N'orlyns

New Orleans is not the kind of place one should ever go by themselves...unless you plan on meeting friends there at a later date...or making friends...or something!

United Airlines was delayed 2 hours out of Vancouver so I narrowly made my connection in Chicago and carried on to New Orleans. I arrived into New Orleans (or Norlyns as the locals call it) at just after 11PM on WED 16MAR. My luggage had other ideas and decided to party it up in Chicago for an extra day. Oh joy.

I soon made the acquaintance of 2 very young college boys who were there on Spring Break. They offered me $50.00 to sleep on my hotel floor...I firmly, but kindly, declined. I know from first hand experience what it is like to be a backpacker that has been stranded by friends who were supposed to come through but didn't, so my sympathy towards them was genuine...I just didn't feel right about having 2 strangers in my room. Besides that...for $50.00 why couldn't they have gotten a room at a cheapo hotel? Oh right...it was St. Patricks' Day Weekend....Still....no thank you.

I went to my hotel, checked in, went out for one beer and then back to my room. It was 2AM before I was back in my room and settling in for the night. What struck me as odd was that when I walked down Bourbon St back to my hotel...it was about 1:45AM and the street was literally packed with people drinking and dancing and generally carrying on. I soon realized that New Orleans doesn't sleep.

The bars are open at 9AM. They close at 6AM. there is a mandatory 3 hr closure imposed by law. This seemed like a good idea right?? Well...with all the "Beer To Go" cups you can carry...the bars don't have to really shut for you...you can be your own walking bar!

One sad sight stuck with me the entire 10 days I was there. Walking back to my hotel I spied 2 girls literally falling out of some random bar and into the street. They were scantily clad and just looking at them made me cold...it was only 3 degrees C outside. They were both desperately trying to hold each other up when a large group of young men approached them. Beads were waved in the air...pretty soon shirts were being lifted and both women bared their breasts to obtain these promised tokens of cheap glittery plastic. What struck me the most was that one girl took off her tank top completely, bobbed her young plump breasts proudly then fell face first into a street full of piss. Nice. Beads ladies....all for the want of crappy-ass beads...this woman didn't even seem to be phased and the men, satisfied with the view they had, walked on without helping her.

I promised Ronan that I wouldn't obtain any beads in the "usual" way when I was in New Orleans...after witnessing that horrible scene I decided I didn't want any beads in "any" manner...a badge of honour they were not!

10 days of New Orleans was too much. I enjoyed many parts of the city...the French Market, the Flea Market, Jackson Square, Riverwalk....I gave the Garden District a miss but took in a few above ground cemeteries just for fun.

By the time my school group arrived I was desperate for company...even that of 80 high school students whose names I would never fully learn or take much interest in knowing.

My High Schoolers were relatively well behaved...their Chaperones were far too laid back but then again...I am a bit of a worry wart. (tough to admit but it's true).

The highlight of my trip came unexpectedly. The last night of our trip and I was dancing my bum off (ok...not really...but trying to 2 step while still looking relatively graceful) at Mulate's in Beau Bridge (the Original "Cajun" Restaurant- very cool...highly recommend it...eat the Catfish). I had just finished a dance with a nice young man named Corey (who beamed at me and yelled above the loud music "Miss Kwerkie, this is the BEST THING that has happened to me my ENTIRE life!" When I found out he was only 15 I told him to wait a few years as things only got better from there on in).

*ahem* Enough digression...the best part of my trip...was an unexpected call from Ronan. I had been missing him an awful lot and though I would tell him...I was slightly worried that he didn't seem to miss me too much. However! The phone call was proof enough for me.

I had actually missed his call, but promptly phoned him back when I saw what I had missed. We didn't get to talk for too long...but those stolen moments, me in the bathroom and him in his hotel room with his partner; meant more to me than I could actually verbalize.

Ronan is still away on business and I miss him more now that I am home. What is comforting to know is that I do really love him...it's a soft feeling in my heart which grows and roars and then quiets down again...I am not consumed by it, but feel rather enhanced by it. It helps that I can cuddle up to his pillow and it still smells like our last morning together...the slight musk of sex but more the calming smell of Ronan.

The updates will be slow for the next while for a few reasons. 1) my lap top is broken and in the shop as it were (I am at a cafe right now waiting for my MSN date with Ronan) and 2) it is CRAZY busy season at work until mid May...my spare time will likely be few and far between.

There is an Acadian saying in N'Orlyn...and it means "Let the good times roll" but I can't spell it en Francais....TinFoiled?? a wee bit of help here?

A biento
Kwerkie