Let's continue!
I hope you're doing well! So, let me fill you in on the full day of NOLA - and how that actually went. Brace yourself it's a long one with a big plot twist (if you're only interested in the plot twist then scroll down a little).
The day started early with a cemetery tour, believe it or not. I wanted to see Marie Laveau's grave - the famous queen of Voodoo. It was such an intriguing experience to learn about the history of the cemetery and the legends surrounding it. I've been very much immersed in spiritual things, ever since my mom introduced me to Tarot, her Tarot cards, readings, astrology, you name it, we're into it. But voodoo is something new for me. So, visiting the final resting place of the queen of voodoo fascinated me.
To clarify, voodoo is not just evil, there's good voodoo too. Even at Marie Laveau's tomb, there is a unique ritual that you can do by bringing her an offering about the wish that you would like granted. An individual would scrape three X's into the tomb, and then knock on her tomb, and place the offering in front of the tomb to hope for the wish to be granted. Voodoo is not just voodoo dolls and evil, but also for good.
After the cemetery, the weather was absolutely perfect, with the sun shining and giving the day a wonderful vibe. It made me appreciate New Orleans even more. What more could I possibly want?
Let's continue, I didn't really feel like going back to the room just yet. I decided to head straight to the French Quarter and see what was happening there in the morning. At first, it was quite quiet, almost like a ghost town. But boy, by 10:30 or 11, the streets came alive! People were drinking, and dancing, and the music filled the air. I was absolutely thrilled to be part of that lively atmosphere.
But wait, I have to tell you about the food here in NOLA. Oh my goodness, it's a whole new world for foodies. And I LOVE food (more like I love dessert or anything sweet, but I do love good food). Well, beignets. They are delicious, deep-fried pastries covered in powdered sugar. And the famous beignets at Café Du Monde knew what powdered sugar meant. Even I was in awe of how much was on these delicious goodies! It was PERFECT. Trust me, you haven't truly lived until you've tried them. It really is a party in your mouth!
As I continued to stroll along the streets, I couldn't resist popping into voodoo stores and any place related to spirituality. And guess what? I stumbled upon a spot where I could book a ghost tour too. I'm always up for some thrilling adventures and the French Quarters and ghosts just go perfectly hand in hand! I immediately signed up for it because why not? It was scheduled for the evening anyway (and yes, now that I saw the area, and knew how far the hotel was, I was still keeping my safety standards in check).
Well, here's what happens next.
I had to head back to the room for a little bit and get a few things done but I planned on coming back down a little before the ghost tour to have some oysters because there were oysters everywhere - and I love oysters, and needed to continue experiencing the food scene around here.
I get back to the room and that's when it was a bit weird.
Two room keys were left on the desk. I look around the room and no one is there. Hmmm weird. I had seen him this morning in passing as I was heading down for the cemetery tour and he was getting back from the gym. But that was over 4 hours ago. Well... that's when I realized, he (and ALL his things - suitcases, bags) were gone. He was gone, and his things were gone. No need to mention who he was, but what's important to note is that we had set out to do a cross-country road trip together. A trip fully planned out with stops and stays and we weren't even in the middle of it all when we reached NOLA. And before you start thinking we got into a fight, nope, not even that. I'm not much of a fighter, I don't like conflict, I'm easygoing, and I compromise towards almost everything (maybe that's why traveling was meant for me since I can adapt to situations easily). My non-negotiable though: is a cold room to sleep in - but even then I'll bring you extra blankets if you're cold.
Anyway, remember throughout these road trip posts how I said I wasn't fully alone on the trip but I might as well have been (he became quiet and wasn't talking much). Well yes, now I was fully alone. No note on the desk. No text of whereabouts. NO NOTHING. You're probably thinking, wtf. Well, same. Same, same. Where did he possibly go? What possibly happened? The world may never know (even I don't know)!
Did the ghosts take him? We are in NOLA, who knows what happened?
No, the ghosts didn't take him. Well, first things first, I ran down to valet to check to make sure my car was there. It was there. The valet guy was wonderful and double-confirmed that my keys and my car were there. Ok, well that's a good sign.
But where did he go?
It wasn't till I had done my round of calls to my parents saying he was gone, a call to his mom saying he was gone, and then a call to my best friend who reminded me to check a bank account if I could. Well, ding, ding, ding, we have a winner on the Price Is Right! He had purchased a Lufthansa ticket and had taken off in the middle of the road trip to fly back to Europe without a single word! Yup. I was surprised. I was shocked. NOT what I had expected. Didn't realize some people don't know how to communicate a single word.
Well, now what?
I was in such shock and disbelief that no matter who you are, you don't just get up and do that with anyone and not say a word. Seemed fitting to be straight-up ghosted in the city of ghosts - but even then, that's no excuse! Well, I sat at the desk and was in a state of shock. I was supposed to head toward Texas the next day along with many other places along the way that were about to be hit by the arctic cold. Well, I was not about to continue along on my own, just me and my car in that cold and on another 2,000+ miles alone when that wasn't the initial plan. Just like what any mother (or any best friend would do), my mom booked a ticket and was arriving the following day.
With that came a big change in plans!
I was frustrated with the mess this had caused. The headache of trying to cancel accommodations (most of which I couldn't because I tried booking cheaper with non-refundables) - lesson learned NEVER book accommodations with non-refundable. I don't do that with plane tickets, why did I do it with hotels? I was fairly too confident that I would finish this cross-country road trip that was planned. Well, the joke was on me as that was not happening.
With my final destination no longer being LA, I was going to head back to Connecticut. Thankfully, I am not tied to any location specifically, that was just a plan to be out in California and try something new. Scratch that now and time to replan.
But that wasn't going to stop me.
So within the last 3 hours, I found out because of looking into a bank account that he left, I'm shocked that someone has the audacity to take off without a note or a message (I guess he thought I was a strong independent woman that I can figure it out myself - well, I am but that doesn't mean what you did is still ok), trying to figure out what's next, my mom booked a ticket to arrive the following morning, and there I am sitting at the desk realizing the ghost tour is about to start in 45 minutes.
Well, I pull myself together, and I go about the ghost tour to get my mind off of what just happened. Let me tell you, go on a ghost tour! The stories that I heard, for example, if you walk underneath this terrace you lose your money due to the story that is surrounded by the LaLourie Mansion. All the stories were entertaining and honestly, it was just another thing that was perfect for NOLA.
Randomly (the good voodoo probably sent her to me), I got the most entertaining tour guide that I even connected with the following day so that I could introduce my mom and want to do another tour. Turns out, she was also originally from the East Coast, worked in the diamond district with jewelry in NY, and was into Tarot. Couldn't get better than that.
There you have it, the reason why the road trip was halted and was not going further west.
But on the flip side, I have another full day in NOLA to experience it with my mom - my true travel partner in crime. You can best believe we'll be experiencing a few exciting and delicious things in NOLA together!
Stay tuned for another day of NOLA and where the rest of the travels go from here. It was all about quick thinking, replanning, and some travel lessons learned.
A strong, witty, smart and adventurous women, so proud of you!! You made it sound easy....it isnt but you had the right attitude to deal with it. Best luck for the next adventure!