Memphis

Awww do we have to leave New Orleans? At least we’re heading to another musical place – Memphis!

We take the Natchez Trace Parkway (thanks to our advice in Miami) which is a nice drive with lots of greenery and upside down armadillos at the side of the road, poor things.

We stop to rest at Natchez which is a peaceful town on the banks of the Mississippi with pretty buildings and we follow the trail around the town reading about the history of the place. It's a town steeped in the history of blues music with various key historical markers for us to investigate. There's even a church with Tiffany windows but it's closed so we have to just guess which ones they might be. On our way to find some food we are stopped by a local lady who shouts across the street to James “HEY! I LIKE YOUR COOKIE MONSTER SHIRT!!!” we get chatting and when she realises that we’re from England she puts on an English accent and asks us if we like tea and crumpets. She’s very giggly and doesn’t seem to want us to leave. When we finally say goodbye she crosses the road in front of our car and says in her English accent “WHY THANK YOU KIND SIR!” while doing a mini bow, heehee funny lady.

On the banks of the M-I-S-S-I-S-S-I-P-P-I

Hehe - James' house!

A very grand synagogue - Natchez was home to a thriving Jewish community. Now they get 4 or 5 attendees on a good day

Historic Glen Auburn Mansion

A terrible event in blues history

We find a friendly Mexican restaurant called Fat Mama’s where we have Nachos and Tamales and a HUGE margarita for Christine, yum yum! James chooses Fat Mama's Gringo Pie...wouldn't you?

Back in the car we drive to Vicksburg and check into the motel ready to drive to Memphis tomorrow.

Arriving in Memphis we are greeted by our lovely host, Patty. Her house is huge and there a couple of other guests staying here as well. It soon becomes clear that Patty is an Elvis fan, especially when we spot the man himself standing in the corner of the living room.  We want to make the most of the rest of the day so we dump our stuff and get the trolley into town. At the Peabody hotel they have a family of ducks who spend their day swimming in the lobby fountain before waddling into the lift to go to their penthouse suite…we’ve got to see it! Unfortunately we’re 10 minutes late, maybe tomorrow duckies.

He Lives!

We walk up and down the famous Beale Street where there are lots of restaurants and bars, all blasting out blues music. We stop for a drink but we don’t stay for long as we have a very American night out planned – a drive in movie! Woohoo!

We buy a takeaway pizza and some other provisions and head to the movies where we pay $7 each for a double feature, Transcendence and Captain America 2. There are only two other cars there so there’s no chance of our view being blocked. We tune the radio in and settle down to watch the films. It’s nice to be able to eat pizza and chat while watching a film. The only problem is that the car keeps powering down and making the radio go off, doh! Time for the interval and Christine is very excited by the confectionery adverts, she’s always wanted to see the performing hotdog (*cough*loser*cough*) By the second film Christine is getting chilly so gets into her sleeping bag. She looks very comfy but obviously too comfy as she falls asleep during Captain America, whoops! Tonight was definitely an all American night. 

Today we planned to go to a ballgame but we’re running a bit late so we decide to tour Memphis instead. We aim for Sun Studio which is famous for starting the careers of Elvis, Johnny Cash and many other brilliant musicians. The tour is only short but we get to see the studio where the magic happens and James gets to breath all over Elvis’ microphone. As you'd expect for an American tour our guide is a bit of a keen bean, trying to get everyone to sing a long and finish her sentences. At least she's excited too.

Original Sun artist guitars (even Johnny Cash down at the end)

...And everyone else starts running

The actual Sun studios is just a small shop next door to the museum with a few neon signs on the windows

We still haven’t seen any live blues so we head towards Beale street again and find a band called Sonny Mack and the Mack II Band. We get a “Beale Big Ass Beer” and sit in the sun to soak up the atmosphere. The band are really good but we get a bit disturbed by the guitarist playing the guitar with his tongue. We know we should probably go to explore Memphis some more but we make friends with some other visitors, including another Brit wo is apparently in town for a secret royal wedding. Obviously a few people think we're in town for that too but we get no last minute invite. A few people get up dancing and we see an old man with a walking frame teeter into the beer garden. Thinking he is heading for the chairs at the front of the stage we’re surprised to see him dump his frame and boogie on down with the rest of the dancers, brilliant! Music really is the best tonic! We decide to join in with the dancing for a bit before saying goodbye to our new friends and going to find some food. Afterwards we watch a brilliant street band, the atmosphere is great. It's game night for the basketball team so the band is the Grizz Line drum band playing to get everyone excited for the game (obviously it didn't work on the team as they lost that game).

Sonny Mack (minus tongue)

Our new friends (and below)

How do you like your steak? Blue of course!

We go back to the house with the intention of changing and going back out but we make the mistake of lying down on the bed and falling asleep, we can’t hack it anymore. It's been a long, hot day but great fun!

