balancing blog & life

Well, there’s simply no excuse for disappearing from the blogosphere for this long!  All I can say is that my absence has been due to a combination of many great tour opportunities & life just getting in the damn way!! 

That said, let’s just jump right back in!  Ya know how I’m always saying that being a tour guide opens up doors to amazing opportunities & great experiences in New Orleans & beyond, hence the title of my blog, “my NOLA tour guide license is my KEY to the city”?  Well, I have another example for you…I went on a great plantation field trip w/a bunch of fellow New Orleans tour guides yesterday to St. John the Baptist Parish & St. James Parish (if you haven’t already figured it out, Catholicism played & still plays a major role in New Orleans & LA culture), they’re both just over an hour outside of the city.  BTW, for those not familiar with nola or Louisiana lingo, a “parish” is the equivalent to a county anywhere else in the States, this Catholic spin on “county” just stuck with us.  Anyway, we all hopped on a chartered coach in the Esplanade Mall parking lot bright & early & headed for plantation country along River Road. 

Our first stop was at Whitney Plantation in St. John the Baptist Parish, which is not yet open to the public for visits, so this was a special speak peek arranged for us tour guides (see, us tour guides, we got the hook-up!).  The plantation is on a massive property & the home itself is still being renovated, but we did get to sit in the old slave church & check out the blacksmith shop.  This should be a great tourist destination once all the renovations are complete & it’s opened to the public. 

Next on the agenda, a true Louisiana lunch…tour guides gotta eat, too, right?!  The B & C Cajun Restaurant on River Rd. in Vacherie, LA was ready & waiting for us…w/fried catfish, white beans & rice, french bread, live Cajun music on a fiddle & bread pudding for dessert!  We were happy campers, to say the least. 

With full tummies, we made our way to our final destination in St. James Parish, Bocage Plantation, which is just downriver from some other very popular Louisiana plantations, Oak Alley, Laura, & Houmas House (all of which, I’ve visited & highly recommend checking out if you’re in the region).  This was my first time at Bocage & I was sold as soon as I walked in the door!  The home itself is magnificent…ya know, if you like grand old mansions w/17 foot ceilings on the second floor, spiral staircases, period furniture, ornate chandeliers, a large front veranda complete w/rocking chairs!  We were greeted by an old lady in full character, she shared her story of survival as a slave, setting the scene & taking us back to a time most like to pretend never even occurred.  After she shared her story, a very well versed & surprisingly young tour guide (originally from Atlanta, GA) gave us some information about the home itself & allowed us to wander about, even telling us to make ourselves comfortable, sit on the furniture, take pictures, have a ball!  Bocage is an active B&B, one that I’d love to spend a weekend in…they serve wine & hors d'oeuvres at sunset & a full made-to-order breakfast in the morning!   I have to admit, me & several girlfriends were very sad to leave…in fact, we were pretty close to telling the group to go on without us & stay the night…I mean, come on, the wine & hors d’oeuvres were just about to be served!!

But, back on the bus we went & made our way home to the Crescent City.  I was exhausted from the excursion, but very happy & thankful that I was able to go…I actually felt like I was a kid again, on a school field trip.  Even though we’re all tour guides, we were able to sit back & relax for the day, not worry about watching the time, keeping track of guests, covering all the important talking points, etc…I absolutely believe that outside of giving a tour, tour guides are most happy being tourists in their own town. 

After that long day, I couldn’t even believe that I had the rest of the week still ahead of me (especially w/taxes due & this self-proclaimed procrastinator leaving them until the last minute, but I did e-file them w/several hours to spare)!  We had really crummy weather today, but I still had a French Quarter tour scheduled for Friends of the Cabildo & we give tours “rain or shine” – ugh!  I had 13 guests ready & willing to brave the elements with me, so we hit the streets, splashing as we jumped from puddle to puddle.  For those who know me, you know that I always come prepared with all the proper gear, I was sporting a long rainproof trench coat, a rain hat, rain boots & toting a lime green umbrella…so, I was as ready as I could be for 2 hours in the pouring rain & brisk wind coming off the river.  However, I was not only frustrated that we had to contend with this nasty weather, but very disappointed that I had to modify my tour route to avoid the worst of the storm, which meant hiding under the many balconies & galleries that line the sidewalks in the quarter.  Although the guests don’t know what they missed from my usual tour, I’m always still disappointed that I can’t share it all with them…we didn’t even make it to the window in the back of Café du Monde to watch the beignets being made!!  Nevertheless, all of my guests stuck it out until the bitter end, some soaked to the bone, but enjoying themselves & they even told me that they thought I did a great job despite the weather.  That was nice to hear, especially given that I was still thoroughly drenched, even with all of that ridiculous rain gear. 

So, after my lovely plantation trip yesterday & my damp French Quarter tour today, I suddenly had the urge to sit down & finally get back to my blog!!  Obviously, there’s much more to catch up on & much more ahead, but this tour guide needs a hot shower, a cup of tea, & a good night’s sleep, so I’m signing off for now. 

Next time, I’ll share my new adventures guiding tours for another non-profit group, Save our Cemeteries…I’m now doing tours in Lafayette Cemetery no.1 (in the Lower Garden District) every Tuesday of the month (except the 3^rd Tuesday, when I do my FOC French Quarter tour).  I’m loving this cemetery & this tour, I really hope to add more cemetery tours to my repertoire in the near future.  More about SOC & my cemetery tours soon…& by “soon”, I don't mean in 4 months, more like 2-4 days, this time!!

Bonne Nuit from the Crescent City.