Day 1: Mobile to New Orleans

11:00 PM |

Up at 3:30am .. this may well be the earliest we’ve ever had to get up to start our vacation, ugh.

Check-in is a breeze and after an uneventful flight with beautiful cloudscapes we find ourselves in Atlanta, Georgia. Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta is one of the largest and busiest airports in the US and we have to board a train to travel between the concourses. All the best options for food are located in the terminal we arrived it, but of course we don't realize this until we get to concourse D where it's slim pickings; we settle for breakfast sandwiches at quizno’s.

For the flight to Mobile we’re assigned to row twelve so I excitedly tell Sandy that at least on this flight we’re close to the front of the plane … only to find it’s the very last row. Yikes! It’s like flying in a model aircraft. There’s some turbulence because we’re flying through the clouds, but all things considered it isn’t bad and I manage to squeeze in some more z’s.

Mobile – which btw is NOT pronounce like your phone, but like Mo-beel – is the polar opposite of Atlanta airport. We walk right off the plane towards the car rental place and while Sandy gets everything sorted out at the counter I pick up our bags. If I tell you that they actually halted the belt because all bags fit onto it at once that probably gives you a pretty good idea of the scale of things here. Since we’re dropping the car off in Nashville the guy from Enterprise charms some other company into giving us one of their cars for a one-way rental and we get a free upgrade to a Dodge Avenger. Sweet!

An older gentleman approaches as we’re stuffing our junk in the trunk and with a smile asks “where are y’all from, girls?” (Yes, “y’all” is alive and well in the South. I love it!) Guess the polartecs in 85 degree weather are a dead giveaway.

Now, we’d planned to hit the beach in Alabama first, but it’s almost completely overcast and drizzling so we opt to drive straight to the casino in Biloxi.

It’s not long before we cross the state line and we loop back around to get the obligate picture of the welcome sign and to pick up a state map for my collection.

After that we make another U-ey and do the same thing at the Mississippi welcome center.

They have art on display by a really cool artist, Marlin Miller who makes sculptures out of trees. When hurricane Katrina came through and destroyed many of the mature trees on route 90 near the ocean he created beauty out of tragedy by turning several of them into art. Wickedly cool!

Route 90 is supposed to be a scenic route, but the first long stretch of it is more like an endless collection of strip malls and fast food joints, lots and lots of fast food joints. There’s traffic lights, slow moving traffic -- really everything we wanted to leave behind us so we’re contemplating getting back on the highway when suddenly we’re already in Biloxi.

Gambling is not really my thing so as you might've guessed we’re there to have lunch -- at the Palace casino. It’s nothing like the opulence of the Wynn in Vegas, but still it’s a great deal. They have different stations and as much as I’m trying to take only minuscule amounts of everything with that many choices it ends up being … a shitload of food. Luckily the way it works out I saved the best for last: at the wok station the cook whips me up chicken lo mein with pineapple, green beans, baby corn, sugar snaps, garlic, teriyaki sauces and Cajun seasoning. Hmmm yummy! Then for desert in have hot caramel sauce with ice cream … yes, in that order and proud of it :D

Wok by Me ®

More than sated we roll back to the car and drive down to the Biloxi lighthouse. It’s too bad it’s in the median instead of on the beach, but still it’s magnificent.

To make things even better there’s a free pier. We walk all the way to the end and meet up with another friendly local; a quirky Maryland ex-pat with his fossil of a dog in a stroller. Southern hospitality is awesome.

Then it’s time to hit the water. I’ve been in the Gulf of Mexico before, but still it’s a vacation ritual that I MUST enter the water. The clouds have cleared up by now and it’s actually kind of hot in the sun so the water feels great. It looks a bit dirty with dark patches in it, but that's because of nearby rivers running into the ocean ... if you go out to the off shore islands it's apparently clear blue.

Random picture of Biloxi beach grass

Flutterby ;-)

Gulf Fritillary

Sandy's waiting for me ... she has learned the hard way that there's no such thing as "just going to take a quick picture."

Along the way we pass several of Marlin’s sculptures. Here’s a really elaborate one of dolphins.

We spot another light house in Gulfport. This one is very different from the one in Biloxi but no less beautiful.

From another angle ... I think I prefer old fashioned lighthouses, but the clean lines are great for pictures.

Since it’s getting kind of late and we got to spend some time on the beach already we turn up the next major road and get back on the highway. The Louisiana welcome center closes at 5pm and we happen to get there right at 4:45pm. Sweet, another map for my collection!

Hotels in New Orleans were crazy expensive so we decided to try out a new site called AirBNB and got a room with a man called David. He lives in a double shotgun in Marigny that’s filled wall-to-wall with his extensive Caribbean art collection. What a cool place!! Add to that that David turns out the be the best host anyone could wish for and you have the perfect place … did I mention we can easily walk to the French Quarter from here too?

Friendly neighborhood vibe

So, of course -- with a few pointers from David -- that is the first thing we do. New Orleans is super cool; gorgeous historic buildings, friendly people, live music and just a general sense of happiness.

Corner of Royal and Ursulines

People here LOVE to party and dress up so Halloween is huge deal and we pass by lots of historical homes with witches hanging from the porch or giant spiderwebs covering the entire property.

The vampire's lair

Finding a place to eat is tricky because we’re still quite full, but won’t last all night without eating something little and food here tends to be rich in everything that’s bad for you. Suddenly live jazz bursts from a little side street and there, inside a tiny room, is a live perfomance by little kids. There was a lot of background noise so the sound really got ruined by my phone, but the real thing was amazing.

Finally, after a few false starts, we wind up in the courtyard of the Orleans Grapevine wine bar & bistro, where they serve fine dining in a casual atmosphere. Candles, Christmas lights, tropical plants and fountains … so cool!

True, fine dining isn’t really my thing and I’m a bit intimidated by the menu that’s full of things like Roquefort cheese and oysters but I manage to find a delicious salad that’s just perfect! Sandy gets a small plate of expertly prepared scallops that even Gordon Ramsey himself could find no fault with. Mission accomplished!

There’s a small parade that passes by when we’re on our way back and a few blocks later someone yells down from their balcony to ask if we want any beads. Oh boy!!! I am so excited I’m practically bouncing … I got beads and I didn’t even have to flash anyone! :D I love New Orleans

The Royal Street Courtyard - an 1850's modified Greek Revival

By the time we get back we’re exhausted, but decide to make one last stop before going to bed; the Haunted Mortuary! It's an actual mortuary rumored to be haunted and every Halloween it gets turned into a giant house of horrors … and it is spooktacular!

There’s a bunch of cemeteries near it so afterwards I get out to take a few quick pictures. They’re not the safest place to be at night, but I’d asked the police officer stationed at the Mortuary and he said it was “so-so,” but ok if you stick to the lit areas so I did just that and got some cool pix to prove it!