Great Expectations. New Orleans.

I have always wanted to go to New Orleans and had an image of it in my head, I think mainly from films. King Creole comes to mind. I haven't met anyone who didn't like the place, so expectations were high.
We travelled to New Orleans from our nearest regional airport at Columbia. A rather small, friendly place, with about three staff. We flew via Memphis, staying just long enough to explore the Elvis shop and eat a sandwich. As we approached New Orleans, the land beneath us became swamp, with trees in water for miles, looking very 'Everglades'. When we got off the plane we realised we had brought the wrong clothes- it was hotter and more humid than anticipated.

We took a taxi to our hotel in the French Quarter, passing by the skyscrapers of the modern business district. Suddenly the scale of buildings drops and you enter old New Orleans. First impression? This is not America. It is a combination of Spain and southern France. What I imagine Cuba might have been like in it's hey day.

It is noisy, dirty and full of people and they are walking! My sort of town. Although it is overcast, it is the perfect temperature for walking around. The houses are lovely, beautiful cast iron balconies, some overflowing with ferns and still with Christmas decorations. Some of these were taken later- hence the blue sky.

There is quite a variety in the iron work.

 Houses go from single storey cottages to three storey houses.

This one has it's impressive front door on the first floor, with the storage area underneath.

At the centre of the Quarter is the rather grand Jackson Square, with Jackson himself, triumphant in the middle. The cathedral is a touch Disney, but makes a good backdrop.

The terraced houses lining this square are very fine. In fact there are a lot of fine houses here. I thought the area would be much more down market.

There is a huge amount of it. I thought there would only be a small area of old buildings, but it goes on and on, far beyond the French Quarter. It is incredible that it is all of a piece. No modern buildings at all. Fantastic. We spend the first day just walking round with our heads up, looking and getting a stiff neck.

The place is buzzing in the central streets, particularly the famous Bourbon Street. It is New Years Eve, the Saints have their last match of the season on sunday, and the Sugarbowl (college football) is on tuesday. People are here for all three events.

Mind you, I don't think this place needs an excuse to party, it seems to be in permanent have a good time mode. We like it- a lot. It feels alive. There are restaurants everywhere, kitchen refuse spilling out the back doors, where waiters are getting pre-dinner pep talks. Lots of one off shops, not chains. No Starbucks or the like. Music inside and out. Life as it should be.

A lot of the street music is very good.

This lady could sing and play the clarinet- fantastic at both.

This group had a man tap dancing as part of the music and a little kid just couldn't stop dancing along with him. The music is very infectious and it is difficult to stand still.
I could live here. What a shame Fulbright don't do visiting positions here. No such luck.
We enter into the spirit of things- literally and visit the voodoo museum and learn that the Catholic church is closely connected to voodoo here. Didn't know that.

New Years Eve is turning out misty and hot. I manage to have a swim in the outside pool on top of the hotel. There is a mist over the Mississippi.

The air is blowing hot and cold alternately. The weather is on the turn. Up on the hotel roof the feel is stormy.

We actually eat our meal outside at a very nice little restaurant and then go up to the hotel roof again to see fireworks over the river at midnight. Do people dress up? Not really. A few women look slightly smarter than normal and totter around in silly heels, but all the men go for the usual T shirt look.
 Roland decides to fit in by going for the shirt I've worn all day with the 20 year old fleece look!!!!

Me, slightly dressed up showing the scraggy neck of the ageing woman!

Bourbon street- the grot part of the Quarter- strip joints, bars and loud music is packed with people. Here you can drink alcohol on the streets, but it has to be in a plastic or aluminium container. The local bars sell drinks in luminous green plastic containers that look like grenades. People appear to be drinking huge amounts, but it is all very jolly. It's a mix of Camden Town and Soho.

The balconies are heaving and you hope that they can cope with the weight. There is a tradition of throwing necklaces in bright colours to the people below and the idea is to get as many as you can. They are gaudy and shiny and some people have done rather well.

We haven't stayed up so late for ages! It seems a world away from Fulton!

