Do I wish I were going to New Orleans again? Yes, but not at this time of year. But, you say, Mardi Gras is when it is all happening! Well, that is true, it is happening but I went in 2004 at Christmas before Katrina, and it was the best it could be to me. The crowds are greatly reduced at Christmas and we felt we had the French Quarter all to ourselves. We took the Christmas home tours, the cemetery tours..which were my very favorite, the Ghost tours and of course had our palms read. We dined at Cafe Du Monde at midnite Christmas eve and got covered with powdered sugar from the beignets, I don't think I've ever felt so sticky...was I eating them wrong? Got personally invited to a Christmas Night concert given by Marva Wright, The Blues Queen of New Orleans at Tipitina's...a couple of the Neville Brothers were there and I'll tell you, they played and sang for 4 hours non-stop and brought the house down...they were amazed we could keep up with them...we never stopped dancing! The streets were quiet except for a few people who couldn't hold their "Hurricanes"! It was a perfect time to go, and when we drove off to the airport, I sobbed like I was leaving a dear old friend.
