A view ofdowntown New Orleans (the CBD) from the deck of the Algiers Ferry.
One Saturday Chris and I rode our bikes to the ferry landing at the river end of Canal Street. We were late for the Gretna ferry boat and decided to take the long way to Gretna - a short ride on the Algiers ferry and then 2 miles on the bike path along the East Bank of the Mississippi. Our goal was the Thrift City store on Terry Parkway which is only 9 minutes by bike from the Gretna ferry landing. The weather was foggy and cool so the longer ride wouldn't be as tough as the same ride in blazing sun.
A reward for riding so far against the river wind was a stop at Taqueria Sanchez El Sabrosito. It's a walk-up stand just off Stumpf and the Westbank Expressway. Chris had a trio of tacos; I think barbacoa, carne guisada and something else. I had a torta stuffed with lengua (braised beef tongue). Sure was good.
Shopping at Thrift City was deemed a success and we headed back toward the West Bank. We embarked at the Gretna ferry terminal just as a chilly drizzle began and the rain started in earnest as we disembarked. We rode through the French Quarter to our home on Governor Nicholls street and arrived drenched and happy.
A tugboat pushes a barge past our ferry
We rode our bikes along the levee path and passed these graffiti'd box cars.
The Twin Spans stretch toward Downtown New Orleans.
Wisteria clings to a fence outside a shotgun near the levee.
A quiet bar in Gretna, near the levee.
El Sabrosito is on a chaotic corner near an on-ramp to an elevated highway. You can smell the cooking meats a block away.
The menu is pretty elaborate for a tiny stand smaller than a one-car garage.
Comimos tacos que nos gustaban muchisimos.
The ride back home was wetter and colder than we dreamed possible with fog at times blocking our view of anything past the edge of the ferry.
At times the fog lifted, once long enough to spot this retired paddle boat listing against the levee - a spooky hulk emitting a stale breath that even reached the middle of the Mississippi.
A Carnival cruise ship resembles another ghost boat in this fog.
