Christmas Cruise!

I woke up bright and early on Saturday, December 17, to head out to the bus station. I had decided to take the bus when it looked like Fran needed my car to come over and feed my cats, and besides I don't have to 1. drive in New Orleans, and 2. worry about my car parked in New Orleans while I'm gone. We got to the bus station in plenty of time, and I was second on the bus, right after the guy who had just been released from jail. I knew his prisoner status because there was a guard there with him until he got on the bus, which didn't really help my confidence in my safety. But he turned out to be a nice quiet guy, who was only going as far as Fort Walton Beach anyway. The bus was coming from parts east (I'm not sure if from Jacksonville or from Tampa/Miami), and was mostly full of sleeping people, so I sat right behind the driver, and had my own seat all the way to Mobile. It was mostly cloudy, so the temperature was nice, and it was neat to be able to look at the scenery rather than concentrate on driving myself. We stopped in Ft. Walton Beach and Pensacola before reaching Mobile. About the only excitement was the grumpy lady who kept looking for food near the bus stations (and was always disappointed, since these were more like shacks out by themselves than the bigger-city stations) and bitched about hoping to get back to “civilization” soon, plus the hypothetical ferret. So I was sitting with one leg down, and thought I felt something near my ankle, but discounted it. However the felon guy sitting across from me said “Hey, did you see that ferret?” I said I didn't, but the guy behind me said he did. Apparently someone had smuggled their pet ferret onto the bus, and it had gotten loose and was roaming free. I spent the rest of the ride to Mobile alternately worrying about the ferret and wondering if the bus driving would put the owner off at the side of the road when the ferret was discovered. It never was, and hence the term “hypothetical”. Besides, the driver was busy on his cell phone (!) and didn't notice us talking about the possible ferret. The Mobile bus station is not in too bad of a neighborhood, although it was still a longish walk to food unless you wanted to eat the station food (which didn't look too bad). I got off my bus and immediately got in line for my connection about 40 minutes ahead of time, which was good because this bus turned out to be completely full. I did get a window seat, and wound up sitting next to an overweight lady who had been on the bus with me from Panama City, and who with her son was going to Los Angeles. I was afraid to ask when they would get there, and was very glad it was them and not me. In fact, it was so crowded that when a bunch of soldiers wanted to get on in Gulfport, they wound up standing all the way to New Orleans. The most notable part of the ride from Mobile to New Orleans was going through Biloxi and Gulfport. Both of these towns got absolutely hammered by Katrina—we're talking 25-30 foot storm surge. I had been to Biloxi a few years ago (I took a casino bus trip, so it was cheap) and while walking around I was rather stunned by the number of “ghost driveways”. There were a lot of driveways and walkways that went off the road and went to nowhere—sometimes there was a cement slab where the house had been, and once or twice a real foundation (not many basements here due to the high water table), but often there was nothing but high grass and scrub. It was a bit eerie to see, and while there were still some of these ghost driveways present, many lots now had houses on them again—but usually well-elevated above the ground. Still, they are very exposed. Both downtowns were full of vacant lots, and signs that the water had been very high here. If it weren't for the casinos, I doubt there would be anything left of these towns. We didn't get into New Orleans until after dark, which was rather unfortunate since I was still interested in looking around. There was still quite a bit of damage apparent, with vacant lots and such. We got into the bus station, which is also the train station, pretty much on time, which was good because it is right next to the Superdome and there was a big football game going on that night, and our driver was worried that we'd get stuck in traffic. Nope. I got off the bus, put on my travel pack and started walking toward the hotel. I never felt in danger on this walk; because of the football game, there were people everywhere. I didn't have a map, but I pretty much knew where to go, and just walked. I ran into a marching band, which was playing some great music in an open area between two hotels, apparently ramping up for the game. They were the SD Aztecs, and to show you how I think, I was wondering why a band from South Dakota was calling themselves the Aztecs—it turns out they were from San Diego. They were playing a local team from Lafayette, and even though they eventually lost they had some great music. I decided to get dinner before