Nola!

James and I got back to Austin this morning after three awesome days in New Orleans. Our primary endeavor was eating and on that front we covered:

Beignets

Turtle Soup at Commander's Palace

Gumbo

Jambalaya

Red beans & Rice

char-grilled oysters

fresh oysters

fried oyster po boy

baked ham/roast beef/debris po boy at Mother's

fried okra

Crawfish etouffée 

Bread pudding at Commander's Palace

lacquered quail at Commander's Palace

Praline

Giant bag of boiled crawfish

Sazerac

Gin fizz

plenty of local beer

Of course we already want to go back and eat more. And do more. I've done a lot of traveling and New Orleans is truly like nowhere else I've ever been. I don't think I've ever been anywhere else in the United States that has a stronger sense of place, which makes sense since the city is older than the country.

My curiosity is piqued and I've added several Louisiana books to my reading list (because I don't know all that much about the state). I picked up All the King's Men in high school, but I think I was too young for it (16-year-old Leslie: "Why would I ever care about southern politics???"). I'd like to revisit that. And while I'm sure it will be grim, I added Five Days at Memorial by Sheri Fink, about the triage that went on at the hospital after Hurricane Katrina, to my library hold list. Even though it was almost 9 years ago, it was clear even in our short visit how much the storm still defines the city. On that note, I also plan to read Salvage the Bones (2011 National Book Award Winners) by Jesmyn Ward.