Day 30 - New Orleans, Louisiana

Day 30 (25 July). After five pretty great days in Texas we started east and traveled through Louisiana traversing bridges that stretched for miles over the swamps. The landscape change was immediate - swamp lands - as were the noticeably worse drivers. Louisiana drivers think it's okay to travel just below the speed limit in the the over-taking lane because most of them do it. They don't move over, don't seem to care and can't read traffic flows. It made for an awful drive. This was further compounded when the Garmin GPS finally gave up.

Given we were only staying overnight we booked a hotel just inside the French Quarter of downtown New Orleans, the home of the 2010 NFL Superbowl Champions 'The Saints' whose supporter battle-cry is "Who Dat." We quickly settled in and then went for a walk around the streets. We went east along Royal Street to St Louis' Cathedral and Jackson Square before coming back along the famous Bourbon Street. None of us were impressed. You can have the place. The place genuinely smells and not just from the many desperate strugglers (drunk and/or drugged) who beg and pan-handle on the streets. We are not prudes, but the tasteless, tacky and overt sex bars - one with photographs of their full-on nude audience participation - made Las Vegas look like a seminary - and it was only late afternoon. The seedy night-crawlers seemed to be out early and the kids who are usually pretty good and confident said they felt really nervous and unsafe walking around - even Matthew said, "This place is full of freaks." We are all looking forward to getting out of New Orleans and Louisiana. This is clearly the place we have liked the least.

Next stop - Pensacola Beach, Florida