A walk around the quarter

So I am back at my lovely hosts' home after a walk on a cool, ever-so-slightly drizzly night through the French Quarter. My hosts, the Benoits, live just a few blocks from the Quarter. Mardi Gras week is underway, though I won't be able to see any parades while I am here -- just missing a few. I enjoyed some delicious homemade gumbo and decided to stretch my legs for a while and look for a sweatshirt to ward off the chill (and give the Benoits some privacy). Couldn't find a sweatshirt that wasn't either in hideously bad taste (although the t-shirts depicting Mayor Nagin as Count Chocula were tempting) or didn't shriek, "I'm a dumb tourist" at top volume, so I decided on a brisk walk and sure enough I warmed up soon enough. Bourbon Street was hopping although one wonders how much crazier it was pre-Katrina. I had a beer or two but mostly just watched the hordes of happy drunks begging for or dispensing beads to young ladies. A nice walk back through more peaceful parts of the Quarter and I'm turning in early; some of the students are gonna take me on a tour of the city and some of the devastated areas tomorrow morning, and I still want to review my notes for tomorrow'c lcass. Meanwhile, a few quick photos I snapped on my walk tonight.