Texas - The Lone Star State
Archers Holidays, June 2014
The next morning we headed to reception and asked about the free wifi we were supposed to get. The lady responded, "Oh, I can give you a code" and she did. Sigh. Good job we hadn't paid for wifi, but why make it so difficult that you have to go and ask at reception? Wonder how many other people pay not knowing there's a freebie option. Grrr. That dropped em down to three Teds for the inconvenience and hassle.
We went back to the room to organise Groupon hop-on-hop-off bus tickets - we usually use CitySightseeing but my pal, Kelley, had found the coupon and already bought her tickets. So, then we needed to print off the coupon. We returned to the lobby and asked at reception if there was anywhere with a printer in the hotel.
This person we spoke with was clueless. Totally. She looked extremely vague at the concept of a printer and could not tell us if they had one. So, I asked if there was a business center with printing facilities and was advised it could be found on the fourth floor. We headed for the lift.
There were certainly conference rooms on the fourth floor but, try as we did, we could not find a Business Center. Sheesh, we'd have to go back to reception. We took an escalator down a floor to the third when, lo and behold, there was the Business Center. We headed inside and asked about printing. The lovely lady in here said that while she could print our email for us, there would be a charge and we'd be much better using the public computers and printers in the lobby. The what????
So, we headed back to the lobby again and, before we could be bothered to talk to reception again, we had a wander about and saw a small alcove, with two computers in it...and a PRINTER!! Woohoo! Finally, with a bit of a struggle when, together with a fellow guest who was as clueless as us, we were finally able to find our way onto the Internet, using the new (then) Windows 8 operating system. What on earth? I'm used to it now (and avoid all the icon-y things and just use the desktop) but talk about a steep learning curve! Finally, no thanks to the reception staff at the hotel we had our coupon!! Good job we were up early!
We had a quick meeting with Patrick in the lobby to collect our airport shuttle vouchers and then the rest of the day was free to explore. Archers were running an optional Steamboat Natchez Dinner Jazz Cruise but they wanted $86 (including transport from the hotel) but we could find it online for only $74.50.
My friend Kelley does like to find a deal so she managed to get a further ten percent off, making it just $67.50 each for a two-hour cruise on the Mississippi River, with a buffet dinnner and live dixieland jazz band. We'd done it before and enjoyed it so figured we'd do it again with our friends. We checked a map and it wasn't far away from the hotel (ten minute's walk) so could manage without transportation.
Groupon in paw, we headed off to meet our pals at the BusVision Hop-on, Hop-off Bus Tour
of New Orleans, at their stop number one, Harrah's Casino. We were there before our friends and the 10am bus was just leaving, but as we waited for Kelley, Tom, Lisa and Gary to arrive, we were able to sort out our coupon and exchange it for tickets. The 10.30am bus arrived about twenty past ten so we got on, and waited. And waited and waited and waited. We'd picked up some headphones as we got on but as we waited a guy with a microphone also got on. We waited some more as the bus started to fill up. We waited some more.
At about ten-forty (it seemed WAY longer than that), the bus finally got underway. The guy with the microphone was apparently a "live" (almost) tour guide to listen to instead of the recorded commentary. However, he was very rambly and stumbly in his delivery and he would point out things we'd already passed so didn't actually get to see. I don't think he'd been doing this long (seemed like his first day!) but it made for a not great tour. We tried the headphones, but presumably there's not much to see in New Orleans, because the little bits of chit-chat they did have were interspersed with a lot of jazz music.
We headed along the same route as the previous day, passing the Café du Monde (below right) where we planned to have coffee and beignets later.
I can't tell you much about what we passed cos the guy doing the commentary wasn't clear about which building we were looking at at any particular time. I was seated upstairs on the front row of the bus (the driver's seat) so at least I had a great view out.
We passed Congo Square/Louis Armstrong Park, in the Tremé neighbourhood, where many New Orleans' jazz musicians were born. It used to be where slaves gathered on Sunday (their day off) to sing, beat drums, sell home-made goods and celebrate. No, I didn't get this from our guide, I googled it when I got home, based on my photographs! Today the park hosts festivals, concerts, weddings and more. We passed Our Lady of Guadalupe Church, formerly the Old Mortuary Chapel, built in 1826 to bury victims of yellow fever. It is the oldest church in the city.
