Celebration in the Ozarks

On a humid December Sunday evening, Aleks and I visited the Celebration in the Ozarks at City Park in Metarie, LA. Forking over $12 (Aleks treated), we were surrounded by toddlers and their caregivers. Initially, we had hoped for a romantic walk under well-lit trees; instead, we found Storyland Village, an amusement park of recreated fairy tales, some of which were, I admit, amusing. Still, we had to dodge around the young 'uns to get to the more "adult" section. Highlights included a giant T-Rex, a Cajun Christmas story w/audio-visual accompaniment, Mr. Bingle (a local figure), and the hanging moss juxtaposed with the Christmas lights. Lowlights included the laser show (not pictured). Final verdict: either return with kids someday or sneak in by ourselves.

Do Y'Know What It Means When It Snows in New Orleans?

'Twas the 11th of December and a phone call awoke me. It was my friend J. Mellis, calling to surprise me about what was outside. But I paid no heed and slept on. 30 minutes later I awoke and turned my blinds to see snow falling. Great Heavens!

Aleks and I laughed at the weather report the night before which hinted that there might be snow, but this morning only Aleks laughed as she dressed quickly to frolic in the snow. It was her first time to wake up to snow. I was slightly dazed, yet I rushed to get my camera and was met with some freezing weather outside.

I'm glad we took these pictures because 20 minutes later the snowfall turned to rain. As Aleks said, "Now it's just gonna be all wet and yucky." In other words, typical New Orleans weather. Still, we were entertained the rest of that morning by watching news reports with pictures of palm trees and streetcars topped with snow.

8/29-9/5 Vacation Extended b/c of Hurricane Gustav

With the impending doom of Hurricane Gustav, titled the "mother of all storms" by our "chocolate-city" mayor Ray Nagin, Aleks and I evacuated New Orleans for the second time in 3 years. This time we drove to my parents' place in Madison, MS, and on Saturday and Sunday, we waited for the storm--by the pool. It was harrowing. The water in the pool was placid but chilly, yet we endured. And the hot sun bore down, yet we tanned.



All in all, not a bad way to spend an evacuation.

8/23 Carmel and Monterey

On Saturday, we drove down to the Carmel and Monterey area. We started out doing the 17-mile drive along the Carmel coast, where we saw Pebble Beach and the Lone Cypress. Next, we headed to downtown Carmel where we had lunch at Merlot and walked around Ocean Avenue. Before leaving for Monterey, we stopped in briefly at the Carmel Mission to take a few photographs but had to leave quickly because there were back-to-back weddings going on in the basilica.

On the way back home, we stopped off in Monterey and walked around Cannery Row, where we got coffee and rested up at the park near the marina. We thought about going to Santa Cruz, but decided against it since we had reached our limit for sightseeing for the day.

8/22 Sailing to Angel Island

On Friday, the Hajduczeks and I drove to Emeryville Marina to prepare the Olenka (Aleks' nickname) for sail to Angel Island. After some nautical education and some batting down of the hatches, we set sail and arrived at Angel Island around noon. (I even steered at one point.)



When we arrived at Angel Island, the Ellis Island of the West for Asian immigrants, we had lunch as a herd of deer grazed behind us. We also saw a gang of SegWay drivers cruising the docks. Best of all, we had fantastic views of Tiburon and Sausalito, which resembled the Greek isles, or so I thought. On the return trip the waves hit harder and we convinced Captain Hajduczek to turn on the motor. Back on land in the early evening, the sea-battered crew hit the nearest Trader Vic's for Mai-Tais and hot rum.

8/21 SF3 Grace Cathedral, Stones Exile Pics, Mall

By Thursday morning, we were tired and slept in for a bit, but we woke up to check out Grace Cathedral before checking out of the Grant Hotel. Before noon, we walked into some art galleries down Geary Street and saw photos of the Rolling Stones when they were recording "Exile on Main Street." We also saw some paintings by Warhol, Lichtenstein, Picasso, and Dali woodcuts of Dante's Divine Comedy. We refrained from buying any of them.



By lunchtime, we got some massive burritos at Tacqueria Cancun, then hung out at SOMA and the Yerba Buena Gardens. Still, we were so sore from walking that we went to the Westfield Shopping Centre and laid around until 2, until we finally went to the City Beer Store before catching the BART back to Martinez.

8/20 SF2 Trolley, Lombard, City Lights, Castro, Haight Ashbury

On Wednesday, we woke up early and walked down to Market to catch the cable car in order to reach the hills of Lombard Street, the crookedest street in America. Once there, we noticed that the cars going down it could only go 5 miles per hour.



After we left Lombard, we walked down to N. Beach to visit City Lights Bookstore, the one that Lawrence Ferlinghetti opened and was known as a Beat hangout. We also walked down Jack Kerouac alley and saw some literary plaques, like the Steinbeck one in the pic. In addition, we spied some hanging underwear above our heads.

We then walked down again to Market to catch the MUNI, the public streetcar, in order to get to the Castro District, which is at the end of Market Street in the Southwest end of SF. Once there, we took in the stores (costume stores, leather stores, hardware stores) and noticed how clean everything was. So many professionals, so few queens. However, we were amused to know that there was a "Gay Cleaning" store along with a Beaver Street in the Castro. We had lunch at Thai House Express and then headed north over towards the Haight Ashbury while we checked out the Victorian houses in that neighborhood.