going to the hotel, because I hadn't had lunch. Also, I wanted to eat at Mother's, which apparently has great po' boys. I got one with all of the fixins including what is called debris, which is the juice and bits and pieces left over after cooking the meat for the sandwich. It was delicious! And my hotel was just around the corner. I stayed at the Best Western St. Christopher, which was reasonably-priced, a block from the French Quarter, and was complete with original brick walls and a very fancy bathroom. I dropped off my bag and headed out to the French Quarter, to walk and watch. There wasn't much traffic on Bourbon Street, even though it was a Saturday night, probably because it was early and the football game was still going on. I suspect it got a lot more exciting later, but I was home and in bed by 9 or so. I did have a Hurricane drink, which was very strong (at least to me) and I figured I didn't have to drink any more. There was still some good people-watching, and I found that on the back of St. Louis Cathedral a statue was lit so that a huge shadow of Jesus was cast on the back of the cathedral. It was pretty cool, although since it kept reminding me of the logo for “Amadeus” it probably didn't have the same effect. I took a picture, but as usual it doesn't do it justice. Well, it turns out that my cool room at the hotel was also loud; I'm not sure if it was near the heater or what, but every now and again I'd have a machine start up rather loudly. I did have ear plugs, but I didn't put them in because I was sleeping pretty well anyway. I did wake up a few times, but I did get back to sleep pretty quickly. I woke up fairly early the next morning and went down for the free breakfast, which was really nice. I didn't get the waffles, but I did have cheese and poppy/lemon muffins, which were really tasty. I checked out afterwards, checked my bag at the front desk, and headed back out to the quarter. I wasn't sure what to do, but I had some time to kill. I walked along the river and sat on a step and watched the river go by for a while; it's not that wide, but it moves really fast. Then I walked to the Cathedral and went in, standing in the foyer because they were about ready to have a service and I didn't want to disturb them. I walked up and down streets looking at the architecture (I really like these older parts of town, and the iron balconies are great), and decided to take a cemetery tour. I had taken one before, but it was in August and all I remember is nearly passing out from the heat. This wasn't going to be a problem on this day, so I went to the Basin Street visitor's center. If Dad ever makes it to New Orleans, he has to come here: it's set up like an old-time train station, and has much of the history of trains in New Orleans. It's right next to the closest cemetery to the Quarter, and the tour was quite interesting. One new thing there was a pyramid crypt built by Nicholas Cage, who apparently really likes New Orleans, although he doesn't live here anymore. I asked the guide if anyone was buried in Nic Cage's tomb, and he found that very amusing (and the answer is no, not yet). After the tour I headed back to the hotel, grabbed my bag, and then started walking toward the cruise ship port. Or at least, I though I was walking there: I was on a sidewalk at the Riverwalk right on the river, and I figured there must be access somewhere. Nope. I had to walk all the way back, and then around on the other side of the streetcar tracks, and then found a sign saying “Cruise Ship Access ¾ mile”, and swore a bit. There were people coming out near I was standing, so I figured what the hell and walked that way, and found the pedestrian access—I'm glad I didn't trust the sign! It was about 1pm by then, and there was pretty much no line to get in. I waited a short bit of time to go through the metal detectors, but otherwise I just walked on. Foreshadowing: There were workers wiping down all of the handrails, and I had my hands sprayed twice on the way up the gangway with an alcohol solution. More about this later. By the time I got on board (avoiding all of the picture-taking that was going on—I'm not going to buy a picture of my embarkation, why have it taken?) I decided to see if my room was ready. It was! I quickly unpacked and then headed to the buffet for lunch. I wasn't really impressed with Norwegian's buffets; there didn't seem to be as much selection as I had seen in other buffets, and some of it just wasn't very good (I only tried the baked pasta once, for instance, because it was incredibly dry). But I found enough to eat anyway (not a problem—there was usually some sort of stirfry and fried rice, which I ate a lot, as well as sandwiches and hamburgers and salad, which were quite good). It was a sunny but cool and windy day, but I did manage to be on the upper deck by the time we left. The ship is parked right near the US 90 bridge, and wouldn't fit under it, so we went sideways a bit, then pivoted and headed down the