The French Quarter was quiet this morning as we walked the streets at nine, stopping at the Gumbo Pot for coffee and a shared order of blitzes. We met our friends, Mike and Art, who happened to be in the city for a business conference. The four of us took a tour of the ninth ward and an overview of the city.
It was very interesting as the driver described the height that the water rose in each neighborhood as we passed, then we could see the evidence first-hand in the Ninth Ward where the water had been seven to ten feet deep. Some homes are still standing, abandoned, and some still bear the markings from the search crews and insurance information. But pockets of homes have been restored, next to leveled lots.
The green houses built by the Brad Pitt Make It Right project were very interesting. They were raised, colorful, angular with solar panels on the roof slopes.
The most colorful homes were in the Musician’s Village which was a result of Harry Connick, Jr’s joint project with Habitat for Humanity. 
No visit to New Orleans would be complete without a visit to one of the many lovely cemeteries. We walked the many rows noting tombs from the 1800’s to recent internments. We could almost hear “when the saints go marching in” being played. 
The St. Charles Streetcar is the oldest continuously operation railroad in the world with service dating back to 1835.
The driver pointed out famous homes along St. Charles Avenue with added history notes. These jeweled ladies are a fine collection of homes from the 1800s showing world-wide cultural influences. Our preferences ran to the smaller brightly-painted homes where we could picture ourselves sitting on the porch with our afternoon lemonade.
Last, is the president of Tulane’s home—not a bad housing allowance!
We passed many neighborhood parks and again we could not help but delight in the 300 year old oak trees with limb-spans of 100 feet.
After the tour we spent more time in Jackson Square, enjoying a light lunch and of course Art and Ron had to sample some of the local brew.
The end to a great day included dinner uptown with Ken and Sue completing the group. Great food, great atmosphere and great friendship—it really doesn’t get any better.
As we walked back to the quarter we were drawn to Café Du Monde for coffee and beignets. Just as we ordered we received a text from Bob and Madeline—they joined our table along with their son, John, who is visiting for a few days.
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