Breakfast is great fun, cooked in front of you and served at long marble bars. I try grits, which is like runny tapioca. Can't say I can see the attraction. It's edible, but I think that's about all you can say about it. I watch other people lap it up. Mind you, they don't just eat it on it's own. Tabasco helps.
Lunch we go to oyster bars and have oysters and blackened alligator and such things. The latter is very meaty. They do oysters raw and cooked in all sorts of ways-yum.

In all these places there is also a performance going on. A banter of good humour between customers, waiters and cooks. It's a sort of game and very entertaining.

We come across a costumier, who is producing costumes for Mardi Gras, not far off now. They are very relaxed about it all and say we can go through to the warehouse out back and look at all the costumes and try them on if we want. So we do.

Great fun. You could have spent all day in there dressing up. Like being a kid again. There is a chinese girl and her mum doing the same thing. She wants to be a princess!

On the first day of the new year the temperature drops and it's cold again. It's sunny though, so we get a different look to the place. I like it both ways.
There is a museum of Louisiana history, which is good and an exhibition about Katrina and the aftermath, which is very interesting. There is no evidence of damage where we are. There is a civil war museum, which unfortunately is shut. It is very much from the South's perspective- unashamedly and would have been interesting.

On sunday we visit the Garden District. The Hampstead of New Orleans, only the houses and gardens are bigger. We travel by tram. Trams provide a little thrill to the ageing man, but not as good as trains.

This district is also large and full of beautiful houses set in gardens with lovely trees and quiet streets. Magical.

Some of these are very grand. An indication of the wealth around at that time.

A certain 'Gone with the Wind' touch to some of them.

This suburb has one of the famous cemeteries, which we get a peek at. They are closed for the holiday-unfortunately.

Most of the trees we have seen, which are large and very wide spreading, are southern live oaks. They have little ferns growing all along their branches.

I think the highlight of the visit was to Preservation Hall.
This is the most famous venue in New Orleans and not really a hall, more a room. It is small and shabby. You sit on thin wooden benches. There is no food or drink and no loos, just the room, the performers and the audience.
We got a man called Glen David Andrews and his band and he was sensational. He played the trombone, sang and led the band and just gave it everything. He had the audience bouncing round the room and doing just what he wanted. I don't think I've ever seen such a gifted and natural performer and he was enjoying it. The band were brilliant too. $12 for two hours of sheer entertainment. We came out with grins on our faces, feeling we had really experienced something special, we just felt like dancing down the street. Difficult to put into words, but that was worth coming to America for.

Back in Fulton to find we missed the tornado, not that far from here, which killed 7 people. Apparently the siren was going off for a long time and the wind was incredible. No doubt there will be others. Hopefully without fatalities.
Also back to reality with the shooting of the Congress woman in Arizona. Sadly, one who sounded just the sort of person you want in politics. With all the the talk of why on the radio, not one mention of gun law. Interesting. It's just not seen as an issue.

I took so many photos, I'll just have to leave you with a couple more

Note the message- Peace yall!

Happy New Year again.

Christmas is not riotous in Fulton.

Christmas in Fulton is like the grave. If anything is going on, it is behind closed doors. The place appears to be dead. It reminds me of when we arrived back in the summer. It is the same problem. The college has closed and the place is deserted. A lot of college employees do not live in Fulton. They commute from Columbia and Jefferson City. I can understand why they would choose Columbia over Fulton. It has much more going on- theatre. music, shops etc. Jeff City is the capital, but is on a par with Fulton when it comes to excitement! It's a bit of a vicious circle. People don't live here, because there isn't much going on and there isn't much going on because nobody lives here.

We had a fresh downfall of snow on Christmas Eve. Just enough to make it all look magical. Most days have been sunny and crisp and it has been a pleasure to be outside. We seem to be in between two weather systems. It is pretty bad everywhere else.
The churches were very busy on Christmas eve, all day. Interestingly though, no midnight service and on Christmas day itself- nothing.

We had a very nice Christmas day with friends. The food was good, we were driven there and back, which was lovely and I didn't have to do the cooking, which was very relaxing. I contributed bread sauce, cranberry sauce, brandy butter, smoked salmon and of course, some wine. I had to make the bread before I could make the bread sauce or we would have had glue.