river. I wish the sun had still been up, because the view would have been amazing of the Quarter and the other areas on both sides of the river. As it was, we did pass a number of what I guess were oil refineries, which were lit up to the point that they looked like the Emerald City (if the Emerald City has fire burning off waste gas). It was, however, really cold up there, between the wind coming from the south and the speed of the cruise ship, so I didn't stay too long. I did notice that there was another cruise ship (I think the Carnival Celebrity) behind us, winding down the river. My room turned out to also be noisy. It must have been above some machinery or something, because there was a constant sound like an engine (although I was too high up and too forward to be the ship's engines, I think); since it was constant I soon got used to it and it didn't affect my sleep at all. Being forward, it was also a bit bouncy with the waves, but I rather like this as well. It reminds me that I am indeed moving, and I find the moving around enjoyable. I doubt everyone did, but I'm lucky. In addition, the bed and the pillows were both quite hard, but I still slept well. The next morning I got up and had breakfast at the buffet (breakfast there was great—a couple of different kinds of eggs and potatoes and bagels and all sorts of great stuff), then decided to go swimming. The air temperature wasn't bad, but the water was a bit cold (I suspect they filled it in the northern Gulf, where the water temperature is about 75 offshore). I really liked the pool: it was small but deep, ranging from 5.5 feet to 7.5 feet. And when the ship was rolling the water swished around as well, which was fun. It was nominally adults-only, although “supervised” kids were allowed in. I suspect many of them were not impressed by the cold and the depth, and since there was a kids pool at the back of the ship that had slides and spray guns and such, and was probably warmer, kids tended to not stay long. I definitely stayed away from the hot tubs: they were constantly full of people and thus had enough chlorine in them to turn my hair green if I merely stood downwind. No thanks. After swimming I joined a trivia contest midway through, and was appointed to a team consisting of two teaching plus another guy. It turns out we won, and I feel good because it was my answer for one of the questions that caused us to have the most points (why yes, I know that Selene is the goddess of the moon—I read science fiction, after all), and we all won the wonderful prize of: two Norwegian key chain lights! I was hoping for a massage or something, but I guess that's for the evening contests, which I skipped. I spent much of the day reading, wandering around, watching people (there were quite a few deaf people on board, and I tried to understand what they were signing, but no go) and watching for flying fish (who would take off trying desperately to escape the ship, and were fun to watch). And eating, of course. I also took a nap, since I woke up early. I did go to the show that night, which was called “On Broadway!”. It wasn't bad, although one of the female singers was, to quote American Idol, a bit pitchy. I was mostly amused by the fact that, while the songs were relatively up-to-date (within the last four or five years, anyway) the backdrop featured the names of shows from 1997. And yes, not everyone would notice that, but I did. I also wondered why the only non-1997 show was “Crazy for You”, which was from like 1992. I suspect the backdrop was created for another show, and then reused. Also, the musicals picked were somewhat heavy on the already-known: Mamma Mia (Abba) and Movin' Out (Billy Joel), plus Wicked and In the Heights. It was also very, very loud, but given that as usual the average age of the audience was about 72, that made sense. The next morning, we were greeted with an announcement from the Captain that we had norovirus on board. He repeated over and over again that someone had brought it on board from New Orleans, but I have my doubts: I suspect, given the amount of cleaning at the beginning (which I'd never seen on other cruises), it was there before, but they didn't want people to realize that and be pissed about their cruise being ruined. What this meant is, we got our hands sprayed before we got into any restaurant, and also at the buffet we weren't allowed to serve ourselves at all. We had our plates and silverware handed to us, we indicated to servers what we wanted and they put it on our plates, and if we wanted salt or pepper or other condiments, servers had to give that to us as well, as the tables were bare. It was a bit of a nuisance, particularly the first day, but after that people stopped going to the buffet, probably because of fear of contagion or congestion and things got better. It turns out we also had the flu on board, which was also delightful. I do know that some people down the hall from me were sick, since I heard them talking about it, and also