Parks Rock

First off, I bitch slapped and pulled myself out of my funk! I really have no right to complain, I am off seeing the world and that is pretty awesome, so next time I turn into a whiny little shit, you are all to tell me to snap out of it and go out for a run! DO IT!!! But thank you all for your concern, love and kind words, I truly do have the greatest people in my life and for that I am tremendously blessed! So thank you, to all of you that give a damn!

Parks kind of kick ass, I just wanted to share that! We can do lots in parks; run, eat, take in nature and even check out museums of all types and New Orleans boasts two great parks with two totally different feels; Audubon and City Park. With our great location, both were really close; Audubon was a quick mile away and City Park about a ten minute drive.

Audubon has a spectacular running trail that I put to use on a regular basis, running around the lake and golf course made for a great distance and kept the runs from getting mundane. Audubon sits right between St. Charles and Magazine Street and kept Ethel and I in shape; well let’s be honest, it just helped balance out all the King Cake I’ve been eating! Oh good Lord, King Cake is a little slice of heaven or a milk shake of heaven; yup, found a joint that makes King Cake milk shakes and yeah, I’m drooling thinking of one right now! 

City Park is home of Morning Call and they hold yet another food weakness of mine, beignets! Now most visit Café Du Monde, and we’ve been there, but Morning Call’s coffee and beignets are so much tastier, although Café Du Monde does have them beat on location, there is nothing quite like the French Quarter. 

 Morning Call

City Park is twice the size of Central Park in NYC, just to give it some perspective and is home to so many attractions: City Putt, New Orleans Museum of Modern Art, The Botanical Garden, Sculpture Garden, Storyland and so many more great things to enjoy! Needless to say, Ethel and I were not lacking on places to get out and escape during the weeks while Tom was off working and we had a nice diversity to  mix up those walks and take in a fun and the off the grid aspect of NOLA! 

Sculpture Garden:

 Botanical Gardens:

More of City Park:

New Orleans has been a lot of fun, for all of us, although we have found it to not be quite as dog friendly as Texas was; even though there are a ton of restaurants with patio dining that she can join us at,  it just hasn’t had the outdoor activity that we were spoiled with in Texas. Plus when we are walking the little critter, one must keep a constant eye on her, since people tend to not know what exactly a trash can is and to Ethel this was heaven on a sidewalk! 

Overall, New Orleans, in my perspective, is the closest one can get to Europe and still be in the United States, it has such a strong French and Spanish influence, from the architecture, the language, the food; it truly is the Europe of America!  The Big Easy is so unique and unlike any other town in the US, and I love it, I truly do, the energy, the people and as crazy as it sounds, the smells! Now if I could just get people to pick up after themselves and pets, it would be pretty dang perfect place to live!