This is Roland on Christmas day.

Our hostess and daughter

We also managed a few walks to help ward off obesity.

 It has been interesting to see if I can do my normal Christmas cooking here. Well I've done my best, but some of the vital ingredients are not to be had. Not round here, anyway. I've made my usual hefty, very rich Christmas cake. A variation on it, that is. The only dried fruit you seem to be able to get here are raisins, raisins and raisins. They do have cranberries that have been practically obliterated by processing and sugar and blueberries. They don't have sultanas or currants. What a strange country! So my cake this year is a weird and wonderful mix of raisins- of various varieties. I'm pretending the golden ones are sultanas. Cranberries, blueberries, homemade peel and cherries. It looks good but is yet to be tasted. They don't do ground almonds, so I've made that from scratch. So the almond paste on top of the cake will have a slightly crunchy texture-(not very efficient american food processor).
They don't do suet, so my mincemeat is suet free, which I know some people prefer, but you lose that wonderful richness. I've tried to make mince pies in muffin tins. Not very successful, they are far too deep and the pies fall apart trying to get them out. You cannot buy mince pies. They also don't do Christmas puddings. Our hosts have brought one from England, otherwise I would have made one.
The traditions round here seem to come from Germany and Scandinavia. Rich fruit breads, Christmas biscuits, spicey, iced and decorated.
They also do what I think of as a purely american tradition, homemade candy. Tons of the stuff. It often features peanuts, combined with chocolate or in teeth shattering brittle stuff, none of which I'm very keen on. We take our own traditions for granted I suppose. As all my friends know, I like British Christmases and they are definitely the best!!!!!



As the east coast gets obliterated by a snowstorms and California is being drowned, we are getting rising temperatures. This friday it will be in the mid 50's, but we will be in New Orleans- hooray. I'm beginning to get Fulton cabin fever and need to get out to feel human again. This also may be my one chance to wear something other than casual. All my slightly smart clothes have remained unused in the cupboard.  My extensive range of jewellery is lying unloved in the drawer. Dressing up is just not done except in exceptional circumstances. New Years Eve is my chance to wear a dress!
Have managed to part Roland from his jeans long enough to wash them. He has become permanently attached to them.  We have the Rough Guide to New Orleans and are set to go.

Happy New Year.

Fulsome festive felicitations from frosty Fulton.

In other words Merry Christmas to everyone from what is now icy Missouri. We have finally had snow, not that any one in Britain is going to be impressed by the meagre one to two inches that came down last night. States just to the west of here have two or three feet, so we are enjoying a mere sprinkling.

This is Court street in the snow. It is sunday and the street clearers are already out and it does not seem to have stopped anyone getting to church.
The houses opposite look very Christmassy with their decorations in the snow.

It's not supposed to last, at least not this time! We decided to go for a quick walk, while the sun was out to test our snow boots. I have silly fake fur trimmed ones from the shoe shop in town. Roland has Walmart's finest. They both seem to be waterproof and snug, so that bodes well for future walks.

My halloween pumpkin has been updated with a Christmas bow, but I'm not sure it will survive much longer in these temperatures.
Because it has been so dry, the snow is very fine and powdery and is blowing around into quite deep drifts. No good for making snowmen though, it won't stick together.
(Note the jeans. Roland's first for 40 years. Walmart again).








 It will be strange to be here instead of back in Oxford for our usual family get together. I know the food can't possibly compete with our usual fare, but our hostess I know is a good cook, so I think we will have a pretty good spread. I will though, miss family and friends and the usual Christmas activities.

I have, however, made a Christmas cake and mincemeat for mince pies and decorated my little Christmas tree. Here it is all lit up, with the snow outside. The picture on the wall behind is of a mississippi steamboat, which is rather appropriate.

I will leave you with an image from the museum in Kansas City, which is fitting I think. I love these early madonnas, they always have smiling, almost smirking, slightly amused expressions, which I like.

Happy Christmas to everyone, wherever you are, even those that don't like Christmas!

