Jill and I did not have class on Monday so we started the day stitching on our Saturday/Sunday projects, cleaning up some  “spaghetti”. Then we started our city tour by picking up the Hop on/Hop off bus outside our hotel.

After traveling through the Arts District and past the WW II Museum, our first hop off was in the Garden District.  There we had a wonderful walking tour of the beautiful mansions with their extensive gardens .   Some of them are owned by celebrities like John Goodman and Sandra Bullock.  Others have been in the same family for generations.  All exterior renovations are strictly regulated to maintain the character of the District.

We then toured a cemetery .  Because of the high water table, burials are in crypts above ground.  Some  are very elaborate and landscaped.  It felt like a city!

After getting back on the bus, we traveled past the warehouses that store the Mardi Gras floats.  Some door were open so we could peek in. Wow!

Then on to the  French Quarter where I had my first Hurricane in the French Market.  Lunch was a shared half muffaletta – similar to a Stromboli but with an olive spread inside. We walked a few blocks to the Quarter Point, a needlepoint and knitting shop.  Lovely painted canvases were offered as well as yarns like I have never seen.  They said that the French Quarter location allows them to offer more unusual yarns!

After a walk through the Quarter, we came back hot and tired but happy to  have gotten a taste of the city.

Below is my progress on Florida Palm.  Who knows what today will bring!