Saturday, June 3, 2017

Highlights of the Mississippi River

Welcome back to my blog! As many of you know, I worked as a deckhand on a riverboat on the Mississippi River for two months this spring, and as promised (although a little late), I would like to share with you some of my favorite places that we visited.

Me in front of the Queen of the Mississippi

The Queen of the Mississippi docked in Memphis, seen from the back so the paddlewheel is visible.

1. New Orleans

New Orleans was our home port and it was certainly a lively place to be. My first week there I checked out Bourbon Street, and while I could not partake in the many brightly colored drinks on offer everywhere I turned (Coast Guard rules for working on a boat), it was exciting to simply soak in the atmosphere. There were lots of people, most of them tourists, and the occasional street performance to stop and enjoy. I love the style of the buildings, it's so unique and different from most other cities I've been to. It almost feels like you're stepping back in time.







In addition to Bourbon Street, I explored a few other areas, including the Riverwalk area about a mile from where we were docked. As you can guess from the name, the walkway follows the river, and has a grassy park on the opposite side. It passes by the edge of the French Quarter and has a nice view of Jackson Square along the way.

View of Jackson Square at dusk.

As you can tell from the picture it was starting to get dark, so I turned around soon after, but if I'd had more time I would have explored more. It was a nice place for a stroll.

I also got a bit more of a local perspective when I hung out with Monika, a friend of mine from high school who now lives in New Orleans. She took me to Frenchman Street, the area known for having the best jazz music, and we popped in and saw some bands play. She also introduced me to the dance style that is common in jazz bars in NOLA, which is different than any other place I've been. No one dances alone at these events, always with a partner, which means guys actually dance (often not the case at bars in other American cities).

Jazz band at d.b.a. on Frenchman Street (unfortunately so much time has passed that I don't remember the name of the band).

All in all, New Orleans was a vibrant city with a lot to offer. I know I only scratched the surface because I didn't have a lot of time off the boat, so I would love to go back when I can really explore!


2. Oak Alley



Oak Alley is the quintessential antebellum south plantation and has been the subject of many photographs and artistic renderings. And for good reason; it is beautiful! The focal point of course is the oak-lined walkway behind the house that makes it feel like you're walking through a tunnel made out of majestic branches and leaves. As an employee of the cruise line, I was able to take the tour of the house for free, and then I just wandered around admiring the property.

The only picture I took on the tour of the house, this is the view down the alley from the second floor balcony

Of course I had to take a selfie to prove I was there :P

There was a great deal to see on the property, including a cafe, gift shop, and several historical exhibits. As with all the places we stopped, I didn't have much time off the boat to explore, so I will definitely go back to Oak Alley to see more of it if I get the chance.


3. Baton Rouge

Baton Rouge is the capitol of Louisiana and had many interesting sights to see, including two capitol buildings, one old and one new. The day I got off the boat and explored, I went to see the Old Capitol Building, which is now a museum that is free to enter. I also walked aimlessly around the downtown for a bit, and stumbled upon a neat smoothie and juice bar that I meant to go back to but it turned out we didn't dock there again during my time on the boat. Right next to where we docked was the U.S.S. Kidd, a WWII Navy ship that has been turned into a museum, but I also missed out on going to that. Also nearby were a museum and events center. So, more to see in Baton Rouge too! (sensing a theme here?)

U.S.S. Kidd


View of the Old Capitol Building from the walkway to the dock. 


4. St. Francisville



I did a terrible job of taking pictures in St. Francisville, so this is the only one I have, just a picture of the road leading into town I took while I was running because the weather was absolutely gorgeous. About a mile farther down this road you reach the town, which is small but has a quaint character that I liked. I walked through some nice neighborhoods with beautiful historic houses, and stopped into several cute shops, including one called Grandmother's Buttons that was a well-known attraction for the cruise passengers. The shop sells a variety of clothing, books, trinkets, and souvenirs, and most notably, jewelry made out of vintage and antique buttons. It was fun to browse through the selection and I was a bit tempted to buy some earrings, but my frugal budget didn't allow me to.


