New Orleans

Today we stared our day on a New Orleans tour. We saw the Warehouse district, part of the ninth ward, City park, a cemetary (and got an education on New Orleans cemeteries), Xavier University of Louisiana and the Garden District. Our tour guide was quite humorous and kept us entertained.

  

Then we went to Mardi Gras World which one of the warehouses where they store and build the floats and characters for the parades.  We learned about all of Mardi Gras which while it is originally just Fat Tuesday - the day before Lent, here in New Orleans it is celebrated over 2 weeks and with one or two exceptions is really family friendly. 

This warehouse is located along the Mississippi and while we were there we saw a river barge, and a ocean freighter on the river.

Lunch was at Oceana on Bourbon & Conti Streets, then some shopping, and more beignets at Cafe due Monde.

We walked around the Jackson Square area and near St. Louis Cathedral there we saw a cruise ship leaving and  we could hear the calliope on the Steamboat Natchez.

The evening was quite musical.  First, we saw the Marine Corp Band of New Orleans at St. Louis Cathedral.  They played a typical military band performance with the Star Spangle Banner at the begining, The Colonel Bogey March and another piece.  Then in the middle, they transitioned to a 17 piece big band and played Sweet Georgia Brown, Chattanooga Choo Choo,  Dizzy Gillespie's A Night in Tunisia, Duke Ellington's Take A Train, and In the Mood. Then then rest of the band came back and they transitioned back into a military band, played a saluted to soldiers we honor on Memorial Day, then the traditional salute to all the service men and women with the medley of military songs and of course finished with Stars and Stripes, Forever.  The piccolo soloist was incredibly fabulous! 

Then to top of the night, Bob and Maria went to Preservation Hall to see the Preservation Hall Jazz Masters.  They played, Alexander's Rag Time Band, It's about You, St. Louis Blues and then because of Memorial Day, they did something they don't do very often. They finished with When the Saint Go Marching In. The band was made up of Bass, Drums, Piano, Sax, Trombone, and two trumpets.