New Orleans trip, 2026. Day 2

A Lake, Gardens, and Good Friends

Lake Pontchartrain's shoreline is nicely developed.

We had a leisurely morning at the Vrbo before we went exploring the lake area of New Orleans.  New Orleans is bordered on the north by Lake Pontchartrain, a large body of water approximately 40 x 24 miles in size. (Actually, it is an estuary not a lake with a very small inlet to the ocean.) This is not an area we frequented much when we lived here, so Ward wanted to explore it. Exploring new places is one of his favorite activities, and I am happy to go along for the ride (well, most of the time).

We eventually made our way to our destination--New Orleans Botanical Gardens in City Park. We had a beautiful day with mild temperatures and a gentle breeze to stroll among the plants. Adjacent to the botanical gardens was the sculpture garden associated with the New Orleans Museum of Art where we saw some interesting sculptures nestled in beautiful gardens. We really enjoyed our visit to these gardens in City Park. 

Later we met friends for dinner at Katie's Restaurant in Mid City for dinner.We had fun catching up and laughing about old times. The food was delicious and Ward said that he had the best steak he ever remembers.

Here are some of the many pictures I took today. I'm including more than usual, so feel free to scroll as quickly as your finger will take you.

Adam and Eve back when things were still good.

This bench was made by WPA workers in the 1930s. There are ones like it scattered throughout the park, and I was impressed that they were all still in good shape almost 100 years later.

One of the walls in the conservatory was filled plant fossils. I took a picture of this sign because we have some of these fossils in our basement.

Ward didn't get to ride a train today, but he did get to see a big model train set-up.

The train ran through models of different New Orleans neighborhood models with explanations of how trains affected them throughout time. It was the most interesting train display I've ever seen.

The gardens were getting ready for their Christmas display.

Sophia Loren as the Muse of Antiquity 

Look closely to see monkeys turning into humans. Or is it humans turning into monkeys?

Next we're off to the French Quarter.

Until next time...