Nudity, Interesting Trees, and Lentils in New Orleans.

Who would drop dried lentils by the handful in out-of-the-way places in New Orleans? One never knows what one will find in New Orleans, even in the most neglected and off-the-tourist-radar parts of this wonderful city we call home.

Was it voodoo? That is always the first question in New Orleans, at least from people who don’t live here. If you don’t live in New Orleans, you think voodoo is everywhere. It is, but not in the ways you see on TV or in movies.

There are no zombies in New Orleans that I know of, except for Rev. Zombie’s Voodoo Shop, in the French Quarter. They don’t seem to have a working website so I can only refer you to their 3.5-star rating on TripAdvisor. I’ve been there. I wasn’t impressed. I think I bought a hematite ring there, once, eight years ago.

Here is a video of my walk through a neglected part of City Park today. If you wonder why my blog posts meander from topic to topic, watch the whole thing. This is how I think. I am easily distracted but I always return the topic on hand after a few minor digressions. This is what makes me such good company at breakfast. I never know what you are going to ask and you’ll never know how I’m going to answer. I love New Orleans.

If you want to look over La Belle Esplanade’s TripAdvisor page, HERE IT IS. I have no control over the fact that TripAdvisor has ranked La Belle the #1 place to stay in New Orleans since April 2014. Long may that flag wave. This is a professional operation.

Who Dat shirt — Who dat say dey gonna beat dem Saints? A shirt in a window on N. Broad Avenue, three blocks from our address.

Lentils have been around forever. Roman armies ate them. That should tell you something.

Lentils aren’t native to Louisiana and you won’t see any lentil étouffée on any menu. Too bad. I love lentil soup. I love split pea soup, too, but, then, I’m originally from New England. In New England, we love food that doesn’t taste like much. In New Orleans, every dish is a punch on the palette. New Orleans is all about savory flavor.

I suspect that the person who dropped the lentils in the woods did so because he or she didn’t like them. They didn’t know how to cook them. Nothing stays dry in New Orleans. Everything is very, very wet. I’ll be back in a month to see if these lentils have sprouted. Everything grows in New Orleans to heroic proportions.

Have a great New Orleans day, today! See you tomorrow.

You have two friends on Esplanade Avenue in New Orleans. Don’t forget that.

–La Belle Esplanade