Four adults traveling together are bound to have some differences. Two of us are early risers, while two are not. One needed to wear a jacket  for warmth in the Airbnb  because it was difficult to regulate the air conditioning, while the others were comfortable in short sleeves. All four of us were adjusting to the change in time zones, but  three of us had come from the northeast, and one from the west. Nonetheless, at about 10 a.m. all four of us began getting ready for the day, and at 11, we took an Uber to Cafe du Monde for beignets.

In our experience, zeppole are deep fried balls of dough that are placed in a paper bag  to which lots of powdered sugar is added. You shake the bag  so that the zeppole are all thoroughly coated with powdered sugar, and then eat them while they are hot. Beignets are very similar, except that the dough includes yeast, and they are served on a plate with lots of powdered sugar on top. Very few people leave New Orleans without having eaten beignets. After consuming ours, we  decided to walk through the neighborhood, which  was the French Quarter.  When we approached the Mississippi River,  we realized that seeing it was a first for all  four of us. Along the way, we encountered a horse whose hooves had been painted.

We decided to go back to M.S. Rau, the antiques shop  in the French Quarter that had been closed on Sunday. We were warmly welcomed by the staff, who encouraged us to see everything on all three floors. We discovered that we were inside  “a world-renowned, family-run gallery, founded in 1912, that offers a vast collection of museum-quality fine art, rare 18th- and 19th-century antiques, and exquisite jewelry, all available for purchase in a sprawling 40,000-square-foot showroom often described as a ‘museum with price tags’.” In fact, everything was displayed more beautifully there than  the art  we have seen in many museums. We noticed that one of the artists whose works were being displayed  was Claude Pissarro. I asked if Claude was related to the impressionist artist Camille Pissarro, and I was told that Claude was his grandson. I explained that our surname is Pisarro, but unfortunately, we are not related to Camille.

We didn’t get to  to the third floor because everyone was very hungry. The staff recommenced a nearby restaurant called Napoleon House. There we all enjoyed typical New Orleans foods:  Nicholas ordered rice and beans, Nick and Carla chose muffuletta salad, and I, a traditional muffuletta sandwich. My muffuletta contained beef, pork, and pastrami, with an olive salad, all on a delicious quarter of a round French-like bread loaf. Afte our meal,  we needed another walk. We reach Kilwin’s, a sweet shop that has several branches throughout the country. Nick and I had previously enjoyed their ice cream in Sarasota and Port Jefferson Station. Nicholas chose lemon sorbet, Carla, chocolate peanut butter, Nick, something called “Tracks” that seemed very similar to chocolate peanut butter. My choice was lemon meringue pie. So good!

We returned to the Airbnb for a rest, and eventually, it was time for dinner. We chose a restaurant that has a distillery inside it, called, appropriately,  Lula Restaurant and Distillery. Nick chose blackened redfish, Carla, shrimp boil,  Nicholas, spicy shrimp boil, and I ordered shrimp and grits. What a day of incredible food we had!

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