The Siren Songs of N'Orleans

Man! New Orleans really sucks you in! I've spoken to so many people who have intended to stay a couple of nights and have been here two weeks, or just stayed permenantly like Rudy, the German night watchman at the hostel. He wouldn't say how many years he's been here now.

There is a house in New Orleans, they call the rising sun/
And it's been the ruin of many a poor boy/
and me/
oh lord/
I'm one

Had another amazing night out last night. Headed out with a German guy, Frank from New York, Larry (who's cycling the other way - I've become really good friends with him), and a few others, back to Frenchman street just outside the touristy French quarter. Went to the spotted cat where the Black Vipers were playing. they're basically the best jazz band in New Orleans, and new orleans is basically the birth place of jazz. they were absolutely brilliant, it was so energetic and free form. people just kept on joining in. At one point there was about 10 of them all feeding of each other and the music just kept on flowing, and the beer just kept on flowin', the people coming in and out, one girl and her friend celebrating her birthday started dancing, one of the guys I got friends with got very friendly with the girl who was dancing loads, I got chatting to the other girl for ages. She was a Sicilian-American who'd come to New Orleans to do English Lit at uni, and stayed. Anyway my time's running out on the computer and on my trip, so I'm gonna have to leave you in suspense about all my other cool times for now.

Off to see garden quarter and cemetaries where they do loads of voodoo stuff just now, see ya!
T
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