A War Zone

In support of the most soulful city in the whole US of A on this Superbowl weekend – a favorite NOLA memory.

For certain personality types, the generous piles of powdered sugar that cover the beignets served at the famous Café du Monde in the French Quarter are one of life’s little temptations that must be indulged.  I don’t mean the sensuous joy of eating the fried dough goodness but rather, the childlike glee that comes with a food group that is perfectly suited to war.

Recently, on a trip to New Orleans with my two teenage kids, I found this confectionery call to arms too tempting to resist.   While visiting the Café one evening to try these pillows of luscious pastry, practically drowning in powdered sugar, I quickly identified the opportunity to sink us all into dessert depravity.   When I could no longer restrain my evil impulse (and after eating my beignets), I fired the first shot – well, blow.  Discreetly raising my plate to mouth-level, I quickly locked onto my target and blew the piles of left-over sugar with the force of Old Faithful.  In a matter of seconds, my son Cooper was covered – brown sweater, face and hair all generously coated with the white substance.

As anticipated, his response was swift and immediate.  But – like a routine

Coop post-fight

straight out of a Three Stooges film, his whoosh of white powder missed me completely and instead, covered our beloved, innocent Juliette – a French exchange student who was living with us for the year and who, in her typical manner, was completely unaware of the goings on around her.  For Cooper, this was a grave mistake.  Juliette is French.  Beignets – all pastries – are held in the highest esteem, right alongside Liberté, Egalité and Fraternité.  This was a blatant act of provocation for Juliette, compounded by the fact that her much beloved navy blue “I Love NY” sweatshirt was now defiled with white dust (not to mention her face and hair). Thus, the Battle of the Beignets had crossed international borders, and Juliette’s war cry was audible within a five-mile radius.

The instigator and the blissfully unaware young girl

Thankfully, due to finite sugar reserves, the battle was quick, relatively controlled, as battles go, and huge fun.  I am happy to report no patrons (or beignets) were harmed in the melée, although there were some terrified stares.

And as we slunk out of the restaurant into the warm night, leaving a trail of glowing white footprints across Jackson Square, we knew without uttering a word that in this small act of civil disobedience, a bond was forever forged between us, proving there are certain experiences in life that should never be influenced by good judgement.

Jules - not une heureuse camper

April, 2009

Being an avid fan of the show “Ghost Hunters”, and never having ventured to Louisiana before, I thought it would be huge fun to take my 15 year old son, 16 year old French exchange student daughter along with my good friend and excellent traveling partner to New Orleans over Spring Break – do a little volunteering with Habitat for Humanity,  check out the town, and of course, head to St. Francisville and the Myrtles. Well, the Myrtles ended up being a highlight of the trip.

Here’s the skinny…first thing is to manage expectations. The rooms are basic and certainly have some wear & tear, but that’s all part of the charm. This is about the experience, so if you know that going in, you’ll be fine. We stayed in the Caretaker’s Cottage as only 2 people are allowed in the rooms in the main house, and I knew that there was no way one of us would be brave enough to spend a night alone in a room (most especially me). This was actually just perfect. The Cottage is about 100 steps from the main house, and is absolutely adorable, complete with picket fence and garden. Inside was verrry basic – queen bed and bunk bed, but fine for one night. We booked in on a Friday, and arrived about 4 or so. Check in a breeze and reception staff very friendly. Do have dinner in the restaurant on property. Not only was it good, but it allows time for a glass or two of wine to buff out the edges and loosen you up for the Ghost Tour at 8 PM. Our tour was led by Bree, (I think that was her name) who spun an excellent yarn with her knowledge and enthusiasm – very engaging and highly entertaining. Emphasis on entertaining – again, while the stories are certainly plausible, you should never let hard facts get in the way of good storytelling. After the tour, you are off to photograph incessantly, test for EVPs, and thermal image to your heart’s content. You can go all over the grounds (with the exception of the main house, unless you are actually staying in the house). No worries – lots of creepy places to check out, including the little island (watch out for the water snakes). 187 shots later, my son was convinced he not only captured orbs, but that he had uncovered a “portal”, as some die-hard, photographer vest wearing ghost hunter declared to him. Pay dirt! No ghostly activity experienced in our little cottage that evening, hence no need for the instructions to the kids about placement of nitroglycerine under my tongue when the heart attack comes on. We found out at breakfast the next morning though, that some guests had a situation with coins being moved in their room in main house, which apparently, happens quite frequently. Breakfast at the Plantation is particularly charming as you essentially eat in the kitchen with the cooks and staff, who are entertaining and great fun to talk to. The food was fantastic – eggs, biscuits, grits, sausage, juice – very authentic and very good. All in all, we absolutely loved our brief sojourn at the Myrtles – a very relaxing setting (in the day) with beautiful grounds, great food and warm staff.

W French Quarter

April, 2009

First time in New Orleans. Traveling with my two teens.  I was looking for a hotel that had the traditional architecture and look of the French Quarter combined with the contemporary, hip, up-market feel of a boutique hotel. After time-consumingly weighing all the options, I finally settled on the W French Quarter, which quickly became a family favorite – when teenagers give a “thumbs up” (or in this case, when they form the shape of a “W” with their fingers), you have hit parent pay dirt.

First and foremost on the list of pros has to be the  location on Chartres (pronounced Charters), a charming little street with great art galleries, bars and boutiques.  From the W, its a straight shot to Jackson Square – 3 or 4 mini blocks down the street, Cafe du Monde and other local attractions.  As always, I made it a priority to have a peek at some of the other contender hotels and found them to be either in a funky location (in a bad way) or really dated and rough around the edges.  Personally, I would not stay on or just-off St Charles, which felt just slightly to the left of edgy, therefore ruling out several options, including the Ritz.  Ditto Bourbon St, where the constant chaos would make me want to slit my wrists after an hour.  For us, the W was a little haven – understated, hip and quiet.

Our room, located on the second floor, featured a charming terrace overlooking Chartres Street. With two double beds, the room itself was fine for us.  The decor was sleek and modern, though a little dark.  This was off-set by the large balcony, which brought in light and gave much needed space to the beleaguered mother.  The bathroom was surprisingly roomy with a large, walk-in shower (no bath) and Bliss Spa products, which are so good, I’m convinced the pilferage rate is through the roof.  One note – the bathroom “door” is a frosted sliding glass panel – very modern chic, but possibly not for the more modest traveling companion.  Fun fact  – the kids were highly amused at some of the mini bar offerings, including the “Romance Pack” of lubricant, condom and breath freshner!!!

Undoubtedly the best part of the W French Quarter is the courtyard, a study in cool comfort where gas lamps blend with oversized Balinese daybeds.  There’s a small pool to enjoy in the day, but the vibe is best experienced at night, when the star-shaped candles in the trees are lit and the piped-in music lulls you into the depths of your daybed.  Another fun fact – a trompe l’oeil video is discreetly shown against a courtyard wall depicting various room scenes in which imaginary hotel guests are looking out their windows, having phone conversations, pouring a drink, or undressing (modestly).  It feels very “Rear Window” and kept us all entertained for ages.

The only minor downsides – room service is linked to the Italian restaurant downstairs which doesn’t offer a great variety of food or snack items.  However, there are so many eating options within walking distance that it was a non-issue, though would have been nice.  Also – the service was not terrific, but possibly due to a full house every night of our stay.  Tips – Breakfast – go across the street to the Fleur de Lys – amazing and quick food; great pizza place (Rotelos) also across the street with killer calzones; Stanley on the square good for brunch or lunch; Definitely do the New Orleans Haunted History tour with Jonathan as your guide.