walked by while the on-board doctor exited and they cleaned the room. Ew. To end the suspense, I didn't get sick with anything; I credit my student-trained immune system, and my tendency to sterilize my hands at every opportunity (thanks OCD!). We docked at Costa Maya around 10am. It was created out of virtually nothing some years ago for the cruise industry, out of two small villages which are pretty much intact. There is infrastructure for a lot more (paved roads with lights and such), but so far, not much. I walked through the cruise port area, full of stores plus a huge pool (for those who don't like the cruise ship pool), out the somewhat-hidden exits, through the security gate, and then caught a taxi. Which was relatively scary; the driver spoke no English and drove like a banshee. Luckily it was a short drive and there was little/no traffic, and he dropped me off right next to the place I was going to. Majajual is about four blocks of stores/bars/restaurants on a sandy beach. I was going to the Tropicante, which I found online and had corresponded with the owner who had reserved a lounge chair under a tree for me. The place quickly filled up with tourists, both from my ship and from another (I think the same one that followed us from New Orleans). I went swimming, and found that although the water was comfortable, there wasn't really good snorkeling: too much human activity, from us swimmers to boats and whatnot. I did get to see some fish and a really impressive black sea urchin, and then just floated around the water for a while. I eventually got out and had some guacamole and a Coke for lunch, and I also got to deal with the peddlers. There were dozens of people wandering around with jewelry or food items (fried bananas seemed popular—no, I didn't try it), all trying to get people to buy stuff. The ages ranged from about 6 to who knows how elderly, and while I felt bad I didn't buy anything there either. Before going back to the ship I walked down the rest of the town, and had everyone asking me to see/buy their stuff, so it was with a bit of relief that I went back to the cruise ship port. I looked at the stores, although everything looked quite expensive. I was most impressed when I found some earrings identical to a pair I bought in Canada for like $5, but when I asked how much they were I was told $35. Um, no. I didn't even bother bargaining, since I doubted we would find common ground there. I also watched a guy create spray painted landscapes, with only a couple of bowls, some newspaper, and a hell of a lot of spray paint. They were really lovely, and it was indeed fascinating to watch him create them so quickly. At the same time there were some Mayan dancers, who were beating drums and jumping and dancing about dressed in fairly traditional costumes, and burning something sulfury at odd times. They actually didn't ask for money, which I thought was amazing, since I would have given them some; I suspect they were paid by the cruise port to create some “local color”. I did wind up buying a Green Bay Packers bracelet for Fran, as thanks for watching the cats, before I went back on board. No show that night; I ate, read, watched TV, and went to bed. The next day was Belize. We got there fairly early, but it took a long way to get to the mooring area, since most of the bay is very very shallow. There is an old river bed on the bottom of the bay, thousands of years old (most likely from the last ice age, when the water level was lower), which is deep enough to allow cruise ships to travel in it. But the river twists and turns, so we and two other ships were turning here and there and all around, following the river bed to the mooring area, which was itself pretty far away from the pier. We did have to tender, and since the water was a bit choppy it was rather interesting—although while waiting I did get to see a large manta ray jump out of the water nearby, which was cool. And the boat ride was fast and fun to the pier. Belize City is a lot like other ports: a nice tourist area at the pier itself, with lots of security to get in, and an extremely poor area right outside. I walked around the tourist traps a while (after a bit you don't even have to go to all of the stores, since you see the same stores time after time in each port), then went outside to a little market until I got tired of being hassled, and then went inside. There was a place offering unlimited internet access for $5, which beat hell out of the ship's rate, so I spent a couple of hours in there catching up. It was hot and humid and sunny outside, which meant it was perfect for snorkeling. It was still a bit choppy after the boat ride to the reef, which appeared to be the same snorkeling spot for everyone. There were some newbies on the boat who weren't too sure about this “jumping into the water” thing, so I jumped in right away and swam a bit while everyone else built up the nerve. I didn't have to, because the water was wonderful. I like jumping into