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 TM
Summer Sizzlin’:
Want It All?
New Orleans Riverboating and
Hangin’ in the City
By Marty Martindale
 Passengers are barely settled in when there’s a nudge,
a gentle rumble, the Queen’s horns blast and on-shore objects begin to move
backward very slowly. The mighty American Queen’s under way! Her antique
calliope belts out lively strains of Oh! Susanna, Grand Old Flag and Way
Down Upon the Suwanee River. Everyone’s cheering. The journey’s begun.
The Queen shares quite a river. Thousands of connected
barges and massive cargo ships course her determined waters every day of the
year. The Mississippi is the largest waterway for bulk freight in North
America. Steamboating didn’t start until 1850, and it wan’t until 1890 the
Delta Queen Steamboat Company’s Delta Queen carried local folks and visitors
from round the world the world on river jaunts. Today her fleet of three
riverboats carry passengers between New Orleans and St. Paul, Minnesota. In
the Gulf of Mexico, they also have a route between between Mobile, Alabama
and Galveston, Texas.
 This summer it’s possible to combine an American Queen
riverboat cruise and some nights in town at one of New Orleans’ downtown
hotels on what Delta calls a New Orleans & Riverboat Adventure Week.
The fun on board the American Queen is as fast or
slow-paced as you choose. Enjoy afternoon teas and moonlight buffets on the
Queen, also exercising, demos and plain relaxing on the ship’s cool, inside
Front Porch, where there’s always coffee and a chance to read the latest
newspapers. Gala evening shows are impressive stage productions from the
worlds of Broadway, Arcadiana, Mardi Gras and the French Quarter. blues
venues.
What’s the food like on the American Queen? It’s
special. Executive Chef Mark Amatangelo’s galley serves up regular meals as
well as Louisiana southern specials. Try:
Shrimp Margarita with Tequilla
Alligator Sauce Piquant over Crispy Frog Legs
Turtle Soup au Sherry
Crispy Polenta “Cake”with Creole Ratatouille
Red Bean Soup with Andouille Sausage
Fried Green Tomatoes
Louisiana Seafood Chowder
Roasted Duck, Ligonberry
These are in addition to more worldly fare such as
Scallops, Veal, Salmon, Prime Rib, Grilled Lamb Chops and Sea Bass. He also
presents suggested dishes for special New Orleans tastes, vegetarian and
heart-healthy. Recited desserts surprise guests each night.
Buffet luncheons, if you wish, can include some
fascinating southern history revealed by Chris Wistey’s. Hear wiley tales of
the Arcadians, the French and Indian struggles and Evangeline. Wistley also
explains the saga of bouncing bullets literally surrounding rascal Huey P.
”The Catfish” Long in his final hour. Another special occasion is the ship’s
topside crawfish boil followed by kite flying launches into favorable
breezes.
 Shore trips are a must for some, not for all. Almost as
if jumping into another’s private dream, it’s possible to awaken aboard the
Queen along side a river levee, and straight behind it see a long, straight
path under perfectly arching live oaks. Squarely at the end is a huge
antebellum mansion. You can make this gracious home your own reality if you
take the informative tour. More shore tours share present-day adaptations to
old Louisiana ways. You can learn Cajun dancing, visit the USS destroyer
Kidd or take on a swamp experience aboard a comfortable, canopied boat. For
some, a City Sampler is the ticket.
During the city portion of an Adventure Week, you’ll
learn how much fun New Orleans really is and take part on it. Yes, she’s
famed for her below-sea-level burial grounds, some said to be haunted, and
jazz funeral processions but she’s also known for her famed admirers. Her
past is a world of greats, the authors or subjects of fictional fame and
performers once in mellow blues showcases … Scarlett O’Hara, Blanche DuBois,
Mark Twain, William Faulkner, Walt Whitman, Truman Capote, Tennessee
Williams pepper this past. The syncopated sounds of Louis Armstrong,
Antoine “Fats” Domino, Jelly Roll Morton, Al Hirt, Pete Fountain and Louis
Prima made her air electric. This is Mardi Gras town! And. No other like it.
 The brand-new Mid-City Canal Streetcar is
air-conditioned and runs frequently. Her well-planned route takes passengers
from City Park down to the Mississippi Riverfront and its French Quarter,
Harrah’s Casino, RiverWalk and free river ferry to Algiers. Canal Street and
the track bed for the trolleys was once called New Orleans’ “Neutral
Ground,” because it divided the living areas of the early, sophisticated
French settlers and brash American newcomers who trickled in after the
Lousiana Purchase.
The American Queen’s Adventure Weeks combine a few days
of riverboating with few more days’ stay in a downtown New Orleans hotel.
Early booking can mean special roundtrip airfare opportunities. The
Adventure also includes two meals from a list of 21 famed restaurants
including Antoine’s, Court of Two Sister and three of Emeril’s restaurants.
Also select admission to at least two attractions from a list of 30 offered.
Downtown hotel choices are commensurate with the stateroom category you
choose, not the least of which is the Fairmont New Orleans, and still home
to its famed block-long golden lobby and Sazarac Room.
Telephone contact:
888.435.6267
Sizzlin New Orleans Vacation Package:
http://www.freeneworleansvacation.com/sizzlin.php?content (see slide
show)
Delta Queen Steamboat Company:
http://www.deltaqueen.com/
New Orleans Convention & Tourism Board:
http://neworleanscvb.com/
Mid-City Canal Streetcar day passes:
http://www.norta.com
You can reach Marty Martindale at
http://www.FoodSiteoftheDay.com.
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