169 New Orleans and on towards Natchez

Tuesday 21st May 2013 Miles Today 334  Total 4216

We had spent the night in another motel.  Our attempts  at finding a campsite had not been too successful, and we were both shattered and boiling.  So this morning we were off with a campsite in mind. and having a lot of mileage to do, we stuck mainly to the interstate.  Again it was boiling hot in our gear, but with such a big trip in progress, we are not prepared to not wear it all.  After a pretty uneventful trip we arrived at our campsite.  What we also hadn't appreciated was that we had crossed another time zone, and we are now 6 hours behind the UK.
We had passed through Alabama and Mobile and were now 30 miles east of New Orleans.

 Today we actually drove through 4 States. Starting in Florida, then Alabama, Mississippi and finally into Louisiana.

Some of the names are so quaint.

The battleship 'Alabama', now a museum.

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Home for tonight

We are smothered in mosquito deterrent and smiling through out.

We went out for a bit of shopping and some food, and when we came back, the tent was so hot, we felt like we were in a sauna.  We managed to sleep fitfully through the night, but were both awake several times searching frantically for cool air.

Wednesday 22nd May 2013 Miles Today 216  Total 4432

We had both been awake on and off since 4am but as it turned out probably 3am due to the clock going back and hour.  We got up and ate breakfast in an overcast sky and before long, we were in the middle of a very heavy rain storm complete with thunder and lightening.  We were lucky in that there was a picnic area under cover, so we hid ourselves, and all our gear under there, all except the tent and tried to ride it out.  The storm eased up enough for us to get the tent down, but most things got put away wet.  We left and headed for New Orleans.  It was a particularly soggy  journey and we were being blown about like we weighed nothing.  The strangest thing though, was seeing alligators, as road kill.  If you hit one though, you would probably think twice about seeing if it needed help.

I'd been looking forward to seeing the town.  Obviously everyone has heard about the French Quarter and the Mardi Gras and all the sort of voodoo and mystery that surrounds the area.    The lady at the campsite has also told us to avoid certain area's but that we ought to visit the paddle steamer, and Bourbon Street and the market area.  We drove in and were surprised at the poverty.  We knew that it had been hit by a hurricane a few years ago, but I found it quite sad.  In the French Quarter, it was bright, and lively and the buildings were all decorated, but, on all the street corners and outside the shops, there  were loads of homeless people all begging, and I found it all quite sad and depressing.  There were distractions, but overall I felt like I had intruded on a very personal situation.
 

They look elegant, but they are quite run down.

It was still a bit wet when we got into town.

The Paddle steamer "Natchez".  It was quite wonderful to see.

The old, and decorated withe the new, in the background.

There were balconies with plants all over the area and it is how I imagined it.

Joan of Arc.

Shame about the bins, but these two were in, or indeed on, the spirit

We made our exit from New Orleans and headed towards Natchez.  There is a trail here that we want to travel.

The newer part of New Orleans

This is part of a 21 mile causeway out of town and we believe this is still a remnant of the damage caused by "Katrina".

We traveled the next 70 odd miles in baking heat, rescued another turtle, and stopped for a "bum rest" and some water in a little place, in the middle of nowhere. 

We passed scenery like this.

When we stopped for water, we were chatting to a local shop owner.  Something dropped on his head whilst we talked to him, and when I looked up, it turned out to be a wasp nest.  They are more evil looking than back at home.  I hate wasps!

We are safely ensconced in Natchez, tomorrow we are heading towards Memphis.  Uh Huh Huh!!!