Day 45 of our trip - Spending Fourth of July in the Big Easy

Well, actually we spent most of our Fourth of July on the road to the Big Easy.  The trip from Tampa to New Orleans was the second longest drive of our trip, but it seemed like the longest.  Driving through the hottest and muggiest parts of the South can do that to you.

The boys and I got up early and were on the road by 6:00 am from Tampa.  The drive took about 13 hours total.  For the first time since June 8th, we got back into the Central Time Zone somewhere in Northern Florida, so we actually gained an hour.  The trip was long because it was mostly the same scenery - lots of trees.  We covered four states - Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, and of course, Louisiana.  I intentionally took a detour off of I-10 when we got into Mississippi to drive along the Gulf Coast through Biloxi and Gulfport.  The beaches were full - something I was a little surprised by.  After Katrina and the oil spill I wondered what it would look like, but the beaches were quite busy.  It could have just been the holiday, but people seemed to be out in force.

Biloxi, Mississippi along US 90.  The gulf coast is a beautiful drive.

Anyway, we got in to New Orleans around 6:00 pm.  The boys were tired after the trip, but there's nothing like a little drive to the French Quarter to change that.  I told Michael and Chris that New Orleans will be probably the most unique city they've ever seen.  At least that was my experience when I was here last time.  They agreed.  We got down to Bourbon Street around 7 and people were starting to show up in droves.  First of all, as we came in to New Orleans, you can see that it is still suffering from the Katrina damage.  It was the first time I had been there since 1993 and it looked very different.  It wasn't as vibrant as I remember, but people there still know how to have a good time.

Once we got there, we feasted on some local cuisine, walked around Bourbon Street and in the French Quarter.  There's nothing like being there.  Hearing the jazz and smelling the food on Bourbon Street is a uniquely American experience.  We then made a pilgrimage to Cafe du Monde to feast on their world-famous beignets.  I swear to God if I lived here, I'd weigh 400 lbs within six months.

Bourbon Street

Michael and Chris on Bourbon Street

Try explaining all the crazy things you see in the French Quarter to a couple of 11 year-old boys.

Beignets at Cafe du Monde - YUM!

Man those Beignets are good!!

Fireworks on the Riverwalk

Me and my main man.

We walked around some more and then headed over to the Riverwalk to check out the fireworks for the Fourth of July.  The boys enjoyed the fireworks but the heat and humidity was getting to them.  We walked back to the car and drove back to our hotel.  We jumped in the pool turned in for the evening.  It was another day of driving for Tuesday so we will have to get up early.  Tomorrow (Tuesday) we're off to Houston for a tour of Minute Maid Park - the home of the Astros and some other local sightseeing at the Johnson Space Center.