deep water from high up (thanks Brookwood!), and this was fun. The snorkel guides were a bit less “mother hen” on this tour, or at least they were towards me (I'm thinking they could see that I knew what I was doing). I did my part by staying away from the shallow areas (both to protect the coral from me and me from the coral), and spent a lot of time on the edges of the group, checking out fish and coral. It was still quite choppy, but I had no problem with water in my snorkel or anything, and I got to stay far enough away from others that I only got kicked a few times (which is a hazard in a mob of snorkelers). I enjoyed swimming in the warm water, bobbing around in the waves, and the 45 minutes or so in the water went by far too fast. Then it was back on the boat, and I arranged to be one of the last on the boat, as I didn't want to get out at all. We then headed toward a “private” island for another hour of party. Well, the party got started on the boat, with some really strong (at least to me) rum punch; I had a cup and then switched to Coke. But people were having a great time and drinking a lot, so between them and the scenery I was quite entertained. This private island was a bust. It was obviously man-made, out of dredged material: this was mangrove-island area, and there is little/no sand in mangroves, but this island was made of sand studded with very old, sharp shells. There were low wood seawalls around all parts of the island but the beach (which had a seawall out past the swimming area), with a few mangroves planted here and there for decoration and/or seawall support. There were some huts, which included restrooms and a bar, plus a sand volleyball area (I hope they removed the sharp shells from that area) and a lot of lounges by the beach. I went into the water and was really disappointed: the water was murky, the bottom was actually mucky (which gave me Lake Erie flashbacks that weren't fun), and there was lots of odd debris on the bottom. Some girls near me were picking up (with their feet) all sorts of bits of wood, plus one foot-long metal spring that looked like an ad for tetanus. I floated a bit, but then got out and wandered around the island (which took no time at all, even including looking at the parrot in the tree that had all the people with cameras entranced) until we left. I suppose some people had fun; I would much rather have spent the time snorkeling by the reef. There were a few kayaks that could be borrowed, but they went fast. On the boatride back to the ship the drinking was really underway, including loud music and singing and dancing, which I mostly watched, along with looking at the water (I was hoping to see more wildlife) and wishing I was still snorkeling. At least everyone made it back on the boat under their own power; rumor has it that on occasion people have to be carried off the boat from too much rum punch. We left third (this time last to arrive, first to go), and I got to watch the other ships twist and turn on their way out before we joined them. I also discovered that up in the 12th floor observatory/bar, there were some computer screens showing the same maps and information that the captain and pilots had, which meant I got to watch and see just how deep this river was compared to the rest of the sea floor, how fast we were going, all sorts of cool stuff. And then there was Roatan. This is, quite possibly, my favorite cruise destination so far. It's a small island off the coast of Honduras, and it's much more like the Caribbean than Central America. The poverty didn't look as bad (what I saw of it, anyway), and there were hills! Mexico and Belize are both flat and scrubby/jungly where we dock, but this was a nice hilly island. Again, there was a nice cruise port (although it only fit one ship at a time—there was another ship but it had to dock farther away). I had arranged a ship's tour to Tabyana Beach, which I had heard had wonderful snorkeling right off the beach (there were snorkeling tours, but I had my own equipment and didn't need a guide). I sat in the front of the shuttle van (there is sometimes an advantage to traveling solo) and had a great view of the drive up and down and through the hills. The driver was a bit out of his mind but only a bit, and I never felt in danger on this drive. Tabyana Beach is a large beach area at the west end of the island, with lots of resorts (and probably time-shares) being built. Norwegian had a separate area for its guests, with restrooms, a couple of gift shops, a bar (which had Pepsi!), and an included lunch. Plus many many lounge chairs, which were by no means filled by the number of tourists here today. There were also people offering massages, plus a lot of peddlers with booths set up at the property line plus people wandering the water-line. I didn't feel too bad about leaving my things on a chair, since there were a number of security guards wandering around. The water was amazing. It sloped gradually out before the coral began, and thus was great for kids (there was also an inflatable mountain thing that the kids were climbing and sliding down and such). I swam out from the beach and was directed (by some guys—lifeguards?