5. Natchez, MS


Beautiful historic house I stumbled upon in Natchez

Of the small towns along our route, Natchez was my favorite. It's located at the top of a steep bank, so it's a bit of a trek up the hill to reach the downtown, but it means the view of the river from the top is great. There's also a nice park that was nice to stroll around, which I sadly neglected to take a picture of. Other than wandering around and popping into a few stores, the only thing I really did was get some tea at a cafe, but even so I really enjoyed Natchez. It was a pretty area of the river and had a nice feel to it, and best of all for an environmentalist like me, it was the only place we stopped that had recycling bins around town! Way to go Natchez for being progressive!
View of the Mississippi River from the park.

Not a very interesting picture, but it's the only one I have of downtown Natchez.


6. Memphis



St. Francisville may have been my favorite small town, but Memphis was my favorite overall. I didn't have many expectations of Memphis since I knew nothing about it other than Beale Street, but I loved it. Again, I didn't have a whole lot of time to explore, but I just really liked the vibe I got while I was walking around, and there's so much history here, both musically and politically. For Elvis fans, Graceland is a big attraction, although I wasn't able to go, and it is also the city where Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated. The hotel where he was staying when he got shot has been turned into the National Civil Rights Museum, which I walked to and looked at the outdoor portion of the exhibits.

In lieu of Graceland, I took a picture of an Elvis statue :)

National Civil Rights Museum

An attraction I was unaware of before arriving in Memphis was the Peabody Duck March. The Peabody Hotel in downtown Memphis has a group of ducks that lives there, and every morning they all march down to the lobby and spend the day swimming in the fountain, and then march back upstairs in the evening. Apparently the daily marches attract quite a crowd, and although I wasn't there at march time, I did get to see the ducks in the fountain. It was such a strange but fun juxtaposition of a fancy hotel lobby and ducks swimming in the fountain. 

Peabody ducks in the fountain

Then of course there was Beale Street, which some people described as the Bourbon Street of Memphis. I was there during the day so not much was happening, but I still enjoyed the vibe anyway and would love to go back sometime to spend time there in the evening when it gets more lively.


Very empty Beale Street at mid-day.



And the best thing I discovered about Memphis...a gluten-free, vegan bakery! For anyone who knows about my dietary restrictions, you'll know how excited I get whenever I find a place where it's easy for me to find something I can eat. This place was called Guilt-Free Pastries, and it's a small business the focuses on healthy lifestyle education and sells baked goods that go along with that goal. Everything they make is gluten-free, grain-free, dairy-free, soy-free and refined-sugar free, and then they also make a few things without eggs so they are vegan. I bought two of the vegan options, which were chocolate chip cookies and brownies made with avocado, and they were quite tasty! They also had several other types of cookies, pastries and granola. When I first walked in I wasn't sure I was in the right place because the small storefront didn't feel anything like a bakery (I'm guessing they bake everything off-site) and the decor was very simple with a small display case. But I got talking to the owner, Brandon, who was very nice and told me more about the business and how much his life improved when he started the "guilt-free" lifestyle. Now his mission is to educate others about the benefits of lifestyle and diet changes, which he does through education and selling his guilt-free goodies. I planned to go back and buy more from him the next time we docked in Memphis, but just like Baton Rouge, it turned out we didn't go back there again while I was on the boat. I'll just have to go back to Memphis sometime!

Although not every day on the boat was fun (I'm still working through some of my health issues and there were days when I was miserable), overall I had a great time working on the boat. I learned new things constantly, the job was active, and I got to travel and see new places, which to me is the perfect combination of attributes for a job to have. I loved being on the water and I worked with some great people, so even though the hours were long and the days off non-existent, it was quite enjoyable. 

Me enjoying the view from the bow after undocking from Oak Alley

I had to leave before my contract was over to come to my job at Crater Lake, so I'm hoping I can go back to a boat and finish out my remaining six weeks this fall. Who knows what will happen between now and then, since the life of a nomad like me is constantly changing, but if it works out I will definitely take the opportunity. 


Beautiful sunset over the Mississippi
It was almost a month ago now that I left the Queen of the Mississippi, and I've been at my new job at Crater Lake National Park for two weeks. It's quite a change to go from the South to the Pacific Northwest (mostly because of the 10 feet of snow on the ground when I arrived!), but I'm settling in and enjoying being out in nature again. I will write more about Crater Lake in a future post, but until then, thank you as always for following along on my adventures! 

1 comment:

  1. Thanks for the post. You visited so many beautiful places. I need to put these on my bucket list.

    ReplyDelete