New Orleans

We stayed at a beautiful state park in Mandeville, LA, so we could make day trips to New Orleans. To get to New Orleans, we crossed Lake Pontchartrain over a 27 mile bridge. At certain places, you couldn't see land.

We spent most of one day at the National WWII Museum in New Orleans, LA. It's a must see place. Very well done. The movie, Beyond All Boundaries, was spellbinding. Very graphic and sad. It was produced and narrated by Tom Hanks who is an active supporter of the museum. You may wonder why there is a WWII museum in New Orleans. The boat company (Higgins Boat Company) who created and manufactured the PT boats used during the war was located in New Orleans. Many historians credit the success of the war to the use of the PT boats.

One of the older homes near the museum.

This was the Robert E. Lee Circle where we caught the trolley to the French Quarters of New Orleans. The fun atmosphere of the French Quarters was evident with musicians on most corners.

Hey, we found Jimmy Buffet's Margaritaville.
We took a walk down Bourbon Street just to say we did.

A custom of the Mardi Gras is the exchanging of strings of beads. I would say these people are ready for the next party.
Some people enjoyed carriage rides around the area.

You had a choice of carriages.

We enjoyed seeing a lot of historical buildings and homes. The picture below was the Old Louisiana State Bank. Very ornate.

Here's another view of the bank.

The bank is the backdrop for Jackson Square featuring the statue of General Jackson. The statue was put in place in 1856. All places need a haunted house. The LaLaurie House is that place in the French Quarters. The story is that a servant at this house was mistreated. The owners of the house were tried for the mistreatment but fled before sentencing. Some say the house has been haunted by the servant.

Bill standing by another historical home. Sorry for the lense cover shadowing the picture.
This building shows the influence of French architecture.

It's pretty funny but this pub was originally a stable for horses.

 

Here's where they tethered their horses.

It was a real treat to have this french pastry - beignets. They are fried bread coated with powdered sugar. They were messy but very good.

Just some fun things we saw while in the French Quarters.

Have a child or grandchild who needs this t-shirt.

This state park had some more oak trees with the Spanish moss. They are so fascinating we had to take another picture.

Here are a couple more buildings in the French Quarters that have French architecture.

Next move is to Mississippi.