The next day began with a little shopping in the French Quarter. First we headed to Central Grocery. Tony's fondest memory of previous visits to New Orleans is eating muffalettas made with the olive salad sold here.
So he had to stock up on it. And some Crystal hot sauce, because it was on the table at every restaurant we ate at, and it is awesome.
I popped into Hove Parfumeur to check out some scents. I was excited to pick out a scent that would remind me of our trip. I ended up choosing some magnolia body lotion and vetiver soap.
The shop was so gorgeous and old-timey.
We had lunch on our way back to the apartment, at Cafe Maspero. I had to snap a picture of Tony's fancy bloody Mary. Practically a meal in itself.
Cafe Maspero was more vegetarian-friendly than its counterpart, Original Pete Maspero's. Don't get them confused. Or else you will miss out on the vegetarian muffaletta, and it is a thing of beauty.
After an afternoon rest to avoid the hottest part of the day, and catching up on laundry, we set out to explore the Garden District. At this point we learned that the streetcars, one of which would typically take us straight to the Garden District, were not running all month. This is also the point where I thought, "I am enjoying my visit, but I think living here would be a struggle."
Fortunately we had our car so off we went. The French Quarter is where the French and Spanish lived, the Garden District is where the Americans built their homes. So they are a bit more ostentatious.
We also passed one of the renowned New Orleans cemeteries, with all its above-ground structures, but they close to the public early in the day and I wasn't sure if a tour would freak out the kids, anyway. So we did not do any of that.
Gas lanterns with real, flickering flames are used all over the French Quarter, but we also saw them on a lot of front porches. So homey and nice.
Ornate is a word that comes to mind.
Tomorrow, gators!
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