--in kayaks who patrolled) toward the pink buoy to see fish. I headed that way, although I had seen a few fish and some coral. It turns out the pink buoy marks not only where there is a neat “canyon” through the coral with a white sand bottom, extending from, say 6 to 15 feet deep, but where a really bored guy in a kayak was occasionally feeding the fish. So there were SWARMS of big fat fish lurking around here, that would approach everyone hopefully. I kept swimming out toward the ocean, and continued swimming over canyons of all sorts of coral, plus more varieties of fish (if not as many). It probably got about 25 feet deep by the time I found myself between this inner reef and the outer reef, over a sand bottom with coral cliffs rising up 10-15 feet toward the surface. The visibility was wonderful, and it was all lovely. I watched fish, dove down to see some coral closer, watched a few jellyfish swim, and generally had a wonderful time. I even dove down to say hi to a couple of scuba-divers; I should probably re-learn how to scuba dive, but I much prefer free-diving. Particularly if I lose more weight, so I sink easier. I could have stayed there all day, and with a few interruptions, I did. I was at that beach for 5.5 hours, and probably spent 4.5 hours of it in the water. I did get out long enough to eat lunch (it was basically hamburgers/hot dogs/BBQ chicken, so I had red beans and rice, along with a couple of bottles of Pepsi (No, I'm not back on the demon drink—I actually think I prefer the taste of tea with Splenda now; besides, I don't think my body likes all that straight sugar any more). I swam, snorkeled, floated, watched people, and even grabbed some floating bread that kids were trying to give to fish and swam out to the pink buoy where the fish were. Now I know why you're not supposed to feed the fish: I let loose a couple of nibbles, and not only was I swarmed, but a big parrot-fish type thing came up and BIT ME. Right on the finger with its big sharp beak. And not only did the bite hurt, but it bled. Yes, fish have teeth: I had five parallel scrapes on my left index finger, and was worried a bit about infection (it's fine). No fish rabies, either. It's the second time I've been bitten by a fish to the point of bleeding, and both involved food; you'd think I'd learn by now. I did swim out over the outer reef, and found that, like many islands, there's a sheer drop-off there. The coral vanished down into a deep blue blankness, and since I'm a bit freaked out when I can't see the bottom, I went back in to the outer part of the inner reef, which was prettier anyway. I wish I had taken pictures, but they probably wouldn't have turned out anyway. It's probably the most gorgeous snorkeling since the Grand Caymans, although Roatan has the advantage of hills! After I got back to the boat, I did some shopping at the port stores and just sat and watched the traffic go by for a while. It was such a nice day, at least until we left and the rain began. Well, it had to rain sometimes, and other than some showers in the distance at Costa Maya (which resulted in a pretty rainbow and one spectacular lightning flash after dark that lit up the sky) the weather had been great so far. Cozumel was next. This was my third trip to Cozumel, and since I didn't want to go snorkeling (I hadn't been impressed with the prior two trips) or go see Maya things, I decided to shop. The ship docked at the downtown pier, right at San Miguel. When you exit the boat here (down another long pier) there's yet another tourist area, although this one is huge and directly connected to the rest of the town. I walked down the harborfront drag, checking out the tourist traps and trying to avoid the barkers. I was looking for the Cariloha store, since I wanted a set of bamboo sheets. I found the store and bought the sheets, which as it turns out were shipped to me from the US so I didn't have to carry them home (I received them Friday, and it turns out they are defective, so I have to send them back and get another set—I hope they're worth it; they seem to be an interesting cross between cotton and satin, in that they are very light and a bit slippery like satin, but soft like cotton). I also got a free bamboo lei, which I immediately took off in a (futile) attempt to not look like a tourist. I walked around streets off the waterfront, which seemed safe enough, although given the number of bars on the windows and glass on top of cement walls, is probably not that nice at night. There were a couple of stores I went into, including a music store that was pretty neat, with handmade instruments. I then walked back to the main square and sat in the shade for a while, watching everything get set up. It was nearly lunch, but it didn't look like things were really up and running just