New Orleans, 2013

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New Orleans Knows How To Party

No other city in North America is as culturally unique as New Orleans. It was the birthplace of Jazz so it comes with its own home-made soundtrack. New Orleans also gave rise to its own distinct form of Creole cuisine that’s about as savoury as food can get. The French Quarter with its cast-iron adorned balconies and time worn stucco walls is instantly recognizable. The biggest street festival on the continent is of course Mardi Gras. Easily one of the most famous plays of all time, Tennessee Williams’ “A Streetcar Named Desire” was set in New Orleans. Countless songs mention its name. It is indeed a legendary town.

I visited New Orleans for a week in March of 2013. The weather was perfect during my stay. It was warm and sunny the whole time. Like Canada in July.

I took a room in a hotel in the Lower Garden District that was once an orphanage. The place was a dive but it didn’t lack in character.It grew on me. It was a few minutes walk away from St. Charles Avenue and its streetcar line.

My purpose in being there, besides vacationing, was to write the Cicerone Certification exam to be held at the Avenue Pub on St. Charles Ave. This is a challenging 4 hour test of one’s knowledge of all aspects of beer and brewing. Candidates must score at least 80% in order to pass and have the distinction of being a Certified Cicerone. I spent most of my first 2 days in New Orleans studying to give myself further preparation. It wasn’t all work. I allowed myself to do further research by sampling some of the craft beers from the Avenue Pub’s extensive selection. My hotel was close by. It pays to plan ahead.

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Detroit, 2010

Feature image for blog post about Detroit

Detroit: Blighted But Also Blessed

My parents used to live close to Detroit on the Canadian side of the border in a town called Sarnia. That’s not where I grew up. It’s just where my parents retired to.

On one of my annual visits to see my parents I thought it would be a good idea to travel the short distance to Detroit and spend a few days there. Why not? It was just over the horizon after all. I booked a hotel online and headed across the border. This was on a Sunday in March, 2010.

After I was checked into my hotel I grabbed my camera bag and went out to have a look around. Downtown Detroit was deserted. I saw more cars than people, and I didn’t see many cars. I could walk for blocks without seeing any sign of life. Many of the buildings were shuttered and desolate. Even many of the stores that appeared to be still in business were closed.

I walked over to Woodward Avenue, the main north-south roadway. The street was mostly desolate but I saw a restaurant and bar called the Hockey Town Cafe that was open and I could see some people inside. Next door was a grand old theatre called the Fox. It was quite imposing and obviously still in operation. Even here though it was largely barren of other people. The occasional car or pedestrian would pass. Of the few people on the street some appeared to be homeless.

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