From Austin the Greyhound goes east to Houston. As the highway winds into the dark city the lights of skyscrapers reflect the stars from the windows of the morbid bus. Much of my experience in a number of American cities have been limited to the inside of a Greyhound station. They ain't pretty, and when you've seen one, you've seen them all. I do not regret my time with Greyhound though! It was educational. So Houston was one of these cities. Houston in 2 hours. I boarded my new bus, and off we went. Beaumont - Lake Charles - Lafayette - New Orleans. This is Lucinda Williams country.
Morning: I woke up on the bridge over the edge of lake Ponchatrain. It was a pretty breath-taking sight to wake up to. Nothing but water around us. The city loomed up ahead, the infamous stadium came into view, and nearby was the bus station. I walked my way down to Canal St. This proved difficult as the footpaths in New Orleans are seriously cracked, due to the water. This however was the only really explicit sign of damage that I noticed. The Canal Streetcar took me to India House, a quirky hostel in an old villa-style house just beyond the French Quarter. I slept off the rest of the day, awoke in the evening, and wandered downtown. Alligator for dinner. Bourbon St to me was nothing but a tacky assortment of tourist shops and crappy bars. Royal and Decatur Streets are far more scenic.
Wandering down Decatur, I found the House of Blues - one of the reasons for my visit to New Orleans. It so happened that that night the Arctic Monkeys were playing; a band I'm not passionate about, but nonetheless... I was loitering by the window next to the box office booth, checking out the upcoming shows, and was approached by a guy saying "have you got a ticket?" "No" says I vaguely, "Who's playing?" He looked at me quizzically. "Arctic Monkeys, they're a really good band." "Oh.." says I. "Do you want a ticket?" "How much?" "Free, it's yours." "Ah...ok thanks!"
Spontaneity reigned this night. As did Fortune. In the House of Blues I bumped into a friendly Japanese fellow who sat behind me on the Greyhound from that previous night. 22 as well, he was making almost the exact same trip across the States as I! So it was a wonderful night. I loved the gig, gained a newfound appreciation for Manchester neo-post-punk, and made a new friend!
To be continued...
Austin TX - New Orleans LA