yet. I decided to buy the few things I liked and headed back to the ship: it was hot, I was tired, things were crowded, and it looked like rain. Which it did, right after I got back on the ship (good timing!). But like most tropical showers, it just poured for a few minutes and then stopped and the sun came back out. I spent much of the rest of the afternoon sitting on the ship in the shade and reading, although I did try to get wifi access on my cell phone from the Starbucks on shore (nope, didn't work). I also enjoyed watching people scurry back to the ship right before we left, and I was envious of a bunch of people on a large boat near our ship, who were jumping off the boat and swimming around the harbor—even in the harbor the water was clear enough that the bottom (which was at least 40 feet down) was visible. The next day was spent traveling north, and it was almost amusing how the weather changed. It was warm and sunny in the morning, and I was sitting in the sun or watching flying-fish, but around 3pm the clouds came in, the wind grew chilly, the water turned from a luminescent blue to a dull gray, and we were no longer in the tropics. I'm not saying much about my activities on the ship, mostly because I didn't do much of note. I read a lot, either outside or in the library (which had comfy chairs and was relatively quiet), I ate far too much, I looked at people. I did watch a bit of the comedian's show, but he wasn't particularly funny, so I left. I guess I was really anti-social, but oh well, it was good for me. New Orleans the next morning was rainy and chilly—well, 50's is chilly when you've been in Central America. I got out early with my bag and took the streetcar to near my hotel. The French Market Inn was really quite nice: it's a converted warehouse on the outside, with lots of rooms on different levels around a central courtyard inside. I had reserved a room without a window, but was given a room with a window, probably because the only windowless rooms I saw had two beds, and I only needed one. It was a bit old and worn, but the only real complaint I would have is that the walls were really thin. I could hear conversations in the next room, and when the Bourbon Street partiers came home at 2:30am, I could hear them come in (not that they were trying to be quiet or anything). But for $60, with a nice room and my own bath in a nice area, I wasn't about to complain. I actually got to check in at 9am, so I dropped off the bag and headed out with my jacket and my umbrella to see the Quarter. And promptly slipped and fell; it turns out that my Teva sandals have no traction on wet New Orleans sidewalk utility covers. It still hurts a bit; I don't know if I sprained it or tore something, but it didn't slow me down much, except when I was walking on metal. I spent much of the day wandering around the Quarter, sitting where I could when it wasn't raining. I did take the St. Charles streetcar through the Garden district, and got to see lots of amazing houses complete with decorations, plus Loyola and Tulane University. I thought about going to the Audubon Zoo, but I wasn't sure if it was open and it was a mile walk from the streetcar line, so I decided to do that another trip. There wasn't much open on Christmas, so I wound up eating both lunch and dinner at the same restaurant, a place called Daisy Duke's. Despite the name, I had some wonderful jambalaya for lunch, and later took a shrimp po-boy back to the hotel for dinner. Both were very tasty. I did make sure that I was on the riverfront to see the ship leave. It was just huge, even in that large river. I waved. And on the way back to the hotel, I stopped to watch a swarm of birds (starlings?) who were flocking in a huge liquid-like mass through the air, spreading and grouping and flowing. It was amazing, and I watched for about 10 minutes with a bunch of others on the sidewalk until they had finished. Quite lovely. The next morning I was up early to head back to the bus station. It was a foggy morning, but at least not actively raining. It seemed a much longer walk back than it had been to get to town, but I made it in plenty of time, whereupon at the bus station I once again got right into line, even though it was an hour until the bus was to leave. It turns out I didn't need to; the bus was beginning there, and it was far from full. However, in Mobile, the bus was indeed full and I wasn't near the beginning of the line, so I wound up sitting next to a very heavy woman, which was a bit uncomfortable. I moved at Pensacola, where I had the window seat and a nice skinny guy sit next to me, and she had a mom with a baby in her lap; I only felt a little sorry for her. It rained pretty much all the way from Pensacola to Panama City, but we still got in pretty much on time. And there it is! The next trip will be in May (I think I'm going to get my condo painted during spring break rather than traveling, particularly if my shoulder is still not working right), so tune in then!