So, we left Austin Texas Monday afternoon at about 1 PM. The Garmin GPS said we’d be due to arrive in New Orleans around 10:30 PM or so. We couldn’t wait.
We’re headed to Mardi Gras baby! The excitement was rich in the air and Mary J was stoked with gas, beer and food. And Webber of course. And Couch Surfing Ori too.
While driving East we really had no clue where we’d stay or park our RV’s. The city was in such party mode right now, there was gridlock everywhere. We assumed we’d have to park a few miles out of town and figure out a way in. All the RV parks had been booked solid for weeks at $179 a night or higher. We had one prayer and that was Chad Mac may let us park at his place a few miles away.
Chad to the rescue. He said we could park at his place. However, he had something better up his sleeve. He tapped Rudy the concierge at the Ritz Carlton and let him work his magic. While cruising through Baton Rouge I got a call on my cell… “Hi this is Rudy from the Ritz Carlton. I have 2 RV parking spots right in the French Quarter for you guys.”
OMG! Rudy, you are the man! Thanks so much. And thanks Chad for being on the ball.
The RV spot was literally just blocks from Bourbon Street. We were smack dab in the middle of the madness. We couldn’t have asked for anything better! Of course it comes with a pretty price as well, but it was worth it.
So, was Fat Tuesday all it’s cracked up to be? I’d say Yes and No. Hear me out.
I had two separate experiences at Mardi Gras. The first was the wild partying, boozing, naked boobies, standing around like a herd of cattle on Bourbon and
During the day of Fat Tuesday I took my Macbook and Verizon Mifi card down to Bourbon street and broadcasted the madness for about an hour. People were loving it. (Especially the abundance of titties that were shown live). Oh crap, that doesn’t make me a porn producer does it? I need to go wash my hands.
Speaking of washing, I think I need to go clean my shoes too. The streets of the French Quarter are so disgusting. You always have to be careful where you are walking. One mis-step and you’ll be ankle deep in the nastiest mud puddle in existence. I pray that the streets are much cleaner today. In fact, I’m excited to see the French Quarter without all the craziness. I’ll probably take a nice bike ride around today and shoot some footage.
The second experience I had with Mardi Gras was a lot more family friendly. And to be honest, 10 times more enjoyable.
It involved hanging on the sidelines of the parades and watching the residents have so much fun. The action started early. Music was blaring at 8:00 AM and the city of New Orleans was ready to party.
People here are so excited and thankful because
In my experience, the day time party and parades were a lot more fun than drinking on Bourbon street. Maybe I’m getting old.
I personally liked seeing the families and parade action more then the drunken booze fest. Of course I was still pounding Red Stripes at 10:00 AM, but it was much more pleasant vibe.
Recently I spoke with a guy named Tom Martin. Tom has a cool website called… My Mardi Gras Experience. You can see his site at… www.mymardigrasexperience.com .
Tom’s mission with this site is to change the perception of Mardi Gras and give people a glimpse into everything that is offered beyond the wild partying and boozing of Bourbon Street. Most people really don’t know this side of Mardi Gras because they usually only hear about the drunken crazyness and naked titties everywhere.
Trust me, it’s way deeper then that. And thanks to Tom for showing that side.
Well, I’m off to do some catch up work, eat a healthy breakfast and peruse the city. If yesterday was Fat Tuesday, I feel like today is Obese Wednesday.
I need a smoothie.
Great stuff mate – Can’t wait to bring some Gypsy jazz to that city one of these days –
smoothies all ’round,
robin
Would love you to see ya here. I think the town would really dig your stuff.
I’ve only been once, but besides the drunken nakedness, one of the things I remember most is walking through the piles of trash to grab my next hand grenade or hurricane. Lets just say my shoes were a casualty of Mardi Gras and did not make it back on the same flight as me.
Enjoy the rest of your trip!
Yeah, you have to keep a close eye out on just about every step. Might need to get a pressure washer for my kicks.
I am thrilled that my 1st Mardi Gras was spent with you and Randy. Definitely cool and fun people to go to an epic event with. I love the different way we experience everything. Your view on the joy of the people, and the joy the superbowl victory has brought them is something that didn’t really cross my mind while I was at the parade. Granted, I didn’t even know the Saints won the SuperBowl 🙂
I saw it as a day of joy for the community– a week of partying where they get to forget about their troubles, and come together for celebration. I know there are ways for people to get involved– building the floats, getting the costumes, arranging who’s going to do what… the logistics have to be insane on such a large event.
The titties were definitely nice. I didn’t see as many as I thought I would… though, I can’t remember the entire evening.
To me, it does feel like the event was about drinking, and costumes, and beads. Though, remembering the faces of everyone there, I’d say it’s all about Joy. There was an energy in the air that you could totally feel. Mischief, freedom, and happiness. I really enjoyed watching the people whom were new to Mardi Gras (like us)– they were just taking everything in, and so excited.
Thinking about it now, it’s awesome when people have a reason to celebrate, to enjoy themselves… especially since most people don’t live like we do… So Mardi Gras is a huge deal for them, rather than just another interesting and fun day or two.
I look forward to watching the videos, and remembering what happened 🙂
Super fun hanging with Ori. He’s almost crazy. Wait, he’s totally crazy. Sure makes it much more interesting then hanging out with Ned Flanders.
Jason,
Thanks for the shout out… glad you guys got to catch “the other side” of Mardi Gras. Wish we could have hooked up but putting on MyMardiGrasExperience was a killer time suck — but in a good way.
Maybe next year?
Tom Martin
@TomMartin on Twitter
Sounds like a blast…totally adding this to my Bucket list!
Definitely, something I’ve been wanting to do sometime. What is the RV camping scene like from place to place? A bunch of retirees or is there a younger crowd as well?
Ok, Mofo, I hear you talk about waves. You should add to your bucket list a trip to the Big Island and get smack inside a tube at Pipeline. That will show me how big your cohones(balls)are.If you ever decide to go for it let me know, I can probably meet you there. Make a comment about this on your next video. Take care…
Hey dude,
I have no interest in getting barreled at Pipeline. I like to relax and chill when I surf, not worry about whether or not I’m going to live. Too heavy for this kid. Also, Pipeline is not on the Big Island, it’s on Oahu.
Getting old is only in our mind.
Age never prevented people from doing things:
http://www.whatwasdone.com/
just reading what others have to say about my favorite holiday. This was my first year to ride in a parade and it was fantastic. What most tourists don’t understand is what goes into making the parades happen. The riders pay hundreds to thousands of dollars to ride. Then we pay thousands to have things to throw to the paradegoers. We get together year around and have events where we do have fun and build friendships but we also do service work. Each Krewe has different organizations we raise money for and have service days for. Truly, it becomes as big of a part of your life as you want it to be. We have formal balls and informal parties. Shopping all year for throws and then in one day giving them all up is alot of fun. And there are thousands of people who come into New Orleans spend thousands for rooms, food and activities. And do so happily with the hope we make Mardi Gras a great experience for the locals and the newbies.