New Orleans

We’ve both been really excited to go to New Orleans, we’re even taking a detour just to go there. We’ve had a bit of a panic the last week as we couldn’t find anywhere to stay, no couchsurfers, no Airbnb and no motels, what’s going on?! Finally we get an email from a fellow couchsurfer who tells us that it’s Jazz Festival weekend so we’ll struggle to find somewhere, doh! It’s an equal mix of excitement for the festival and panic at the thought of not having anywhere to stay. We up our search until couchsurfer Louis and a last minute cancellation come to our rescue, hurray! We still have two days without accommodation but who cares, we’re going to a Jazz fest in New Orleans!

We pack our stuff up and nip to Dunkin’ Donuts for breakfast (It’s America, it’s allowed). We weren’t expecting the utter panic that crept across the server’s face when we asked for a cup of tea. She silently walks over to her colleague and whispers “How do I make a cup of tea?” – Whattt?!!! He advises her to get a cup, put in a teabag and fill it with hot water. We know sometimes it’s hard to get everything right in a new job but c’mon! James finally gets a haircut and no longer resembles Cousin It then we drive through a few states to our next destination.

Two people tackled it and it still took 5 hours ;)

Because he's worth it.

Sweet home Alabama

Woohooooo!

We drive to New Orleans with no problems, the first stop is the arena to get some festival tickets, yey! It’s an open tickets so we still have the choice of headliners – Robert Plant or Eric Clapton? Getting near our host’s house we spot a parking space right near where we are staying which is a bonus as these streets are right near the festival and it’s usually impossible to find one. As James begins to park we hear a scrape and a pop, uh oh! James has popped the tyre on the pavement. After phoning the hire company we decide to sort it out in the morning, we’ve been driving for ages and we need a rest, plus we don’t want to lose the parking space. As we’re unpacking the Tablet falls to the ground and gains a brand new crack across the screen (it wasn’t Christine’s fault, honest! Ahem) sighhh. 

We decide to pretend it never happened and go to explore the area. Our host was lucky enough to get to the Jazz festival for the whole weekend so we’ll be meeting him later, for now we stroll around and instantly fall in love with New Orleans. There are lots of people sat on their porches watching the world go by, playing games or listening to music. It’s a really friendly atmosphere and we’re tempted to ask two elderly gentlemen if we can join them. We know we are near to the festival so we go for a wander in that direction and spot a bar with lots of festival goers enjoying the sun. We get a beer and soak up the atmosphere. After a little more wandering around it’s nearly time to meet our host Louis so we find a cool bar to settle in and let Louis know where we are. While we’re waiting a woman comes in dressed as a banana. At least she’s having fun eh?

James and our host Louis outside his gorgeous "Shotgun House"

 Louis meets us in the bar with a big grin on his face, it looks like the first day of the festival was a huge success. He tells us all about it and then offers to take us to a nearby café which apparently has the best Po’Boy sandwiches in New Orleans. When we get there we have a difficult decision to make, do we go for standard beef or chicken or be a bit adventurous? Knowing how fussy Christine can be with meat we obviously go for the Alligator Sausage Po’Boy which is absolutely gorgeous! If you’re ever in the area, give it a go! We talk the night away and get excited about the festival tomorrow (Robert Plant it is!).

The alligator sausages have definitely got bite

Getting the boring stuff out of the way first we exchange hire cars and then make our way to the festival. Louis is already there but we promised to meet up later. The first act we see is Ironing board Sam who has a crazy keyboard and a drummer with fire lit drumsticks, raghhh! This is going to be an awesome festival.

Ironing Board Sam

Ey mate! Your sticks are on fire!

  We meet up with Louis and see a few more bands with him before separating to see a band that has caught James' eye. After some traditional food of Black Beans and Rice we see more bands before making our way to the main stage to see Robert Plant. On the way we hear a lovely voice and soothing saxophone so stop to listen. It’s an elderly band and they’re from England, ooh it’s nice to hear that accent.

Treme Brass Band

Excited faces

Were they trying to make up the numbers?

New Wave Brass Band

Walter Cook & Creole Wild West Mardi Gras Indians

Walter Cook & Creole Wild West Mardi Gras Indians

Walter Cook & Creole Wild West Mardi Gras Indians

Bob Wilber and the Crescent City Cats (The English lot)

 

We stay for their set before being attacked by alligators (revenge for the po’boy we suppose) and finding a spot to watch Robert Plant. As predicted he is brilliant and we have a lot of fun dancing away, listening to a woman demand "Star-a-why!" and fighting off thirsty people who have their eyes on our beers, gerrrroff! The festival is all too soon over and we make our way out with huge smiles on our faces.

But you taste so good in bread!

You show him James!

Robert Plant and the Sensational Space Shifters

Even though the festival has ended it doesn’t mean the party has. We soon come across a jazz street party with a full band playing and vodka shots being handed around, why not eh? We join in the party and everyone is dancing away, suddenly we hear another band in the distance. They come down the street and stop for an impromptu Jazz Off, brilliant! Louis already had plans tonight so we aim for a diner that he recommended, it was certainly popular and we could see why, the food was absolutely gorgeous. Can we stay in New Orleans for another week please? Back at the house we chat with Louis about the festival and get green eyes when he talks about seeing Eric Clapton tomorrow, we want to go. 