In the Haight we dropped into an anarchist bookstore and then we shopped at various thrift stores around the Haight before stopping for a beer and using the facilities. Near the afternoon, we were tired from all the walking and caught a bus back to the hotel, where we rested before heading out to dinner in North Beach at the Steps of Rome, a nice Italian restaurant.

We had our post-dinner cocktails at Vesuvio's, another Beat hangout, and then headed out to the Ha-Ra club, another bar, although less charming than every other site we saw in SF. Eventually, by 10:00, we ventured to Bourbon and Branch, a posh speakeasy also known as the Anti-Saloon League, where we ordered expensive whiskey sours and Old-Fashioneds for an hour.

Near the end of the evening, we stopped in a nearby Mexican restaurant to have salsa, and I then jumped up to work my magic at Karaoke to sing "Suspicious Minds." Aleks and the surrounding Asians and Mexicans were clearly jealous of my moves. We were then kicked out at midnight.

8/19 San Francisco Day 1: Chinatown, N. Beach, Fisherman's Wharf, Golden Gate, Alcatraz

On Tuesday morning, Aleks and I rode the BART from Martinez into the city. But before that happened, we saw next to the BART station an Iraq War memorial, where protesters have set up crosses for every dead soldier so far. So check that out on your commute!



We arrived in the city and checked into the Grant Hotel at 11. The quaint hotel, run by some quiet Asians, gave us a room that had a window view of a brick wall, and it was situated next to a Nude Male Revue. However, it was very close to Chinatown, where we walked around and had Dim Sum at 4 Seas Restaurant. Later, we walked up to N. Beach and Washington Park and saw the church where Joe DiMaggio and Marilyn Monroe got married.

Around 1, we walked further up to the tourist trap Fisherman's Wharf, where we stopped by to play early 20th century arcade games at the Musee Mechanique. Best of all, two young hippie wannabes gave us 2 free tickets (totaling $44) to ride the Red & White tour boat. (We later repaid these benevolent hippies by buying them beer once on board). The tour ride was windy, but nice because it allowed us to see the city from the water along with the Golden Gate Bridge and Alcatraz.

When we arrived back on land, we walked over to Pier 39 to see the lazy seals that barked continuously and pushed each other off their docks.



By 4:00, we were tired from walking and rested at Melt, a wine bar in North Beach before we headed back to the hotel and prepared for dinner. We had dinner at the Foreign Cinema in the Mission District, the dirtiest bum-ridden neighborhood I saw in SF, and it reminded me of the East Village or downtown New Orleans, post-Mardi Gras. Still, the food at the restaurant was terrific: gazpacho, calamari, chicken, and free cocktails--all while watching a vulgar French film.

8/18 Napa Valley

On Monday, Aleks' folks drove us north to Napa Valley, where Aleks and I visited the Robert Mondavi winery. On an unseasonable chilly afternoon, our tour guide showed us the variety of grapes on the vine--they were surprisingly sweet. Then we went inside to see the compressors and the barreling process, in which they used French Oak and kept the barrels for three years, so the grapes we tasted would not hit the market till 2010.



After tasting some of Mondavi's wine, we headed up the road to the V. Sattui winery to have lunch (salami, pate, and French bread), but first Aleks and I went inside to taste some of their wines. When lunch was over, we drove over to Calistoga and walked around downtown, where Aleks got hit on by two guys when I went to the bathroom. Finally, we stopped by Benicia to get some tea and Cokes and Aleks and I posed by the water.

8/17 Berkeley

On Sunday, Aleks and I drove over to the Berkeley campus to check out her old stomping grounds. We went by Sproul Plaza and walked by Wheeler Hall, both of which I know from accounts of the '60s protests that took place.



Later in the day, we walked around outside the campus, specifically around Telegraph Avenue, which presented an assortment of bookstores, arts & crafts vendors, and more than a few good low-price restaurants. For some reason, we ate hot dogs and then later that afternoon we had some beer and yogurt. Local color included two angry hippies and a middle-class white boy who, for political reasons, was begging for change.

8/16 West SF: Cliff House, Golden Gate Park, and Sausalito

After arriving in Oakland on Friday afternoon, I headed out to West San Francisco with Aleks and her folks. Specifically, we explored the parts of the city that Aleks and I would not have the time or means to see by ourselves.



We started out at the Cliff House, where the weather was brisk and where we saw the remains of the early 20th century old bath houses. Behind the Cliff House was the Golden Gate Park, which was filled with middle-aged joggers, a corporate picnic, and, best of all, a thriving Renaissance Fair, filled with Chaucer-loving geeks. I had never seen a Renaissance Fair; I had only heard about them in movies. Aleks and I wanted to enter the fair and make fun of the dorks in medieval garb, but the price was too expensive, so I snapped a few pictures and we moved on.

We later had lunch by the water and saw teams of young men putting their 49ers in the water, a difficult task and no doubt uncomfortable because of the cold water and wind.

Afterwards, we drove to the Golden Gate Bridge with plans to walk down it and back, but again, the weather proved to be dreadful, and the wind made it near impossible to take pictures. Seeing it was good enough.

Back in the car and out of the wind, we drove to Sausalito, a pretty and posh coastal town, where we had some ice cream, saw some ships near the docks, and more interestingly, watch a woman catch a stingray, and an odd artist who balanced rocks on top of each other. Beautiful town.