Lots of love Tor and Roland
ps. If Christmas proves to be riotous in Fulton I'll blog more.

Kansas City by train.

We drove south to Jefferson City on a rather chilly morning to catch the Amtrak to Kansas City. Having only ever seen the station deserted, it was quite a surprise to turn up to a full waiting room. People do use this service. Our train was on time, but the one going in the opposite direction, to St Louis, is late. Most people seem to be going in the other direction. Because there is no platform, when the train stops, the carriage attendant leaps out with a little stool and helps us up. Very old fashioned. He also helps people put their luggage in the rack. There is at least one attendant per carriage. The train is clean, comfortable, twice the seat and leg space of a british train and the aisle is twice the width. Brilliant. Also, the loos are clean and remain that way throughout the journey. The only downside is it is rather slow and the sandwiches are disgusting. Our fault. We should have made some. We are held up by the late train and then stop side by side, so that a passenger from our train can be helped down onto the track and up on the other one, because she got on the wrong train! That's service for you.
The journey is uneventful. We see quite a lot of pretty poor communities. Trailer homes and run down small clusters of houses.
Just before Kansas City we go through Independence, birthplace of Truman.

We arrive in Kansas City at Union Station, a new Union Station bang up against the old one. The old one is immense and has been restored but they do not really know what to do with it. At the moment it is full of christmas trees.

This waiting room used to hold 10,000 people.

We get a taxi to our hotel. Yes a taxi, quite a breakthrough for Roland, taking taxis is hard for him. It's buses from now on. The hotel is a Marriot, boring but in a good position. Kansas City, like most american cities is spread wide.

We are right next to the Plaza. This is a shopping and food area, started by a developer in the 20's, who could see the importance of cars in the future and incorporated a lot of car parks in the scheme. It is all in a faux spanish style, with copies of towers from Seville. There are fountains, courtyards, tiles, all in this theme, and lots of statuary.

Multi storied car parks are disguised behind ironwork and fancy brick work.

For a month and a half over the Christmas period, it is all lit up. A great draw for shoppers and tourists. There are carriage rides in buggies like cinderella's pumpkin coach. My photo of that didn't turn out!

You can get the idea though.

 This place is thriving. The shops and restaurants are full and buzzing. I love it! It may all be a copy, but it works and people like it.
We eat at a Brazilian restaurant. Lots of meat..... for a change! You can eat as much as you want- fatal for most, but there are also lots of veg. We retire full.

A Marriot breakfast is slightly better than others in that we eat off china plates. The food is crap and I use the word correctly.

We start the day with the Art Gallery and it turns out to be an absolute gem. A stunning collection of paintings, stain glass, sculpture, artifacts, china etc. It has paintings by Caravaggio, Monet, Rubens, Rembrandt, Van Gogh, Gaugin, Winslow Homer, to name just a few. Artefacts from ancient Egypt, Rome and China, it just went on and on.

A world class collection, beautifully displayed.

This is a portrait by Joseph Wright of Derby, one of my favourite painters. I think he looks a bit like dad.

The money behind it came mainly from the local newspaper owner and most of it was bought in the depression at 'reasonable' prices. You could easily spend a week in there and it's tempting as it's bloody freezing outside. The building is huge and the grounds have Henry Moores dotted all over the place, as well as more frivolous pieces.

We head south where there is a very impressive museum dedicated to the first world very much of the period.

. We climb up to the top....

only to find the entrance is at the bottom on the other side! The view is good though.

It's still perishing outside and we can't face ploughing through death and destruction, good though it's supposed to be. We opt for a bus trip through downtown, which is a bit like the centre of Glasgow. Kansas City was wealthy and growing at the same time.
There are lots of fountains everywhere, mostly dry at this time of year. Kansas City has more fountains than any other city except Rome.

This one has local themes

We decide to visit a little museum down by the river- Steamboat Arabia. This turns out to be fascinating.
This is a small private museum and houses the full contents from the hold of a steamboat that sank just out of Kansas City in 1856. Wrecks are common. The Missouri is treacherous. The current is fast and it rips out trees at the edge of the river. The water is full of fast moving debris. There are 289 known wrecks between St Louis and Pierre in South Dakota.
This boat was big- 171 foot long and was crammed with goods for further up river. It sank in 5 minutes having been pierced by a tree stuck in the mud. The top of the boat was washed away, but the deck and hold sank in the mud with all the contents intact. They have displayed the stuff as if it is some well stocked shop from the period.

