Suzy and I visited the Big Easy last weekend. I was using that handle for NOLA and so many kids (20 year olds) didn’t know what the big easy was! We visited to play in the National Community Band sponsored by the Sousa Foundation. I played alto sax and Suzy played clarinet.

We used miles off our credit card to pay for the plane trip and staying at the Ritz Carlton hotel. So all we paid for was food and the Trolley.

     Ritz Carlton Hotel                                             Trolley on St. Charles Str.                      Exclusive gated community

The weather was between 95 to 100 and very humid. But the people were nice and the food excellent. And the sites were very interesting although we stayed out of the troubled and Katrina-damaged areas:

   Loyola University                                  Campus Greenery                                Alternative transportation

The band was stellar and of the five alto saxes, I was the slug in the group. Excellent musicians with a good ear for intonation and a great sense of rhythm, these folks were a joy to play with. There were many teachers, semi-pros and music major types in the ranks.

     The Sax Guyz                                               People arriving                                    Tulane University

I didn’t take as many picture as I did last month of Europe, but I put all of them that were good enough on my Facebook site. Here are a couple more pictures.

  Southern Iris?                                         Suzy and the Church tree                    So many southern mansions

We had an uneventful flight both ways on United Airlines, really were spoiled rotten at the Ritz Carlton hotel, and jammed 4 daze of music and activity into three. Arriving back home at 1 AM in Seattle on Monday morning, work was a challenge.