---
Got up before 4 for a 6 a.m. flight. The airport was awash with foreign speaking students all carrying science fair projects, so security was slower than it should've been that early in the morning.
I flew United Express all the way, so the flights were on smallish jets, especially the first leg.
Things you don't want to hear your flight attendant say: "Could you please move to the last row, just for takeoff?"
The connection was through Dulles, an airport I'd never flown into before. Saw a few interesting aircraft, including an old Lockheed Constellation off in a corner, apparently undergoing restoration or something.
Just after takeoff, the guy in front of me decided to recline his seat, just as I was leaning forward to grab something from my briefcase, clopping me in his head. Inconsiderate asshole. His wife saw it from her seat, and didn't bother to apologize. And he kept his seat reclined all the way to NOLA. I hate people. Why do I have to put up with some jerk deciding his comfort is far more important than mine, and therefore that makes it okay to take away some of what little space the airline has deigned to give me. Fucker.
---
I knew Jon B. and FAQ Girl were getting to the airport about the same time I was, so once I got my bags, I went over to the carousel for their flight to wait for them. They showed up about a minute later. They got their luggage, and we headed for the shuttle into town. The rooms weren't ready yet, so we stored the bags, and headed off for some lunch and Pimms Cups at Napoleon House. After lunch we hooked up with
pix_kristin and noisedesign, and toured the Pharmacy Museum, where we saw lots of old surgical instruments. Among them were some trephination drills, which look remarkably like modern hole saws. There was also a jar of live leeches. You can get a t-shirt there that says "I'm a sucker for leeches." Heh.After that we declared a beignet break, so we headed over to the Cafe du Monde across from Jackson Square. Raindrops started falling just as we got there, and they quickly became a serious downpour, complete with thunder. Fortunately, the tables at the Cafe are under cover, although the staff had to lower the tent flaps along the sides of the Cafe once it really started coming down. We just hung out, getting powdered sugar on ourselves until the storm passed, and then we walked back to the hotel for a round of naps.
---
By dinner time,
nestra, brendalu, debetesse, Tom K, and Toddson had arrived. We ate at Cafe Pontalba on Jackson Square. After dinner, a group of us took a vampire tour of the French Quarter. The tour was interesting, but long. We took a break halfway through the tour at a very old haunted bar, but I was beat, so I blew the rest of the tour off and went back to the hotel.---
The hotel has character, I'll give it that. It seems to be run sort of like the hotel equivalent to WKRP in Cincinnati. I mean that in a good way, because the staff seems extremely helpful, if a little discombobulated. My room has a jacuzzi, which is neat, but doesn't really make up for the lack of wireless.
---
The weather has been fine. It's hot (eighties) and humid, especially after the storm, but it's not nearly as bad as DC was last year. Last evening was very pleasant
Pictures will get posted at some point. I didn't take any yesterday, mostly because the camera was in my luggage, locked safely away while my room was being readied.
