I've had dozens of cherishable moments living in New Orleans. They happen all the time...how can they not in a place where a parade or a song can spring up at any time, for any reason at all? This summer is a precious and tense time, because we're losing animals, coastline, food, and traditions. We're celebrating everything and keeping one eye on the weather channel.
The past few weeks have been filled with marvels for me. Truly, it's way too hot to do anything outside or even go anywhere, but we keep doing and going, and we keep getting rewarded for it. For instance, the New Orleans Oyster Festival, which was held June 5-6 in the French Quarter. We went on Sunday afternoon, after the rain cooled the air down. And it was actually pleasant--so pleasant that we decided to find something fun to do in the Quarter after the festival shut down at 6:00 p.m. More on that in a minute. First, the food:
Turtle soup from the Court of Two Sisters. Turtle soup is delicious. I know it sounds bizarre to some folks, but trust me--it tastes like really really rich chili.
Char-grilled oysters from Oceana. Think Drago's but with more cheese and spice.
Cochon de lait jambalaya from Luke.
Fried oyster po-boy from Stanley, dressed with delicious coleslaw.
It's quite possible that the fried oyster po-boy pictured here is the last one that I will eat for a long time. You can still find some here and there, but they're disappearing quickly because of the increased prices. When people want an oyster po-boy, they usually have a limit on what they're willing to spend, so places like Parkway aren't even offering them. Charlie's Seafood, in Harahan, still offers their fried oyster platter, for instance, but you have to ask for it, because the price caused them to take it off the menu.
Back to the story: wandering around near Jackson Square, we heard a voice over a loud speaker. It was getting closer, and it was saying Hail Marys. Then the voice turned the corner onto our street, and we fell in line with a few other people who happened to be passing. It was the procession of Corpus Christi, the feast honoring the holy body of Christ, the Eucharist, the Last Supper. We followed them into St. Louis Cathedral and sat for mass and responded when the cantor sang, "Taste and see the glory of the Lord."
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Last Monday, an electrical storm in the afternoon. Then a rainbow, huge, vivid, long-lasting, sparkling with microscopic reflective dust particles. Or were they angels? This rainbow would not quit--one end would melt slightly into a cloud, then the cloud would pass and the color would come back even stronger. I saw colors in between the colors. Clouds that passed behind it were tinted to pastels, as if red or orange cellophane sheets were being dangled in front of them. My neck was stiff the next day from staring at it.
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Yesterday, a celebratory lunch at Brennan's, one of the most revered and cherished restaurants in the French Quarter. This is the place that invented Bananas Foster--halved bananas sauteed with butter, brown sugar, cinnamon, and banana liqueur, then flamed with white rum and served over vanilla ice cream. Servers at Brennan's prepare this tableside, and know exactly when you should hit the shutter on your camera to get the best photo. Diamonds in the fire! I'll leave you with this, and I'll see you as soon as you can get here:
