Mardi Gras!

As you all can probably guess, I should be doing something other than writing a blog post (and watching Titanic).  Tonight, I should instead be writing a statement of purpose for grad school (Don't ask... yet.); but my spring break started at 12:15 today, and I just can't bring myself to be overly productive so early in my break.  I do plan to finish it by tomorrow, though, so that I can avoid thinking about school for the next week while I'm at the BEACH!

I can't complain that this week was too difficult.  Usually the last week before spring break is filled with midterms and misery, but I finished most of my tests the two weeks before this one.  I must say, it was very considerate of my professors to schedule my tests around...

*MARDI GRAS*


And what a lovely Mardi Gras it was!  This was my second year in a row getting to experience the holiday with one of my best friends, Lauren.  Making a friend from New Orleans was definitely one of the best decisions I made in college (as my Grandma told me last year).

Anybody can go see Mardi Gras from a tourist's perspective, but having a friend from New Orleans has afforded me the opportunity to experience it essentially as a native.  I get to see the parades uptown on St. Charles rather than downtown.  The only time we went downtown (to Bourbon Street) last year was much less enjoyable; we didn't even attempt it this year except for the Endymion Extravaganza, and I can't say I missed it.

I had planned to head down to Nawlins on Thursday, but if you remember from my last post I decided to sleep instead.  Good decision since I definitely didn't sleep much this extended weekend!

I finished packing and drove to New Orleans on Friday instead, and I didn't return to Tuscaloosa until Tuesday evening (only a little more than a day after I intended to).  Roll Tide?

It was great getting to see Lauren for the first time in months and to catch up with Sara, who neither Lauren or I has seen since May.  Wowzas.

I don't want to bore you with all the details, so let me sum it up for you.  We went to tons of parades, caught bajllions of beads, ate pounds and pounds of king cake, drank a few sips of alcohol, experienced minor flooding, went to the Endymion Extravaganza/ball (with Anderson Cooper, Kelly Ripa, Pat Benatar, and Train), met a Saints player (Darren Sharper), ate crawfish (my first meat in over 3 years), avoided knocking children off of ladders, slept on occasion, skipped four classes (Oh wait, that was just me.), made new friends, illegally used port-a-potties, and had more fun than should be legal.

That about sums it up!  I need to write a more detailed summary for myself to remember everything, but I'll just leave you all with some pictures of my very much needed weekend in Nawlins!  (Credit to Sara for some of these pictures... I didn't take nearly enough!)

Our first night after being reunited! :)

This gave me a great reference to explain where I am from.

Ian and I decided to try something new.  We split this bottle (over the course of a couple days), and it was delicious!  I love New Orleans.

Me, Sara, and Lauren at the Endymion Extravaganza.  Lauren and I were appear much taller than usual due to our heels and Sara's flats!

The king cake I bought after I got the baby the first night.  Yum.

That's Darren Sharper on the right!  (I'm a Cowboys fan, but I still appreciate that the man is a Super Bowl champion.)

Yes, I ate a few of these.  It was a strange experience after being a vegetarian for over three years.

Me eating one of the poor crawfish pictured above.

And on that note, I'm calling it a night.