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Archive for the ‘General’ Category

It’s been far too long since I’ve made a batch of the Homebrew. I spent all Monday on a quest for beer pieces so now it’s time to make something. In the kettle we have 2 gallons of water getting nice and hot. And to that I will add a mixture to make Mexican Style Light Lager or as is more commonly known, Corona.

A Corona clone has been on my list for some time, but all the kits were liquid. That is, until now. It spoke to me, it really did. It’ll be nice to have something on the lighter end of the spectrum. Don’t get me wrong, the beers I’ve made so far have been damn good. I just wanted something a little different. Mind you, tomorrow is either an Outback Ale, Ginger Beer or American Hefeweizen. Bottles, bottles everywhere and none of them have beer.

I’ve got more empty bottles than full ones… Time to brew.

For the last stop on our vacation we got in the car and headed to the outskirts of town to see Bonaventure Cemetery. But before we got there, we stopped at the Catholic Cemetery which was stunning in its own right. I took pictures of some fantastic statues. They were beautiful and weathered. I could have spent hours in there, but Bonaventure was right down the road and time was short.

Bonaventure is absolutely beautiful. The statues, the palm trees, the Spanish Moss all come together to make a an eerie yet beautiful landscape. It’s a massive place that you could spend hours if not days touring, but we only had time for a quick visit. We did what you might expect and went to visit the grave of Johnny Mercer. I’m embarrassed to say that I know nothing of Mercer, but obviously know his songs. I was unaware of his catalog until recently and I recognize so many titles.

So that’s it then. Time has run out. We’ve reached the end. It’s time to head home. What a wild four days it’s been. I feel like we’ve done a huge amount of things, but at the same time we’ve barely done anything. There is so much left to do. Who knows when we’ll be back, but I’m looking forward to it.

Our Riverboat tour was ridiculous, the food was really good and the entertainment was completely unexpected. The food was served buffet style and the selection was plenty of shrimp, vegetable casseroles, fruit, roasted chicken, pork tenderloin and roast beef. All of it was excellent and there was plenty to go around. No reason to be shy about going back for seconds.

I was a little hesitant about the live entertainment of a DJ with microphone and keyboard setup. This usually instills fear, and the Captain and Tennille vibe didn’t help matters either. But, he was excellent. His song selection was great and he got up and got involved with the crowd. He called people out for their birthdays and anniversaries and did plenty to get people dancing. His version of the "Electric Slide" is probably the stuff of legend on the high seas.

We saw a marriage proposal and witnessed the booty swinging stylings of Kiki who surely missed her calling as a solid gold dancer. You better stand clear or those hips will knock you clean overboard!

The chance of rain was supposed to be slight, but there was a massive rainstorm with plenty of lightning about 30 minutes after we left the dock. The entire coastline would light up and this especially exciting when we passed the freightliner in the dark. The opportunity presented itself to collect another souvenir glass if I ordered the right drink, so I did, a Riverboat Rita decked in red, white and blue. I will take every opportunity to get a cheesy cup full of booze. I will now add the hurricane glass to my skull glass from the night before.

That was a great tour and yes we bought the cheesy souvenir photograph and yes I plan to do it again. If you get a chance, it really is fun.

Since the rain had stopped, we ducked into Huey’s for a beer and pasty. Friend dough covered in powdered sugar is always a good time. I swear if I have to go through the tunnel, down the stairs, through the kitchen and into the catacombs one more bloody time to go to the bathroom, someone is getting cut. This is total madness. Why is going to the restroom so damn forbidden in this city?

I think the boat tour has been the highlight. I thought it was going to be a little lame but the entertainment was great. The food was really good too. Maybe it was because of the other people, but it was a hell of a lot of fun. The murder mystery tour they offer would be kick ass and if we came back we’re definitely doing it.