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11.28.2010
Happy Thanksgiving ya'll!I hope all of you had a wonderful holiday.This year mom and I celebrated at The Commander's Palace in the Garden District of New Orleans - thanks to everyone who recommended this fabulous restaurant.While I missed everyone at home and the traditions that go with them, it felt really good to have Mom there with me making new memories for a week's break from AmeriCorps.
One such memory has to be trying turtle soup for the first time as an appetizer to my turkey dinner.I have to admit, I was skeptical up until the very first spoonful.And then I was pleasantly surprised to find a mellow tomato flavor accompanying diced bits of vegetables and…turtle.Here's the thing, while some may say that alligator tastes like chicken (and I sure do love alligator sausage), you can definitely tell you're eating reptile when you have turtle soup.It's not a bad flavor…just different.I finished the bowl but I was glad when the more recognizable dishes arrived.That being said, The Commander's Palace did spice up the main course with New Orleans style - pecans and brown sugar in the mashed sweet potatoes, bacon-cooked Brussels sprouts and a Grand Marnier cranberry sauce!I was so full I was worried about even being able to walk away from the table (stagger is more like it).But the service was so impeccable, I think the waiter would have carried me out to the cab if I had so much as mentioned it.
We spent the rest of the week doing touristy things in and around the city.I'm so grateful Mom came down to spoil me because I otherwise wouldn't have had the chance to see and do so many interesting historical things.For example, on our biggest day of sightseeing, we toured two plantations and a swamp, learning the difference between American, Creole and Cajun cultures.First we went to Oak Alley, known for the 28 symmetrically placed live oaks flanking its grand drive coming up from the Mississippi River.Planted over 250 years ago, they were the reason the man who would make it famous decided to build his wife her dream home on the property.Not only was it a uniquely beautiful setting, but it was close enough to the city for an entertaining social life while still far enough into the country so he could indulge his love for plantation life.Then we saw a plantation home just down the road but built in a completely different style than Oak Alley's greek revival white columns.This one was a one floor house raised on pilings and brightly colored with floor-to-ceiling windows and shutters.Individual in more ways than one, the property is called "Laura", named for one of the 4 women who presided over its cotton production and wine distribution businesses over several generations.In fact, in the Creole tradition, women were able to own land and even write prenups long before women in other cultures and were able to select the child best fit to run the family business, even if it wasn't their first born son.
After a lunch of crawfish etouffée and shrimp po boys, we headed over to the swamp tour given by "Captain Coyote".Due to the chilly weather, we only saw one alligator sunning itself on the banks and he didn't even really bat an eyelash at all of our cameras.But never fear - Captain Coyote had entertainment waiting in a cooler by the steering wheel in the form of a snapping turtle and two baby alligators that we were allowed to hold!!He himself regaled us with stories about growing up in the bayou, about his wife of 42 years and about how the swamps had changed ecologically over the years.Overall - a crazy, funny, amazing experience.
Well as the saying goes, all good things must come to an end and eventually I had to say goodbye to Mom on the sidewalk of our hotel and return to my 9th ward home on Feliciana St.After starting my days with lunch at Café Beignet, riding streetcars and always finding some time for shopping, it was quite a shock to see the discrepancies in my two lifestyles.Should I feel guilty for being indulged over the holiday?Should I let my team make me feel like I had missed out on bonding and inside jokes that could only come from sharing time away from family?Or should I be grateful for having the gift of a balanced life?And for the generosity of my mother whom I love spending time with?Haven't we both worked hard and aren't we both giving back to our respective communities to earn some rest and some fun?The answers to these questions are hard to answer coming from my background (Privileged!) and education (Capitalism!) while working in my current position (Humanitarianism! Giving! Equality!)But these are questions that I've pondered long before this experience and I was motivated to join AmeriCorps in order to find my own personal truth in answer to them. And after all, aren't these ideas what Thanksgiving is all, especially if one comes out a more open and kindhearted person on the other side?
- comments
June Very nice entry, Julie. You'll have to keep pondering, because the answers to your questions aren't easy. Even at my age, I couldn't anwer them with certainty. (Just when you think you have things figured out, something happens in life that changes your perspective.) Miss you and love you! (and Happy Birthday next week!)
Lynn Hunter Dear Julie, So glad you and Mom had a ball...and a very adventuresome culinary experience! :O) Love, Lynnie (Mrs. H.) xoxoxo PS - You are an excellent writer...most enjoyable reading your blog. LH