Cajun Country

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Except I don't recall any monkeys in the Louisiana bayous. But then we had to walk over Monkey Hill to get the reptiles. Well I guess we didn't "have" to. Could have gone another way, but what the hay. It got us to where we were headed. And we spent a good deal of time eyeing the creepy crawlies.

Lions and Tigers and Bears?

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Okay, plenty of tigers and wild cats, but I don't recall seeing a lion (except a statue) or bear (Smoky was there) anywhere at all. And yes, Pan walked right past the store without buying a thing. Note to self: this was the first time we used a GPS. And a good thing too, as several of the roads on the map directions we had were closed off.

Audubon Zoo

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As many times as Pan and I have gone to New Orleans, 2003 was the one and only time we managed to visit the zoo. Thank goodness the rain that had plagued us to begin with cleared up and we were able to enjoy walking through the exhibits. I really enjoyed seeing the two white tigers. They are so beautiful.

Spreadable

I'm going to toot Yin's horn. I just love her travel page templates. You can place tons of photos and still have plenty of room for journaling, title and accents. So all you travel scrappers you need to head over to her store.. Yin Designs, for some outstanding templates and inspiration.

Conference party

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No Pan didn't get a part in the fashion show. It's just that our table was upstairs on the balcony overlooking the stage and he was standing there to get a better look. We had a lot of fun. Maybe a little bit too much, LOL. I can't remember if it was being held at the Metropolitan or Republic New Orleans. But they are both very close to one another. Or may it was neither. If any of you recognize the place, would you be kind enough to let me know?

Mobility

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As I am sure you are aware, most of our travels, trips, etc., take place because Pan is attending developer conferences and I just tag along for my vacation. This trip was no different and it was also a time when they were still holding dinners or parties to celebrate and this one was a real hoot. Just seeing all those beautiful, geeky people parading down the runway, brought a smile and quite a few laughs. I loved seeing those guys try to do the song "YMCA" and what is with the giant L and A. Lower Alabama? Los Angeles? Well no...it's Louisiana.

Where there's smoke...

     I've got a confession. It's summer and that means the grands will be visiting or already have for a while and will be back. So I'm posting a wee bit ahead of time. Like 2 weeks.....

     I probably wouldn't have said anything except for the fact that I am writing this at 2:30 in the morning. You see, Pan woke me up at 11:30 to ask if I smelled anything. Groggily, I said no and turned over to head back to sleep when suddenly I could... Something was burning. Surprisingly we didn't panic but very calmly walked through the house...nothing. Open the garage door and before I knew it Pan was poking his head up in the attic...nothing.

     We both get dressed and walk aside. The whole neighborhood is blanketed in smoke. Pan grabs my keys and does a drive-through around the neighborhood...nothing. But something is definitely burning and it is definitely wood.

     There are woods across the street from the neighborhood and Pan feels like maybe someone was camping out and a fire got out of hand (but I haven't heard any firetrucks). I feel like maybe the road crew is burning brush where they are working on the by-pass. Guess we will find out later today (almost said tomorrow, lol).

     But in the meantime, I can still smell it and ain't no way I'm going back to sleep in the off-chance Pan is right. And as far as the pages go, I thought it would be nice to see those that cut pictures in half how they would actually look together in a book.

Last aquarium picture for a while...Not

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I'm still debating on whether to have the travel book printed at 12x12 or 8x8. Guess I will have time to figure it out since I'm only up to 2003, huh? Oh, I need to look for the book on the Faberge eggs. Pan took me to see them when they were in New Orleans, but you couldn't take pictures inside. So I would like to scan a few from the book we bought to put on a page. They were gorgeous and I'm glad we got to go.

And yet even more

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I had such a good time traipsing through the building though to be honest I was somewhat surprised how how bland the aquariums were. Having been to a number of them and having one where I live, I really expected more I guess. I bet it is really spruced up now though.

More on the Aquarium

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Pictures are cool, but I wish I remember what type of fish(?) that is over by the stingray picture is. Looks like it has stubby little legs, but it could have been just a distortion because of the water and the angle I was taking the picture at, to try and not get a glare. If you know though, please leave it in the comments....

Aquarium of the Americas

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No trip to New Orleans would be complete without a stop at the Aquarium of the Americas. Though I was looking at the recent website and it appears to have changed a good deal since 2003. They still have the rainforest though, which is where these two fellows were residing.

CCB, better known as...

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Crescent City Brewery. Went there for lunch with Pan and loved, loved, loved, the interior. Pictures are dark but then it was dark inside. I can't remember what the type of painting they did on the wall is called, but it really looked awesome. And the beer being brewed right there. Wow. Pan really enjoyed himself, with the beer and with his new smart phone.

New Orleans 2003 style

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Back to working on some travel pages for a scrapbook that will one of these days be printed. Middle of March, 2003, found us back in New Orleans for a Mobility Conference that Pan was attending. It was really dreary the first day that I had to take it in all alone but since most of it was spent inside, it wasn't that big of a deal. Just had to make sure that I didn't get soaked making my way back to the hotel.

Sweet Home Alabama Part 2

Seems everywhere we went this travel, there was something on fire or a burning of some kind or another. More trees and who doesn't remember the Piggly Wiggly pig from days gone by. Judging by the state of the store sign (which you can't see), he won't be there much longer either.

Sweet home Alabama part 1

Long stretches of barren roads, solitary trees in the distance, old buildings dotting the countryside and churches everywhere you look.

Atlanta Part 4

Finally, I managed to have camera in hand while passing by the Atlanta airport to grab a couple of pictures of planes taking off nearly over our heads.

Atlanta Part 3

Atlanta Part 2

Leaving the mountains behind and heading into the lunchtime traffic in Atlanta.

Atlanta Part 1

I just love the Chick-fil-A signs when we pass through Atlanta.

Down the Mountain Part 8

Some of the houses we passed were so tucked away. To be honest though I'm not sure I would want to live in a house on the side of the cliff as some of these are. Top of the mountain, okay.

Down the Moutain Part 7

Down the Mountain Part 6

Shadows, more small towns and my favorite... Willow Trees

Down the Mountain Part 5

Lots of burning going on while we were traveling this day.