 

An awesome street party

Every night should end like this

Unfortunately we have to leave Louis today as two Canadian girls are coming to stay, it’s a shame as we’ve really enjoyed staying here and Louis has been a fabulous host. We’ve managed to find an Airbnb host to stay with tonight so make our way across the city to meet Ryan. When he spots us walking down the street he shouts “Oh my god, Airbnb didn’t tell me you’d be so cute!” His voice and mannerisms remind Christine of Mr Chow in The Hangover heehee! He shows us where we will be sleeping but then has to rush off for lunch with his friends. 

After waiting a while for the streetcar we decide to start walking instead when we overhear someone say that the part of the line we were waiting at wasn’t running, doh! We find the right stop and get on the rickety wooden streetcar, it’s a lot of fun and Christine enjoys the mini concert put on by the little girl behind her. 

We’ve been told that the French Quarter is the nicest part of New Orleans so we have a walk round and take in the sights of the beautiful buildings, the artist stalls and the green gardens that it has to offer. We stop for food in a diner called NOLA Grill, it doesn’t look that impressive from the outside but inside it’s a typical diner with traditional Louisiana food and friendly staff, we loved it!

 

The Grill (Formally Camellia Grill)

The market is the next stop and we spend a bit of time browsing the stalls which all seem to be selling voodoo dolls. We hear some jazz being played inside a bar so we stop for a drink and listen to them finish their set. We’re quite happy until we realise that they’re on a loop and are repeating songs, bad form! Walking home we see a parade go past (we don’t know what it’s for but it’s New Orleans so who cares) and manage to bag ourselves some Mardi Gras beads.

They're everywhere and so pretty.

Parade because we can.

After freshening up and getting changed back at the house we go back into town and find the famous Bourbon Street which has been taken over by tourists, neon signs and strip clubs (men and women so at least there’s something for everyone). We spot an old man talking through a window... “I love ya, heehee, I do, I do, I love ya! Heehee” when we glance over his shoulder to see who he is talking to it's a group of young girls looking slightly amused but also scared, we don’t blame them! We spend the night nipping in and out of bars with live bands and have a break by going to the night market. Back to the bars we are picked up by two very drunk but happy blokes “HEY YOU'RE ENGLISH, COME WITH US!!” “To where?” “WE DON’T KNOW BUT IT’LL BE FUN!!” Why not eh? After walking round in circles for a bit we give up and find a bar of our own. At 3am we finally call it a night and head back to Ryan’s. He’s still up and we chat for a bit before he goes for a shower and asks us to join him. We're 60% sure that he's joking...we wish we were still at Louis’ house! We still don’t know where we’re staying tomorrow but Ryan has said he’ll sort something out. 

Shout out to Christine's homie Chris!

At least we got a picture of one band tonight.

The next morning we get up and Ryan is still in bed, it’s weird as he said he was in work at 9 but he’s still in bed by the time we leave at 10.30. He hasn’t mentioned anything about tonight either so we get on Airbnb and find an emergency place to stay not so far from Louis’ which is good as we plan to meet him tonight for a pub quiz. 

We get the street car to the centre and go to Ihop for breakfast, mmm pancakes! On the way out we see a guy dressed in bin bag trousers surrounded by police but he doesn’t seem to be doing anything wrong, he’s just eating McDonald’s fries and ignoring all the stares. We get the bus to Magazine street which is in the garden district, there are lots of pretty buildings and shops but there doesn’t seem to be much else. James suddenly stops and says "Disco Ovaries? Is that a woman only shop?", errm no, it's actually called Discoveries. Silly James. Back in the centre we spot the House of Blues and James has his picture taken with some familiar faces.

Can you see where James went wrong?

 We know that our next host lives near a park so we decide to check in and go for a picnic in the park. On the way to the shop to buy food for the picnic Christine hears a man shouting some nonsense but when she looks he’s talking to himself so she decides to stay clear of him. James obviously didn’t have the same idea and when the bloke gets close to James he stops to ask him what he’s saying, uh-oh! The guy is very aggressive and says to James “Listen man, I know you don’t like the song but you and all the other people can just f*** off back to where you came from! I am not a violent person but I will react and I am not a killer but I will represent!” errrrrrmmmm….let’s get a move on shall we. After giving 'aggressive song man' the slip we find a nice spot in the park where we can watch the turtles and birds while eating our picnic.

There were three different sized turtles lined up on the tree like babuska dolls but we scared them off

 After a gentle stroll it’s time to head to Finn McCools where we are meeting Louis for the pub quiz. Louis has a full team so it’s time to go it alone, surely we can get a respectable score? When we realise that we’re not going to get anywhere we decide to put silly answer which seems to please the quiz master and we get some half scores for incorrect answers as well as a free pint each for a clever answer by James, waheey! It’s no surprise that we came last but we’re not sad because we won a bag of potatoes and some crisps! Anyone who travels on a budget knows that any free food is a mega bonus. Thanks Finn McCools! Louis congratulates (?) us and offers us a lift home, what a lovely fella!

Stupid English or clever English?

Yey! Tayto's!