There is everything. Fine china, glassware, cutlery, boots, clothes, tools, full pickle jars, perfume, jewellery, bourbon......

Very enjoyable and a bit different.

Saturday night, everyone seems to be in town and we find it hard to get a table at any of the restaurants. We eventually ask if we can share a table in the bar and end up eating with the retired lawyer of the Kansas City Chieftans- the local football team. We eat a selection of fish, which makes a change.

Sunday we are brunched by the English Speaking Union, who invited Roland. Our hosts are charming, a mixture of expats and locals and they prove an attentive and interested audience. Some of them appear to be fairly wealthy (fur coats and expensive cars) and all are very proud of their city. We are then driven to the station to catch our train back. It's still very cold but a beautiful evening. We have brought edible sandwiches with us, so feel very smug tucking in with a beer from the bar.
A good trip. We liked the city and would like to see more. The train was also a success.

We now stay put till Christmas. We have our first snow forecast for this saturday, which is supposed to be vile. Freezing rain turning to snow with temperatures plummeting. We are going to the good supermarket in Colombia on friday to stock up- just in case it sets in.

December, no snow but lots of Christmas decorations!

It seems strange to be looking at the snow all over Britain on the BBC website and we haven't seen any here at all. I thought it would be the other way round. The last couple of days have been just below freezing and I've finally been able to wear by goose down coat. I love it! It really does keep you warm. I'll have to wait for the snow to wear the silly boots with fur trim.

Fulton is in full Christmas mode. Two houses opposite us have their gardens lit up with candy sticks, reindeers, snowmen, santas, christmas trees, presents etc. A feast of gaudy lights.

This weekend they have open house, with some of the older properties opening their door in full, decorated, splendour. I offered to help at a bed and breakfast in court street called 'Romancing the Past'. It is quite spectacular inside. Beautiful woodwork, very wide doorways and arches and a winding staircase. It is done up in a very american 'nostalgic' style. Lots of pictures, objects and furniture in the Victorian style. This is quite a common theme in b and b's here, a bit over the top for british tastes. There is a christmas tree in every room, garlands inside and out and christmas lights and wreaths everywhere.

There are wreath bases not wanted, so I get to take three home to garnish to taste!

I finally get to use some of the leaves and cones that I've been collecting. This is the tasteful one.

The more conventional one.
Last and slightly tacky, the one on the front door.

Not sure about this one. I think it might have to be more tacky to really work. I've got a month to perfect it!
My leaf creation I was rather pleased with. It will probably all curl up and die, but It was fun to do.

Unfortunately we are not going to be here this weekend, so won't get to see the other houses that are open. We are also missing the Christmas parade and the festival of carols in the Wren church, which is a shame. We are off to Kansas City, which is mostly in Missouri, not Kansas. I never knew that before.

We are going by train! I wonder whose idea that was. We can't catch it in Fulton, because the line died some time ago. We have to drive south to Jeff City and pick it up there. The station there is manned by volunteers. Unbelievable. They whizz up in their car 5 minutes before the train comes, then disappear once the train has come and gone. There is no platform. We just wander on to the line and hope the train stops. Roland has been determined to get on a train at some point and there aren't many places you can get on one. This is his chance. The line goes across Missouri from St Louis in the east to Kansas City in the west.

I have been given a christmas tree by a friend. It is artificial, with the lights already on it. They all seem to be like that. I was going to get a little real one, but perhaps this year I'll go american artificial. It's up already! 1st December, but that's when they do it here. The house comes with a box of baubles, so I'll start with what's here and see how it turns out. I don't think I can compete on the outside, but I can have fun inside.


I am not sending Christmas cards this year. It will be festive greetings by blog.

Must away and pack for the trip west. Kansas City is famous for it's ribs. Haute cuisine again!