New Orleans - Sat

On Saturday, we slept in a little (thank god). Breakfast at Starbucks at the hotel at 9am. Mom called over and when no one answered (showering and blow drying the hair made it noisy) she decided to go back to bed - as she assumed we had. Not so! We were ready to hit the town again.

We walked down to the end of Canal Street and hopped on the Trolley car and rode along the riverfront. It was beautiful! I wish we could have ridden the trolley more - you really got to see a lot as it was an old-school, open air type.

At the end of the trolley ride, we got out and went shopping at the French Market - an open air market hawking sunglasses, Mardi Gras masks, knockoff purses, jewelry, wallets, tons of stuff...Dad scored a new eel wallet and dickered a good deal for it.

We took a break and escaped the rain (yes it actually rained and was not just humid) by listening to a jazz band at the end of the market. Amy had her heart set on visiting where the locals hang out, on Frenchman street.

We walked through a bunch of housing apartments to get to someplace for lunch. We came across a place called The Praline Connection and it was WONDERFUL! It took a long time, but fried pickles, catfish, etouffe, and shrimp later it didn't matter. We also picked up some pralines for later.

We decided to walk back towards the hotel, browswing along the way. Mom and Amy wanted to go back to the voodoo priest and have their Tarot cards read, so they called to make an appointment in the afternoon. As we headed that way, we experienced some of the people watching, shopping, and snacks of the French Quarter.

While Amy and Mom were at the witch doctor, Jeff, Dad, and I decided to rest for a bit, and then go to a New Orleans Hornets basketball game. We waited in line for about 45 minutes. Actually, Jeff waited in line, while Dad and I took the tickets we bought off the street and went to the beer garden (2 free beers each, outside. You drink anywhere outside.). They also had dancing Christmas trees, a live band, and little pot shot games outside. It was so fun! What a nice change after the Timberwolves - a) the team actually played good BB and b) the entertainment was so great! Every timeout or break something was going on in the crowd, giveaways, music, competitions.

After the game, we met up with Mom and Amy and decided to go for a late dinner at a dive just off of Bourbon Street. The place was called Oceana's and oh my, all though it looked like nothing from the outside, the food was freaking fantastic (are you noticing a theme?). I had a salad - my first vegetable of the weekend - and oysters and shrimp were also on deck. A quick stroll down Bourbon Street and mom, dad, and Amy went to see Steamboat Willie play jazz. Jeff and I were tired and went back to the hotel to just hang.