March 21: New Orleans, LA

Hello from NOLA!

Andy and I followed Route 51 south from Amite, along the west shore of Lake Pontchartrain, to just outside the city of New Orleans. We passed many, many folks craw-fishin' in pools along the highway. We found a  bike path that took us along the top of a levee into New Orleans. The levee keeps the Mississippi from flooding New Orleans when it overflows it's banks. We rode through oil refineries: under conveyors and over pipelines, and watched tankers lining up to dock and unload their valuable cargo.
   We spent an entire day exploring the city of New Orleans and tasting regional cuisine. The seafood gumbo was good, and the the po-boys were tasty, but the culinary highlight werebeignets - a kind of French doughnut covered in powdered sugar (traditionally eaten with a cup of cafe au lait - dark roast coffee with lots of milk).

     We also enjoyed the spontaneous street music happening all around the city. Our favorite group of musicians kept rhythm with a washboard and washtub bass (you can see them behind the guitar and banjo players in the photo). Parades of migrating musicians were not an uncommon sight in New Orleans!