doing a choral number.  Our grandson L in the red shirt is just to the right of the man in the checkered shirt, and our granddaughter V is three kids to his left.  Needless to say, we were enthralled with the children’s performances.  

Back at the house I was happy to spend time with the family dogs, Iko and L’il Paws, and I felt that Cody the cat was becoming friendly. 

On Thanksgiving Day we went to the fairgrounds for the horse races.  The races were good, but even better were all the New Orleans folk decked out in costumes. 

J and K’s friend Katie had a big Thanksgiving party.  Here V begins the collective reading of a poem about New Orleans.  

We had many good New Orleans meals during our stay.  This is Pier 424 Seafood Market on Bourbon Street.  Other highlights included NOLA (an Emiral Lagasse restaurant), Carmo’s (Caribbean), Felipe’s Taqueria, Desire, Cafe Beignet,  and, at home, J’s delicious beef brisket. 

I think Katja ate about 72 raw oysters during our stay.  Here we are at our favorite place, the Desire Oyster Bar in the Hotel Sonesta. 

We visited the French Quarter 3 or 4 times, including this nighttime scene on Bourbon Street. 

J took us to the Tulane-Navy football game.  We left when it appeared to be a Tulane blowout, but they wound up winning in a squeaker. 

We went to the new Pacific wing at the World War II Museum, and it was a powerful experience, particularly since my dad had been stationed there.     

Linda had us over for “game night” at her apartment complex.  I think it was my first time participating in three generations of a family playing poker and Trivial Pursuit.  Our grandson L was the best poker player.  Lots of fun.  

We love the New Orleans Art Museum,  The main exhibit this time was the Orleans Collection, originally assembled by Philippe II, the Duke of Orleans.

We also took in the movies: “Green Book” (terrific) and “Instant Family” (also good). 

Every time we visit New Orleans Katja is eager to go to Saks, which she claims is much better in NOLA than in Cincinnati. 

One of my favorite things about New Orleans is taking the Canal Street trolley from J and K’s house in Mid-City to the French Quarter.  It not only provides a two-mile tour of Canal Street, but the fee is a mere forty cents for seniors. 

We had our last family dinner out at Katie’s Restaurant in Mid-City.  Ted and I shared a muffeleta, and even half  a muffelata was too much for us.

The Ogden Museum of Southern Art is always a treat.  This time, bayou oil paintings by Newton Howard and Southern Photography.  Plus a duck blind for the clientele to explore.

Then, before we knew it, we were back in Cincinnati, greeted by a Wooly Mammoth in the airport.  Many thanks to J and K, Linda and Ted, for a happy family get-together.    

Love, 

Dave