I spent the nights leading up to my departure rereading the four previous books so I would be reminded of all the subtle nuances within the plot. I "got up" at 3am to get ready to leave for the airport. "Getting up" in reality was setting down the book I was rereading because there was no sleep to be had that night. I was picked up by a friend, made the long drive to JFK, which is much nicer at that time of morning while it's still dark, I might add. I made my way through the airport, found my gate, boarded my plane and settled in for the flight. I am pretty sure the flight was full--besides the two other seats in my row; a great start. I did a little more reading and managed to sleep a little before touching down in Louisiana. I got a cab and was dropped off at the edge of the French Quarter; a video camera in hand and a bag on my back was all I needed and I was thrilled.
I spent the day exploring the quarter. Got a Po' Boy for lunch, bought a few souvenirs, relaxed in Jackson Square, and just basked in the vibe that is New Orleans. I was finally able to check into my hotel that afternoon where I rested up before heading out for a quick dinner and then a ghost and vampire tour. The tour was at night and our guide, the self-proclaimed "Scary Mary" was, well, a very un-scary old lady who took frequent swigs from a flask that none of us could tell quite where it
materialized from. But the tour was fun and showed another side of the Quarter than I hadn't seen; and if nothing else, I learned a lot of interesting history about the city. I had my first beignets from Cafe du Monde that night, and was more-than-pleasantly surprised to find that basically, a beignet is funnel cake in a different shape. Fantastic.
After finally having some time to sleep, I got up early and wandered to a cafe near the Mississippi River. I sat at the bar, chatting with Murry, the bartender, who was a Pittsburg-native and enjoyed telling me things I should see while I sympathized with him over the demanding servers he worked with. I spent my time enjoying the local band playing in the corner, people-watching, and chatting with people who were curious about all of the patches on my bag. I finally left and headed to Jackson Square where the first day's festivities were to start. The author had arranged a few activities for those who were coming to the release; and day one was a scavenger hunt through the Quarter. We were put into teams of ten. The ladies on my team and myself had a great time running through the streets trying to find the answers to our clues before our time was up. We didn't win, but considering our members came from Alabama, Northern Louisiana, Washington State, Pennsylvania, New York, Michigan, and a few other places, we think we did great; especially since the winning team had two nola locals in it. The whole point was for us to bond anyway and we certainly did that. We went out for dinner at Acme Oyster House, then wandered to the hotel where the release and signing was to occur to check everything out and hang out a bit longer. After several hours of enjoying our group's company, we parted ways for the evening. One of my group-mates was my age, and at midnight, she and I went out because I had just officially turned 23. We hung around on Bourbon Street with some of the others from the book group, and ultimately found our way to a club and enjoyed dancing until we were too tired to stay. We headed back to our hotels (making sure we each got back safe) and finally slept.
The next morning I was thrilled: my birthday! In nola! (For anyone who doesn't get the "nola" thing, it's just an acronym for New Orleans, LA). I got up and headed to Cafe du Monde. The ladies from my group had decided to have breakfast together (I told you we bonded quick). I actually had a reservation to eat at The Court of Two Sisters, a famous restaurant in the area, so I saw them for a few minutes before going my own way. My birthday breakfast was absolutely prefect. It was a buffet and my server was so excited to show me all of the things I had to try and what to mix how to eat it. Everything was great. I finally has some real southern grits! After I had eaten so much that I couldn't fit anything else, he came out with a piece of cake with a candle in it and had the band sing a nola version of "happy birthday" to me. Amazing. When I finally left there, a huge grin on my face, I met back up with the ladies and we spent a few hours shopping in the open markets, chatting, and enjoying the glorious warm weather (I was walking around in a t-shirt, knowing there was several inches of snow back home). After laying in some grass in Jackson Square, and finally finishing rereading all of the previous books, we made our way to the hotel for the book release. The line was crazy--but I blame this on the setup. We were on the second floor of the hotel; the signing room was at the end of the hall, but the rest of the hall was a normal floor--meaning rooms everywhere and very little space. The line wound its way up one
side of the hall, down the other, and wrapped back up the middle. This doesn't even count for all the people that took one look at the line and left to come back later. Two and a half hours later I finally had the book in my hands. Now the race was on: read all 600 pages before the Q and A section at noon the next day. Ready? Go!
I think I ultimately slept for an hour and a half; and I still was 150 pages shy of finishing. I got to the Q and A at noon the next day and had a blast. I was talking to this one woman who was an English professor at a university up north (although I can't remember where anymore) and we chatted about the classes I teach and other things and it was really cool. The author answered all (well most-there were some things she couldn't say or she'd ruin future books) of our questions and I just couldn't help but love the community within the room. Most of the people didn't know each other but everyone had bonded through the journey that MacKayla "Mac" Lane, the main character, had faced through these five books. Her trials, pains, joys, doubts, fears, and achievements brought people from all over the country together; I love that about good books, it's like there's some kind of magic within the pages. It pulls you in; a new world full of possibilities. After the Q and A, the man who narrates the audio books (and is apparently well know/has won awards for doing so) read us a passage from the book which was great; it was really cool watching him take on the character and make it his own. Then there was a raffle and prizes given; and just like that, it was over. I left the hotel a little sad. The excitement and anticipation and everything was all in the past now. But I still had a few hours left and I was going to make the most of them. I spent the last hours of daylight lying in the Square and reading those last 150 pages. Then I finished buying gifts for people back home and grabbed some dinner to go. I went up to the edge of the Mississippi and ate. The stars were beautiful. There was a warm breeze on my face as I watched the boats come and go through the water and listened to the sounds of people and Jazz wafting through the streets at my back. I think I sat there for hours. I didn't want to leave. I knew the moment I went back to my hotel that was it. I would
get up in the morning, catch a plane, and be gone. So I sat. And sat. And sat. There is something calm and peaceful about the mixture of all those sounds all around you. It felt like another world. When I had finally said goodbye to the Crescent City, I made my final walk through the Quarter, heading to my hotel. I packed up my things and crawled into bed.
The next morning went so fast. I was up, checked out, in a cab, at the airport, and on a plane. I remember each moment distinctively; but they came and went in the snap of a finger. Goodbye nola. It was an amazing adventure and reading the chronological events here will never do justice to what the experience was like. I tell people all the time that there is just a "vibe" about the city that I love so much, and I really don't know how else to explain it. There's just a deep-rooted feeling of peace, excitement, anticipation, and adventure all wrapped up in that place for me. There's a history and a culture that will not be ignored; it seeps into your pores. The people are so friendly, nothing like the northeast. Even this doesn't do justice to the city; it's barely even a start. But I will get back there someday; and when that finally happens I will take another shot at explaining the magic that is New Orleans.
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