Do what you can, Joy will follow

 

Wonderful trip…covered a total of 6088 miles and unknown number of miles walked in New Orleans. The car trip back from Los Angeles was an uneventful run of 5 hours vs the 18 hours the train and bus would have been. AND Amtrak gave me a refund for the tickets when I cancelled that morning.  If you are planning an Amtrak trip be aware of the track conditions (they seem to be deteriorating) and the crews vary from train to train. We had excellent service on the CA Zephyr, medium service on the Sunset Limited, and really poor employee moral on the City of New Orleans. Everywhere we went the Amtrak employees were courteous and helpful. Often stopping what they were doing to show us where we needed to be. The Metropolitan Lounges were a nice touch with snacks and wi fi.  Last but not least, our rescue pup was very glad to see us when we got home! That was nice as we had only had her a little over a month before we left on our trip. 

We left NOLA Tuesday morning, traveling through the southwest, Texas, New Mexico, Arizona and southern CA. I think I am done with trains for awhile. This track was better than the Zephyr track thank goodness. John has a car rental back to Sacramento, the train/bus will take 18 hours vs the 8 hour drive.

Started with breakfast at the restaurant where the chef won 2nd place on Top Chef. It was good, but noisy. It was in a converted warehouse. Rode all the way on Magazine St and came back via the river. Took the trolley up Canal St to the cemeteries. On the way back we went to a meeting in mid-city. Never did I expect to lead a meeting in New Orleans! We were too early so asked if there was a place nearby to eat. Totally by accident we stumbled upon Parkway Bakery and Tavern "the oldest and tastiest poor boy shop anywhere." Huge corn beef sandwich served po' boy style. And I got to try the local chips, Zapps. Back in the French Quarter we listened to music as we walked back to our place. Tomorrow we head back to CA on the Sunset Limited through Texas, Arizona and New Mexico.

We played tourist today and went on a paddle wheel boat ride. The Natchez is one of the last surviving steam powered paddle boats left in the USA. It was a neat way to see the river and the buildings adjacent. The nice weather has brought out the crowds...think SF along the waterfront on a beautiful day. For lunch we were able to connect with a friend from Forestville. She has been in NOLA for going on 5 years now and seems to be loving it. More walking...earning the great food! I am getting my fill of grits for sure.

We covered a lot of ground today. We had breakfast at Stanley on Jackson Square and then walked to catch the St Charles streetcar. We stopped to visit the Lafayette Cemetery, got back on and rode to the end of the line. Lots of neat architecture and great people watching. Lunch was middle eastern and then back to the French Quarter. We walked down Bourbon street a bit and once is enough! We are home resting up for the next walk to Cafe du Monde. Beignets for dinner.

We are tucked into our apartment not too far from the French Quarter. We had dinner at Feelings Cafe, right around the corner. The train was really rockin' nod rollin' east of Denver. Everyone in Chicago was really helpful. That station is a maze! The Great Hall (the original station) is beautiful! The train 'City of New Orleans' did not impress me at all. We were spoiled on the California Zephyr. We will return through Texas on the Sunset Limited.