We passed another cemetery, before passing the Mercedes-Benz Superdome. This was originally the Louisiana Superdome, a sports and exhibition venue. Its biggest claim to fame is probably when thousands of people took shelter here in 2005, during Hurricane Katrina when it suffered extensive damage. It was months before it was able to reopen. It gained the Mercedes-Benz name in 2011.
As we drove I spotted this pink bunny running down the street. My Twitter pals will understand, as we have several pink bunny furends. Below centre is Lee Circle, a road traffic island (they call it a "circle" with a monument to Confederate General Robert E Lee, of the Civil War. We also spotted another tram.
We spotted Louisiana's oldest museum the Confederate Memorial Hall Museum which opened in 1891. It houses one of the largest collections of Confederate memorabilia in the United States.
We had decided to stop at Stop 7, the National World War II Museum.
Me, Di, Paul and Dave, together with Gary were going to to the World War II Museum, while Kelley, Lisa and Tom went in search of food (and, it would turn out, bottomless mimosas! Who knew?) Not sure what this chap was doing up on that chimney.
The entrance hall to the museum is pretty impressive, with a train alongside a station and both a DC-3 Dakota (C-47) aircraft and a Spitfire overhead. Wowee! This started life as the D-Day Museum but now covers the entire War.
We paid $22 for our entrance fee and headed into the exhibition. Dave chose to pay extra and see the film that Patrick had said was very good, but we didn't have time as we were meeting back up with the others. They had some amphibious vehicles in the lobby - below left is a Higgins Boat, officially a Landing Craft, Vehicle, Personnel (LCVP) which revolutionised amphibious warfare - carrying thirty-six men, or a Jeep and twelve men and enabling rapid deployment.
Below centre is a Jeep Ford GPA Amphibian, which was a modified Ford Jeep. It was popular with the Soviet military, but did not perform well in rough water and became known as the Seep! Below right is a 37mm anti-tank gun - it was lightweight so good for amphibious landings but as the war progressed it was unable to penetrate the improved German armour.
After the attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941, America entered the War. Men and arms had to be gathered, with folks at home rallying to save supplies for the war effort, such as household waste fat that provided glycerine for the explosives.
The Germans commenced the War with top quality uniforms and equipment but by 1944, represented in the picture below, second left, it was becoming increasingly inferior. The uniform to the right is of an American Assault Infantryman of the same period.
Below second right is a suitcase radio, dropped by parachutes to agents on the ground. This one was commonly used between 1943 and 1945. Below right is an ENIGMA Machine, used by the Germans to encrypt messages since the 1920s, however the Allies were able to break the unbreakable code.
Specially designed gliders were introduced to transport soldiers, jeeps and light artillery in Normandy, during the D-Day landings. This is a Jeep, below left, with a glider, below centre. American and British gliders were towed across the English Channel by Douglas C-47 Dakota aircraft (my favourite plane!) as well as Albemarle, Halifax and Sterling bombers. The tow ropes were released over Normandy. The gliders were made of plywood and canvas and often broke apart on landing - they were often knowns as flying coffins. Losses among glidermen were high, often crushed by equipment during crash landings.
The US 82nd and 101st Airborne Divisions landed behind Utah Beach. Coincidentally, our driver, Rodney, was a member of the Army Airborne - they are paratroopers, which means I think they've done a few more parachute jumps than I have (one!)
There are a lot of photographs in this exhibition. Here's one of the troops in one of those landing craft. Below centre is a picture of a devastated Cologne in April 1945. Below right are some propaganda pictures used during the War.
American rifles and a machine gun, below left. Japanese grenades and a grenade launcher, together with a Japanese pistol, below centre. Japanese rifles and a machine gun, below right.
Done with the exhbition, we headed outside to another building - the US Freedom Pavilion: The Boeing Center. Oh my bear this place was impressive when we entered with all these World War II planes hanging overhead like a child's bedroom, except these weren't models! They were real aeroplanes. Pawesome! Below centre we were standing beneath a Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress, and below right you'll see a P-51 Mustang. I love these!
