First post from the neighborhood
Hi. This is my New Orleans experience, a good day by local standards.
I'm posting this from a friend's place who has a land line running upstairs. The formerly flooded downstairs is totally gutted.
I had a very satisfying 4 course lunch today. First two were from a Red Cross station on Freret near Napoleon; bottled water (most people are still drinking that even though the tap water is now officially safe-- with much extra chlorine, from the smell), and a sanitarily shrinnkwrapped frozen sandwich-- turkey and cheese on wheat, with nothin' on it. Bland but fine.
After this I stopped outside of an alas still closed coffee shop at Magazine & Jefferson, where I'd been tipped off there was wireless access. Some 5 people were camped out with laptops on the sidewalk. They said access was intermittent, but down while I was there. I did get a fine tip though: I drove down Magazine to just up from Napoleon, where La Bolongerie was open. Usually that's a fresh baked bread to go place, but they were also serving: COFFEE. Coffee and booze are the liquid yin and yang that fuel New Orleans. Bars have been quick to get up, but I've been hearing much griping about the lack of good coffee. A doctor friend has been living in his house with boards over many windows, cooking his meals on his front sidewalk on a little charcoal grill-- but his number one complaint is lack of coffee! He makes instant on the grill, but it's not the same. Given that this mindset of coffee love is common here, La Bolongerie was serving coffee has transformed it into a neighborhood mecca, with tables indoors and out up the block. I had coffee and a fresh baked raspberry scone which I dunked in it. I'd had a burger at a neighborhood bar the other night, but this was the first meal that really made me feel like I'm back home, with "oh my that's good" mouth happiness.
AND! Langensteinn's grocery store is open! Still understocked with empty shelf space, but there-- I was just delighted to buy some Blue Runner Beans and Crystal Hot Sauce, even though I still have some of both at home.
More later.
I'm posting this from a friend's place who has a land line running upstairs. The formerly flooded downstairs is totally gutted.
I had a very satisfying 4 course lunch today. First two were from a Red Cross station on Freret near Napoleon; bottled water (most people are still drinking that even though the tap water is now officially safe-- with much extra chlorine, from the smell), and a sanitarily shrinnkwrapped frozen sandwich-- turkey and cheese on wheat, with nothin' on it. Bland but fine.
After this I stopped outside of an alas still closed coffee shop at Magazine & Jefferson, where I'd been tipped off there was wireless access. Some 5 people were camped out with laptops on the sidewalk. They said access was intermittent, but down while I was there. I did get a fine tip though: I drove down Magazine to just up from Napoleon, where La Bolongerie was open. Usually that's a fresh baked bread to go place, but they were also serving: COFFEE. Coffee and booze are the liquid yin and yang that fuel New Orleans. Bars have been quick to get up, but I've been hearing much griping about the lack of good coffee. A doctor friend has been living in his house with boards over many windows, cooking his meals on his front sidewalk on a little charcoal grill-- but his number one complaint is lack of coffee! He makes instant on the grill, but it's not the same. Given that this mindset of coffee love is common here, La Bolongerie was serving coffee has transformed it into a neighborhood mecca, with tables indoors and out up the block. I had coffee and a fresh baked raspberry scone which I dunked in it. I'd had a burger at a neighborhood bar the other night, but this was the first meal that really made me feel like I'm back home, with "oh my that's good" mouth happiness.
AND! Langensteinn's grocery store is open! Still understocked with empty shelf space, but there-- I was just delighted to buy some Blue Runner Beans and Crystal Hot Sauce, even though I still have some of both at home.
More later.