The weekend after the Saints won the 2010 Super Bowl Championships, I was offered the chance to join a dear friend on a trip to New Orleans.  She was on her way to visit family in her hometown just minutes from the French Quarter and it just so happened that it was the most important weekend of the year for the town.  Why?  It was Mardi Gras!!

Never having been to the city-wide celebration, I jumped at the chance.  We packed the car to the hilt with bags, bikes, and bites, and headed off to the Big Easy.  7 hours later, we arrived with excitement.  Our first major stop was dinner at a renowned local restaurant called Jaques Moes.  Thinking by the sound of the name that the place might be a stuffy French establishment, I was pleasantly surprised while sitting at the bar, none other than Jaques himself pulled up a stool, shared a laugh, filled a water bottle with libation (a Voss water bottle at that), and went on his way.  

Folks waited for their names to be called in order to pass through the kitchen area to the back of the restaurant, where it opened up to several quaint rooms filled with tables and local artwork on the walls.  It truly was a delight to find lights strung up on the ceiling and beautiful trees painted up and across the room. 

The alligator cheesecake and crab cake appetizers were a delight, followed by duck and red fish.  The sauces were amazing, as were the accompanying corn muffins, dressed in garlic butter.   Before leaving, we were treated with a crème brulee on the house, a ‘lang yappe,’  a term of reference when folks from Louisiana treat a local to a freebie, or treat.  I was pleased.  To top it all off, Jaques passed through, this time with a REAL fox hat on, head, tail, and all.  We gave our hugs and goodbyes, passed signed Eric Bennet on the way out, and headed to Uncle Joe’s, where we were staying for the weekend.  What a way to start the trip!

The next day, we started off the day with an exploration run.  The crowds had already started lining up the night before to stake their places for the parades.  Street after street, people were bustling about, getting grills and coolers ready for a day of consumption, cheering, and capturing the highly sought after beads.  The bigger the beads, the higher the value, I was told, so folks would build boxes and put them on top of ladders to ‘catch’ more treasures.   Smaller beads, I was told, could be sold after the events were over, for 2 – 3 cents a string, for next year’s Mardi Gras festivities, of course.  

45 min into the run, I was over-stimulated, but was revived after a college kid from a crowd yelled out and handed us both a beer.   ‘Horrah!,’ was shouted by the crowds!   After the short refueling stop (which was quite hilarious to me, by the way), the next 20 min of the run felt like nothing!  Then off to grab the mountain bikes, which allowed us to cover way more ground in a shorter time, and catch another parade.   Dodging people, bottles, curbs (who says New Orleans doesn’t have any off-roading??  I had some super steep drop offs on some of those curbs and potholes!) was a blast.  The most major obstacle was hauling our bikes across the train tracks….with a train on the tracks!!  It wasn’t moving, of course, but it was hilarious to wiggle two people and two mountain bikes under the stationary train!

After crossing the tracks, we hit the parade streets.  The floats were exquisite, fully decorated in lights, paper mache, glitter, you name it.  Each one had a theme, Egyptian, some for causes, some just silly!  We grabbed footballs, cups, beads, stuffed animals….whatever was thrown our way.  Although I was unable to get a coveted roll of toilet paper, I was able to snag a hot pink boa.  Our backpacks were busting at the seams by the time the night was over.  Spreading things out on the floor at Uncle Joe’s after arriving home brought smiles and satisfaction for another great day in New Orleans.

A great morning bike ride along the levee worked up an appetite for some Café du Monde beignets and hickory coffee.   Since I was with a local, she had the right idea of grabbing the bag of donut delights for on the go, instead of waiting an hour and a half for a ‘tourist’ seat.  We had more parades to get ready for! 

That night, Super Bowl MVP Drew Breese, passed by in the first float, throwing beads just like he was throwing a touchdown pass.  Uncle Joe snagged a special Drew Breese coin and Bacchus football.  What a catch!

The last day brought another exploratory run through the French Quarter and the famous Canal and Bourbon Streets.  I was impressed with how the city was able to clean the streets each morning in preparation for the next day’s festivities.  That took a great deal of work each day, but the pride for the city and event was reflected in the effort and care of the city streets.  New Orleans truly comes together for this event, a tradition that has gone on for over ** years.

We passed by bands and festivals celebrating Lundi Gras, stopping for a cinnamon rum hot chocolate for warmth. (It was COLD while we were there!  Upper 30s F.)  Jumping in and out of stores and dodging people on the sidewalk made the day.  Heading out of town, we had the chance to stop for one last po boy at Liuzza’s near the horse race track.   Then, a low pass for fresh female boiled crabs, boiled shrimp straight from the bayou, alligator sausage, and artichoke (stuff you can’t find in GA) packed tight in ice bags for the ride home.  You cannot get any fresher than that!

All in all, my first Mardi Gras experience was a great one.  I highly recommend going with a local who can show you the ropes, knows the streets, the restaurants, the parking spots, and the best parades.  There is no other way to go!