We kicked off the Spring with a big Spring Break road trip through the Southern United States. The first night,
we drove though the night and ended up in Little Rock, Arkansas on Thursday morning. We got biscuits and
coffee and went to the Little Rock old Central High School and museum. We got to learn about the Little Rock
Nine in an immersive setting. It was a sobering experience as we walked the same sidewalks as those brave
students walked every day through angry white mobs. The school was a breathtaking monument to American racism,
built entirely with the funds that were supposed to be split between two schools (one for black students, one
for white students). The black citizens were left to crowd fund a building for their children to be educated,
while the white students were left with an exquisite facility financed by black and white taxpayers alike.
After leaving the high school, we went to a cool replica of an old mill that's now a lovely public park. The
next day we visited Bill Clinton's presidential library. We walked around downtown Little Rock and along the
river. We ended the day by playing at a local playground.
The next day we went to Jackson, Mississippi. We went to their civil rights museum, where Elena was extremely
impacted by the story of Emmett Till's lynching. After the museum we went to a local playground. We didn't
find much to do in Jackson and we were ready to spend some time in the Big Easy.
The next day we drove to New Orleans. We started by going to a small music festival at a local synagogue. It was
nice, but way too hot to be hanging out in a Louisiana parking lot. We found the place we were staying, the
Blue60 Guest House. If you are planning a trip to NOLA, I definitely recommend staying at the Blue60 Guest
House. It was so cozy and inviting, we felt right at home throughout our stay. There was a beautiful garden
and a friendly cat that the girls loved playing with. After unpacking, we headed straight for the French
Quarter. It was so great seeing the Quarter in person after all these years of dreaming about it. We found a
cool, little, free museum on Bourbon St. that had great historical artifacts and art relating to the New
Orleans Creole people. I learned that Edgar Degas' mother was a Creole from New Orleans. Next we found a nice
little courtyard on Bourbon that served food and had a live Jazz band. We got beignets, gumbo, shrimp etoufee,
and I had a sazerac. It was a great way to dine on our first night in New Orleans. As we were leaving the
restaurant a wedding parade was going by. We went home and had a relaxed evening at our home away from home,
with a brief excursion to a local dinner spot.
The next day we took the street car down to Kern's Mardi Gras World, a museum and working float studio. It was
super cool. On our way home we stopped back in the French Quarter for dinner. First we got a Daiquiri to drink while
searching for a dinner spot. After much deliberation we settled on a spot on Bourbon that had seating on the
gallery. The food was very much incidental to the experience. We had a decent enough dinner with a great
birds-eye-view of the excitement down on Bourbon Street. On our way home we stopped at Cafe Du Monde for some
cafe au latte and beignets. After a brief rest at the crib, it was back to Jackson Square for a walking tour.
It was a nighttime tour because it was a tour of haunted New Orleans. Elena found this tour totally fascinating.
The next day we went to the city park for a brief visit before going to a bayou nature preserve to try and see
some gators. We had no luck seeing any gators, but we did have big fun on the bayou. We drove down to Baton
Rogue and had some nice dinner with a live band at some neat roadhouse. We didn't find much to do in Baton
Rogue. We went to their old city hall for a brief visit and then hit the road. We stopped in Biloxi for lunch
on the Gulf of Mexico. It was a nice beachside joint that we caught just before some nasty weather came in.
We drove out to Montgomery and got there pretty late in the evening. Most of what we wanted to see in
Montgomery was outdoors, so I quickly planned a self guided walking tour that we took that night.
We parked by the Dexter Avenue Baptist Church for our walking tour. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was the pastor at this church from
1954-1960. This was where he organized the Montgomery bus boycott. We continued down Dexter Ave toward the
Capitol, the same route Jefferson Davis' inauguration parade took. We walked around the Capitol building,
stopping on the North side to see the Confederate Memorial Monument. The Monument flew Confederate flags all
the way up until 2015, when the Governor ordered their removal in the wake of the white supremacist terrorist
attack at Charleston Church. Next we walked to the south side of the Capitol to see the First White House
of the Confederacy. Next we walked to the home where Dr. King's family lived in Montgomery. We also walked
over to the Civil Rights Memorial outside of the Southern Poverty Law Center. The SPLC is an incredible civil
rights organization. They're a great organization to donate to, as well as a great resource for learning about
hate groups that operate in the United States. Just as we were finishing our tour the rain started to fall so
we rushed back to the car.
The next day we went to the National Memorial for Peace and Justice aka the National Lynching Memorial. If
you're in the area you owe it to your country to go. It's hard to really comprehend how prolific lynching was
in our country until you see the names collected and displayed like this. It's a powerful reminder of the evil that
black Americans are up against in their fight for equality.
After the memorial, Maya and I visited the Negro Southern League Museum. It was a very good museum, dedicated to
the segregated era of baseball; an era full of incredible world-class players who never got the recognition they
deserved. Next we went on a nice hike through Red Mountain Park before our drive out to Birmingham. After
arriving late to Birmingham, we went out for some drinks and late night snacks. We discovered that there
wasn't really much we wanted to see and decided that we'd just set off for Memphis in the morning.
The first thing we did after getting to Memphis was satisfy my barbecue craving. We went to the Bar-B-Q Shop and
left little on the menu unordered. Next we bought some great coffee from a coffee shop that was adjoined to a
pottery studio. We bought some really neat pottery for a great price. We went somewhere called the Dixon
Gallery and Gardens, which had a beautiful tulip garden on display and an impressive private collection of
artworks. The collectors had a penchant for buying impressionist pieces (my favorite art movement) including
pieces by Monet, Degas, Renoir, Seurat, Cezanne and Matisse. After being blown away by this unique collection
I step outside into a courtyard and am greeted by a magnificent Rodin sculpture. Viewing this collection is
free to the public, by the way! Next we went to the Memphis Botanic Garden, which is a must see. What an
incredible place to spend a beautiful spring day. We went back to our hotel early to rest up, go swimming, and
get some Sushi for dinner.
Our next day in Memphis, and our last day of the trip, started with a trip to the National Civil Rights
Museum. It's a good museum that is built next to the Lorraine Motel, the place where Dr. King was assassinated.
The museum helped spark a continued interest in Civil Rights for Elena, especially in Rosa Parks. It was a
good experience, and a sacred one for Americans that feel what a terrible loss Dr. King's was.
Next we went down to Beale Street. We walked up and down the street, stopped for lunch and live music, and
did some shopping. The last thing we did before leaving town was go the gigantic Bass Pro Shops. It was a cool
spot. Elena and I played at the shooting gallery, and Maya loved watching the fish. After that we said goodbye
to Spring Break and hit the road for our twelve hour drive home.
This was a great way to spend our spring break. Not only did we get to cross some states off our list (we're
shooting for all fifty!) we also got lots of top notch recreation, history, food, culture, and music. I adore
so many of the places we visited, and I hope that this won't have been my list trip to New Orleans and Memphis in
particular.