Below left is a M4A3 Sherman Tank. Though regularly outgunned by their German counterparts, the Shermans were easier to maintain, particularly on the battlefield. They have the nose of a B-24 Liberator here. These flew faster, higher and farther than the older B-17.
Above my head (below left) is the B-17 and I think a Douglas SBD Dauntless. Again, inside the B-24 (below centre) and a Vought F4U Corsair (below right).
They had motor vehicles too, with a Dodge WC-54 Ambulance, providing room for four stretchers or six seated patients. This one was given to the French Armed Services at the end of the war where it was in use until 1985! Blimey! There was another Jeep in here too (below right) this time with a trailer, including a pigeon loft for delivering messages. Who needs mobile phones? The bell, below centre, is the "Normandy Liberty Bell" - the only exact, ringing replica of Philadelphia's original Liberty Bell. It was a gift to the National World War II Museum from the Normandy region of France to its liberators of 1944.
We took the lift to the top of the building from where we could look down onto the aeroplanes below. Here is the B-17 from above.
Below right and centre is a North American P-51 Mustang, one of the most famous fighters of World War II. This one is painted to represent the "Red Tails" or Tuskegee Airmen. Below right is the Corsair - a rugged, fast fighter and attack aircraft used to support ground services.
Below left is a Douglas SBD Dauntless, a dive-bomber that could dive at nearly 80 degrees. In the 1942 Battle of Midway these sunk four Japanese carriers. Below centre and right is a General Motors TBM Avenger. This debuted at Midway in 1942 and led an unsuccessful attack on Japanese ships. Only one bullet-riddled Avenger out of six made it home. Despite this, it became the US Navy's primary torpedo bomber.
The North American B-25 Mitchell can be found below left and centre. This was able to penetrate Japanese air defenses and dropped bombs close to the Emperor's Palace. No other aircraft bombed Tokyo until B-29 Superfortresses began flying from the Marianas Islands in 1944. The Avenger is below right.
Done with the museum we had one eye on the time to meet back up with the timetable according to the website. We got off the bus at 10.30am so figured the next one would be about the same time, but we got distracted and weren't ready until just before 2pm. We thought the buses were every half an hour but there was a time on the lamppost of 2.13 and 3.13 only - every hour? We checked their website and that said every hour but 2.43 and 3.43! So, it was clear the bus would arrive when it could be bothered. I'd not used this company before but one bus an hour for a hop-on, hop-off tour is not acceptable - hadn't noticed this on their website and but again, we got a Groupon deal. We'd have been better off the City Sightseeing bus tour!
We met up with Tom, Kelley and Lisa, which is when we found out about the bottomless mimosas! Good job Theo wasn't here really as he'd have bankrupt the bar! We waited quite a while for the bus (and had called Dave to let him know about the timetable discrepancy, meaning we had no idea when a bus was due). We didn't actually wait longer than twenty minutes but we were starting to wonder. We carried on with our bus tour and this time the on board guide actually had a clue what she was talking about! As you can see, it was starting to look a little stormy - there was even some thunder! We were a bit worried for Dave, as he'd be waiting for the bus after ours (at who knows what time?)
We passed some more old buildings and the New Orleans Convention Center. I nearly missed the Katrina Memorial - it's a house blown into a tree!
Soon we were back at the starting point, near the casino. I have to admit I was pretty surprised to find a statue of Winston Churchill here!
We completed the route and chose to get off at the new Riverwalk Outlet Malls. We had planned to go to the French Quarter, but we thought if it was going to rain we'd be better off inside.
While we were wandering the mall, Dave turned up! He'd waited half an hour before deciding to walk and it had only taken 10 minutes! Not very impressed at all with BusVision - misleading timetables, poor taped commentary and even worse manual commentary. Amateurs.
In the mall we bought some chocolates in the Lindt store - who knew there were so many different flavours? We generally only see the red chocolate ones at home. We also got an Auntie Anne's pretzel - yum! As I was wandering in the mall I bumped into Mr Haagen-Dasz, well, I assume that's who this is - I suspect he was a person in an ice cream cone suit! What a job!
