New Orleans pt. 2

We didn't know where to go last night so we started at the hotel bar. Turns out the owner of the bar just came back to NOLA after living in Oakland for 35 years. He came back for what he thought was going to be 2 wks to help take care of his little brother who had been in a terrible car accident. Then came Katrina, and he never went back to Cali.

He took us and a French doctor out around the French Quarter, giving us the abbreviated tour of New Orleans nightlife. We went to all of the "good" bars, for about ten minutes a piece, and then he took us over to one of the side streets - all locals mostly, and the BEST LIVE MUSIC. Reggae was phenom. I have blisters from all the dancing.

Here's a sample (we have to check out in 30 min):

The road in through Mississippi

Our awesome hotel room - thanks Mom and Liza!

Out on Bourbon

Awesome band on French St

New Orleans!

We made it!

Checking into the hotel had its share of hiccups, as usual, but we're in our room (Kate's in the shower) and will be hitting the town asap.

Highlights so far:

We lost Delaware for a moment. Or rather, we had no idea what state we were in for a good half hour, and once we saw a Delaware sign, we were entering Maryland.

Every house we've stayed in so far (this is the first and only hotel stay of the trip) has had the most ADORABLE dogs. We wanted to steal them all.

Our friend Jennifer lives literally two miles into North Carolina. She works in Virginia, plays in Virginia, shops in Virginia, but has to pay NC taxes. Weird.

Fried frog legs in Mississippi. Seriously.

---We're taking lots of pictures and videos. I'll probably post a sample tonight, but I'm antsy to get clean and out into the land of the living and the beads.

Mom- NOLA was made for us to party. So don't freak out. We're smart and safe. But I'm ordering a Hurricane first chance I get.

MSG REC'D WHILST DAUGHTER TRAVELS

Amy: Where are you?

Ali: Almost to LA, bout ah hourish more in Alabama.

Amy: What's it like?

Ali: Grey with yellow and white lines.

Almost on the Road

Kate's Facebook status this am " It's time to leave this town it's time to steal away let's go get lost anywhere in the USA" - a line from Red Hot Chile Peppers' 'Road Trippin.'

Last night all of Kate's best friends came over to say their goodbyes, these are people I hold close as well, the ones I spend time with when I come out to visit, the girls that I know I would have found and befriended on my own. The night was full of laughter and inside jokes and Kate doing her best to ignore pangs of sadness.

And yet another photobooth session



The day that I flew in Kate popped a tire, so we've been delayed a day while waiting for the new tire to be shipped to the mechanic's shop. My uncle is off with the car now, getting the tires changed and inspected. My aunt is at her voice lesson, Kate and I are doing busy work waiting to be able to get on the road.

Tonight we'll be in the DC area with longtime friends of the family, and in the am we'll be wandering the streets of the Capitol.

I'm excited, and tired, and nervous (and nauseous). But we're doing it.

A Buddha for your trip

I was thinking about what I could give Ali and Kate that would watch over them on their journey across country.

This Buddha doesn't weigh anything, it won't take up any room in the car or in Ali's suitcase, and it will always be there.

And it's crocheted - which is just too cool. (I'm a ridiculous crochet fanatic at the moment.)

So, here is my "trip present" to Ali and Kate. May it bring a smile to their faces whenever they see it!

I am getting ready for an adventure that I wasn't sure would happen.

My cousin Kate and I live on opposite coasts, and for years now have been trying to fix this problem. The usual routine is that my mom and I - the only two California kids of the bunch - fly out to visit 1, 2, sometimes 3 times a year for the usual birthdays (such as Meme's 80th), Christmas, or summertime play at the family lake house. Kate's been out to visit us three times.

On my most recent trip (sans momma this time)Kate and I went for a late night swim and started talking, and decided that we would drive cross-country from her house to mine and that she would stay for two months.

The next day (I would say morning, but I didn't get up until at least noon) I looked back on the idea as a fun one but figured it would never materialize outside of our heads. Really, I should have known better. We're the girls who started talking about tattoos one morning and snuck off that afternoon to get them. Identical ones, by the way.

So --- I'm hopping on a plane in 5 days, helping Kate pack up the car, and then we are starting our drive.

The fact that this is real, and is happening, and is going to be amazing hit me last night. At midnight. Sleep didn't come easy.

But the route planning did - Trip Tik via AAA is incredible, and all online now (the veterans of the c-c trips tell me it was all paper and in person "back in the day").

If you're interested, check it out here


By the way, someone on Craigslist is giving away four free goats. The site is incredible.

So something else that Kate and I decided when we were adventuring around was that the raw food diet is one that appeals to both of us. I'm excited to have her here with me, because of power in numbers and such, plus I'll have someone to "cook" for and with. One of my favorite sites/blogs about the movement is OneLuckyDuck.

That's all I've got for now, but I'll bet you anything I come back on tonight and add on. I'd expect pictures and such.

Peace,
ali

Amy: Wouldn't it be great if someone would pay us millions to do online research?

Ali: Right???

Ali: We should just start a blog.

Ali: Wait, I'm serious. LET'S DO IT!!!!!

This is the AIM conversation that spawned this site. Amy was at work, Ali was at home, both had been spending too much time playing online. The two then continued to share beloved blogs, a Pandora radio station, and commentary on the life of Courtney Love (Amy wiki'ed the death of Cobain, seeing as neither could remember exactly how he had died). Is there anything more fun than sharing the things that make us laugh or make us think or keep you safe from boredom?

Dinner is over, the dog (more on him later) has licked the plates "clean", one of us is drinking red, the other's drinking white (Ali says it's typical and Amy says it isn't - which is also typical). So far the two have been trading spaces at the laptop, "tag-team blog writing" as Amy is calling it, and in the last switch Ali knocked her glass of white over. Computer and Blackberries are safe, thank goodness.

We promise not to do the "Amy" and "Ali" third-person nonsense each time, but for today, it's fun.

Here's one of the things that makes us laugh, think, and keeps us safe from boredom...

See more about this gorgeous bride here