Our last day in New Orleans started with gathering our belongings and checking out of the Rathbone Inn. The proprietor had kindly agreed to let us leave our luggage there until it was time to go to the airport, so we deposited everything downstairs and headed down Esplanade toward the Mississipi. Knowing that we didn't have a whole lot of time to spend in town our last day, we decided that a good way to make use of the few hours left to us was to take a riverboat cruise on the Cajun Queen. Accordingly we wandered along until we came to the dock for that particular boat. There wasn't any activity going on there. The ticket booth was closed. We were a little early though, so we sat down to enjoy the nice weather...as the departure time neared and there was still no sign of any activity, we ventured further down the boardwalk and found an open ticket booth, where we were informed that the Cajun Queen was only operating on the weekends. Hmmph. Well, there went that plan for the day. We happened to be standing outside of the Audobon Aquarium of the Americas at the time, and though we hadn't intended to visit it, given the options, it seemed like a good idea. Once inside, we were glad that we decided to see this attraction.
First, we walked through the Caribbean Reef Tube (a tank which arched over the walkway, allowing the fish and small sharks to swim beside and above the visitors. It was great to be able to watch the fish swimming over our heads. We even saw what looked like a miniature hammerhead shark. It was so cute.
| The Rainforest section was a three dimensional display featuring giant trees, tanks of piranha, turtles and other marine life, waterfalls, and even a pair of macaw. The whole display was encased in a circular glass room, which functioned as a greenhouse and helped to keep the wildlife at the right temperature. It was truly a beautifully designed space. |  |
After we left the rainforest, we visited the Shark Cove, which featured a Touch Pool. Lori and I stood in line with the rest of the children to pet the juvenile Nurse Shark, which didn't seem to notice all the people touching it.
 |
Our next stop was to the Seahorses exhibit. There we saw the Seadragons, which are related to the Seahorse, only much more elaborate creations. Their bodies imitate the seaweed and other plant life found in their natural habitats, providing protection from predators. And they are so cool. I never even knew something like this existed. |
A visit to Buck and Emma, the aquarium's sea otters was one of the most enjoyable parts of the day. The otters were so cute, and fat, and lazy...at least when we saw them. They just floated on the surface, rubbing their bellies and generally being cute for the audience of adults and children who gathered around their tank. Apparently they can be quite playful, and the bottom of the tank was littered with their toys. Off to the side of the tank were two signs displaying the otter's statistics, where they were found, their favorite foods, and pastimes...one of Emma's favorite pastimes is dismantling the tank!
| We wandered through the frog world, where I stopped to kiss this giant plastic frog, which utterly failed to turn into a prince. *sigh* |  |
 |
We visited the aquarium's resident white alligator, and I was able to get some better shots than at the zoo, mostly because this one wasn't in a dark room behind a thick sheet of plexiglass. |
| Last, but not least, we saw the Jellies exhibit. All the jellies were displayed in tanks under black lighting. |  |
And that pretty much concluded our tour of the aquarium. On our way out of the building, the guard stopped to ask if we would like to be stamped, so that we could come back in later at no charge. Of course we said yes, knowing that we would not be coming back, and so got this cool, if temporary, souvenir of our visit:
We still had a little time to spare before our cab was scheduled to pick us up at the bed and breakfast, so we took one last tour of the French Quarter, admiring the beautiful, but expensive masks and other adornments, and picking up a few last minute gifts. We had lunch at the Café Beignet one last time and then made our way back to the hotel. Our cabbie picked us up right on schedule and we had an uneventful ride to the airport. Mofasa (our cab driver) asked us about our stay, gave us each a string of beads, and posed for pictures with us at the airport.
 |
Finally we were on our way home, and I caught this last picture of the sun setting over Lake Pontchartrain from the airplane window. As always, going home is sad, but I have tons of good memories, and even more pictures so that I can always look back on this trip fondly. |