We arranged to meet up at the Natchez around 5.30pm and went back to our hotel for about forty-five minutes. We'd got to pack so we took the time to empty everything out of the suitcases so we'd be ready to repack when we got back. With our two Rainforest Cafe glasses and four more fragile wineglasses this was going to be tricky!
Others in our group that were taking the optional tour with Archers were in the lobby when we set off to walk the ten minutes to the Natchez - it wasn't far at all. While we were hanging around a lady advised us to get in line early to ensure we were on first - as we were first sitting for dinner at 6pm. Kelley arrived with her coupons so we got in line while she got the tickets then she squished in to join us.
As we boarded they insisted on taking our photograph - we hate that - and then we went straight to pick a table by the window and near the buffet.
Soon a drinks order was taken (only tea, coffee and water were included, everything else was extra) and a small salad appetizer was brought out. It didn't take long for the humans to eat that - there was no way I was going to! Then we were headed to the buffet - there was no line when we got there (that would change!)
The first four dishes were suitable for Di (vegetarian) - creamed spinach, four cheese pasta, something slightly spicy with sweetcorn and something else (it's not like you care anyway.) They also had bread and sauces and dressings but Di didn't have those as she didn't know what was in them and annoyingly they weren't labelled. For the meateaters there was beef bourgignon, pork loin and even catfish.
Dessert was bread pudding. It was a bit stodgy, but it was okay. Needed a big bucket of custard though. The flatties seemed to enjoy it anyway, but they are not picky.
Dinner over, we went out onto the deck to get a place next to the band so we could see and hear them. It's an open deck so we could also listen to the commentary on the way up the river.
Here's the New Orleans skyline and a really big boat, er ship.
We watched the activity on the Mississippi River.
We saw some of the damage done by Hurricane Katrina.
We saw a large freight ship - it had a cute little covered lifeboat on board. The dock (below right) is where Domino's sugar is loaded onto the boats for shipping.
The Chalmette Refinery (below left) processes seven million tons of sugar every day. This is most certainly a working river.
The boat turned around in the river in time to see the sunset (well, if it hadn't been behind clouds, that is). I sent the assistants to get me a drink - they came back with a Natchez Jazz Punch I think they called it - basically a Hurricane, with rum and fruit juice and whatever. I don't care, it tasted good. Even had a cherry and a piece of orange in it. Looks like there was a two-for-one deal or something. What a shame!
With the sunset over, the band - the Grammy nominated Dukes of Dixieland took to the stage.
The band sounded good to me - even Paul said so, and he never likes anyone! Here, see for yourself.
We enjoyed the show!
When the band had a short interval, I sent Di to check out the gift shop. She must have had a weak moment because she came back with a stuffie alligator in a blue I "heart" New Orleans sweatshirt (that I believe is meant for me!) She said the shop wasn't bad and had quite a lot of stuff, though a lot of it she wouldn't want to buy. They had a human t-shirt that looked like a Captain's Uniform which she said was cute, but she couldn't imagine where she'd wear it - maybe on the Disney Cruise? Ah well. I got a sweater and a new pal.
As darkness fell we returned to the dock, passing the Riverwalk Mall. As we left the boat, I got a picture with the Captain! What a great trip!
We headed to Cafe du Monde
where we'd planned to have beignets. They are basically doughnuts covered in icing (confectioner's) sugar.
They are very good. I had to hold Colin back to get you this photo! All the flatties insisted on having a taste too!
We said our goodbyes to our friends and headed back to our hotel, by way of the French Quarter and Bourbon Street, of course.
Once we were back at the hotel, it was time to pack. We didn't do too badly as we'd packed an extra case inside Di's so had plenty of room for all my tourist tat. Paul had put our four Becker's Vineyard wineglasses in his carry-on in an attempt to get them home intact, but we had to put the Rainforest Cafe glasses in the checked bag - we'll probably have a suitcase full of broken glass when (and if!) we get it home.
Once everything was in place, we went to bed. Home tomorrow. Boooooo!!!!