This long weekend that we just had, well it was packed full of non-stop fun. It was a great way to kick off the summer. I had a friend come to visit the city, and we just had so much that we had to do and see, and to be seen. Like I said in my last post, we spent most of Thursday dodging rain and storms but managed to have a lovely afternoon that included a few bars, live music and friends. On Friday I went back to work, having enjoyed a half day off. When Sophia was ready to go for the day, I ran to the house, and dropped her off in the Quarter and said "have fun!!" After my day at work I met up with her in the Quarter, introduced her to the wonder of the many daquari shops then we wandered a bit more. We found ourselves in Jackson Square, enjoying the band playing when I happened to notice a familiar looking fellow. It was Terrance Higgins, drummer for Dirty Dozen Brass Band and had at one point sat in with Bonerama. He was showing friends around as well. About that time as well I got a call from Pete, saying he had made it into town and was out at the Greek Fest, so away we went out to the fest. It was a nice relaxing evening there in which I tried my first shot of Ouzo, watche the dancers and listened to the music. Of course food and conversation was had as well. Check out Pete's blog for pictures! We were not done for the evening however, once leaving there, it was time for my weekly check in at the Maple Leaf. Sophia finally got to see my home away from home and hear some music, meet even more people and soak up some of the orange lighting.

After some sleep, we were up and ready to go again on Saturday. This was a HOT and very muggy day. It was my kind of day. First stop of the day was out to Bayou Bogaloo and to see Paul Sanchez and the Rolling Road show. It was a short but amazing set. I was glad that Sophia got to see Shamarr play and had a chance to meet him, as he is an amazing musician and person. We then did the tour of the devasted areas, you know the 9th Ward, Lakeview, any part of the city that isn't the Garden District and French Quarter. To me there seemed to be a lot more activity down in the 9th Ward and that made me glad. More businesses are open. We then made it down to Port O Call for some drinks and burgers. We eventually made our way over to d.b.a for a night of John Boutte. It was once again packed for him in there, everyone seems to enjoy John, whether he remembers the words or not. A few of us were reminising about the days when you didn't have to get there so early to make sure you had a seat, while it is GREAT for John, the rest of us were bummed. A bit anyway. When his sets were done, we made the trek around the Quarter to Donna's to take in a few sets by New Orleans Helsinki Connection. It was a small crowd, and it was some really nice music happening. I hadn't been to Donna's in quite a while so it was nice to get back in there.

Sunday we did a tour of the Garden District, more walking in the Quarter so some more shopping could be had then a stop at Palm Court where Lucien was playing. Sophia was tired when we left there so I took her back to my house so she could pack a bit and get some rest. I, knowing I had the next day off decided to head on down to the Maple Leaf for some Sunday fun. Which was had....Yesterday after a mad dash to the airport, a missed flight, Sophia made it home in one piece. While maybe not quite rested, she did have fun!! And so did I. It is always a good time to see the city through a new person's eyes.

Posted by: Stacey at 09:13 AM
Category: Bonerama , Main Peeps , Music , Music Fests , New Orleans