The Jazz Club
The only picture of Greg and I from the whole vacation and we took it ourselves. This should show you how little time we really saw each other.
We loved the French Donuts at Cafe DuMonde
The famous Cathedral in New Orleans
Me enjoying lunch at an indoor/outdoor cafe all by my lonesome
I did a little bit of window shopping for antiques while I was here
Loved the cute double decker buildings
And walking down streets like these
The taxi driver dropped me off on Bourbon street one day when I asked to go to the French Quarters area with the Antique shops. He dropped me off here for some reason. It is a scary street of New Orleans. But, I can now say I walked down Bourbon Street.
New Levees that were built after Katrina
One of the homes that is still standing but is in shambles. If you look closely you can see the rotted wood. The front door was also swept away in the storm.
What most homes look like on the inside that are still standing but vacant.
Another home that is not lived in but still standing. If you see the weeds that are almost the height of the house, this is what most of the empty lots look like in the area.
This is what the roads look like in the "9th ward" area. A handful of people's homes have been rebuilt in this area, but they still have to travel on roads that look like this on a daily basis.
This is what most homes look like that have been rebuilt. The homes are now sitting on stilts. Although the water was about 18 feet, so if something like Katrina were to happen again, the stilts would not help from water getting into the homes.
I left on Friday to go to Utah so I would be able to catch an early flight to New Orleans on Saturday. I decided last minute to tag along on Greg's business trip. It has been fabulous. I have done a ton of relaxing, shopping, eating, and sightseeing. I have not seen or spent a ton of time with Greg but the down time from everyday life has been wonderful!
Saturday...
My flight to New Orleans took all day. I got here and Greg and I went to dinner at a near by restaurant. We had a great dinner, walked around the city, and came back to the hotel to relax.
Sunday...
Sunday Greg was in meeting all day. There are 2 shopping malls within walking distance from the hotel, so I spent the entire day shopping. It was so great to be able to spend as much time as I wanted without a stroller or kids asking me when we are going home. Greg got done with meetings and we went to Morton's Steakhouse for dinner. The dinner was absolutely yummy!
Monday...
I spent the day being a tourist all by myself. I took a taxi down to the French Quarters area which has Art Galleries, Antique Shops, Clothing Boutiques, Restaurants, and tons of fun Architecture to enjoy. When Greg got home from work we went to Ruth's Chris Steakhouse for dinner. We loved both Steakhouses but decided we would pick Morton's over Ruth's Chris.
Tuesday...
We got up early and hired a taxi driver to take us on a tour of the Hurricane Katrina area and also the "Uptown District" The Hurricane area or the "9th ward" area that was hit the hardest was truly hard for me to tour. The "9th ward" area is not just a neighborhood, it was a huge community. I was so sad for all the people who did not have a home to return to after the hurricane. It was also so sad to hear of people who stayed in their homes in this area and died because of all the water. Our taxi driver stayed during the hurricane and said it was terrifying. The "9th ward" area's homes were completely under water for 18 days. Most of the homes built of brick are still standing but the other homes were completely swept away with the water. If you can imagine a housing area where the homes are only an arms distance away, this area is now a huge area of ruined homes that have not been rebuilt and empty weedy lots. Even if the homes were still standing, most people did not return because they did not have flood insurance or money to gut or rebuild the home. There are only a handful of homes that have been renovated or rebuilt. I think it would be awful to still live in this area with all the homes boarded up or completely gone. The roads are still not even fixed. It is crazy to drive around and see foundations without a house or driveways going to nothing because the home was swept away in the storm. It is hard to put into words what it was like. It was absolutely devastating for me to see what these people had to go through and it is 3 years later. I can't imagine actually having to live through it!
The homes in the "Uptown" area are so big and pretty with true Southern style. I wish I could have gotten pictures, but there really wasn't anywhere to pull over and take some" We also went and saw Loyola University.
We went to dinner at the Melting Pot and then went to a Jazz club called Snug Harbor.
We had a wonderful Thanksgiving this year at Greg's parent's home. The company was wonderful and so was the food. Crew was napping during the beginning of dinner, so we didn't get any pictures of him. We spent 6 fun filled days in Utah and came home completely exhausted. On Tuesday we went and did the Polar Express in Heber City. Wednesday we woke up and went shopping to Tai Pan and hung out for the night. Colton and Greg went to the Jazz game. Thursday we woke up early and I made 2 pies and then we spent the day eating, eating, and eating again. We also played a few games too. Friday we ventured out shopping around 10 a.m. and then we went to see Twilight. We went to Texas Roadhouse and then played the game Loaded Questions and laughed the night away. It is such a fun game! Greg and Colton went to the Jazz game again. Saturday we went shopping again and then we spent the evening at the Jazz game with our friends Clint and Amber. Thanks for sharing your tickets with us. Greg's dad took Colton to the Jazz game Saturday night. Greg and Colton were in heaven attending 3 Jazz games while we were in Utah. Thank you Mom and Dad for sharing your tickets with them. We enjoyed our crazy busy time in Utah and were reminded of how very blessed we are.
