Woke up to the 6am alarm, reset it for another hour. Woke up to the 7am alarm and Sam convinced me to reset it for another half an hour. Finally got up, got a coffee from the vending machine and hit the road.

Gained an hour when we crossed the border out of Florida. Stopped at Subway for breakie/lunch and am loving the southern accents. Everyone was saying y'all and was really polite. However ordering subway isn't getting any easier.

It was Sam's turn to drive so I was put in charge of accommodation again....pressure! Found a KOA campground just out of New Orleans. Drove through the day and arrived at the campground late afternoon. Thankfully the campground was fine and the facilities were good. Had dinner and an early night.

Next day we drove to the city to spend the day in the French Quarter. Parked the van in the casino car park, was $18 for up to 10 hours or was free for 24 hours if you joined their loyalty club & spent half an hour gambling.....too easy! Put $20 in a pokie machine and sat on it for half an hour. Walked out with $10, saved $8....winning!

The French Quarter in New Orleans was amazing! Immediately fell in love with this area! Started on Royal street which is lined with antique & vintage stores. Spent time in Jackson Square where artists exhibit their work and musicians entertain. Listened to some jazz and got a photo with some amazing local jazz musicians! Checked out Cafe du Monde which serves sugar-dusted beignets accompanied by coffee and has been in operation serving the same menu since 1862. Unfortunately, the queue was massive!!!! So long it didn't fit in a photo so I took a video instead.

Walked up & down every street in the French Quarter taking it all in. Walked down the famous Bourbon Street which is party central especially with it being Spring Break. People overflowed over bar terraces and on the street where they mingled and bar hopped and drunk on the street. The street smelt like a mix of vomit, stale booze and sleaze.

Had lunch and beers at a restaurant called Chartres House on their terrace. While having lunch, police stopped traffic and a band followed by an entire wedding party paraded down the street. Wasn't the only wedding to do so, we saw two. At the end of the day, the brides and grooms from about eight weddings travelled down the streets in horsedrawn carriages. Tasted delicious pralines from the French marketplace.

Watched a group of entertaining street performers break dancing. They were insanely talented and funny. They involved the crowd and I got a couple of funny videos. Near the end of their act they spread their message, which unfortunately I can't remember word for word, but basically asked for everyone to come together and accept that there is only one race and that is the human race. Very fitting for the area, which again is very segregated.

Had dinner at a bar recommended to us by a local called Coop's. There was a queue down the street which we waited in and got chatting to people in line. Talked cigars and California to a Texan couple in front of us. Promoted NZ to an older couple behind us from Illinois that were travelling in an RV and turned out to be staying at the same campground as us. The man got hustled by a clever quick talking shoe shiner passing by. Dinner was great and beers were cheap.

The day was an absolute sensory overload of old buildings, colour, people, good and bad smells, jazz, alternative music, paintings, delicious tastes, street performers etc. We took loads of photos & videos. So many that my camera battery died by the early afternoon.

Thankfully the French Quarter was unaffected by Hurricane Katrina in 2005. The rebuilding from the natural disaster is still ongoing and the population which was 500,000 prior to the hurricane has since reached approximately 350,000. New Orleans has jumped to the top of the list of one of our favourite places so far and I highly recommend it for a visit!!!