Do you know what it means to miss New Orleans?

Morning N'Awlins!

When our friend moved to the Big Easy I knew it was only a matter of time til we visited and experienced a new (orleans) place from his perspective. 

What I didn't know was that the rock 'n' roll marathon would fall over my birthday weekend and I'd end up running it!!! ... Yah no, that didn't happen. Not even close.

But Meg -my beast of a best friend (2x Boston marathon / 5x half runner beast)- decided to race. So Joey and I got to see a new place and visit with friends from San Diego and Boston. It was too good before it even began.

Typically for me, going to a new city means extensive research and detailed plans. However, traveling to see Brett, I wanted to experience N'Awlins through his viewpoint. Here's a quick look at what we did, where we ate, and some photos documenting our shenanigans.

eat creole cuisine

New Orleans is famous for its food and the city did not disappoint! Serious food lovers, this is your dream destination; this city lives and breathes food. It’s a well-seasoned gumbo of a city, with a long history of equal opportunity when it comes to good food. In four days we ate at 7 restaurants. Birthday girl ate 12 desserts. 

Commanders Palace 

Award-winning haute creole cuisine albeit a tourist trap. Nestled in the Garden District since 1880. Renowned chefs like Emeril Lagasse, Paul Prudhomme, Jamie Shannon, and now Tory McPhail have made it the world-class restaurant it is. I only wish our jazz brunch had much more jazz. That said, all of the food was incredible and we got to dress up in fancy attire:)

Top pick: Cochon De Lait Eggs Benedict 12-hour barbecue shoulder of pork over buttermilk biscuits with poached eggs, ripped herb salad, sauce forestière and housemade tasso hollandaise. 

Just may be the best benedict I have ever had. (Random, but did you know Benoit is the old French word for the English name Benedict? Means blessed. I'm blessed my jeans still fit after this trip)

Cochon De Lait Eggs Benedict 

Clesi's

When in NOLA one must get a crawfish boil. Now I'll add, from Clesi's. Owner James Clesi created his dream job a fourteen months ago when he opened his restaurant / catering business with the mission to give his guests the level of cuisine and hospitality that is synonymous with New Orleans. Down-to-earth good eats here with a sweetheart owner.

  

Top pick: Obviously the 3 lbs of sweet crawfish with a perfect hint of spice are what you come for, but the jambalaya was a surprise favorite for me. Oh, and the delicately fried shrimp. The batter was light and didn't overpower the seafood. Compliments to Chef Clesi.

before

during

after

Pêche

My girlfriend happened to be in New Orleans the week before us and highly recommended Pêche. For our last supper / my birthday dinner Brett gave a few recommendations. Pêche's simply prepared seafood menu with a modern flare won me over. 

Top pick: I'm getting indecisive in my old age; not sure how to choose just one. :)

The hushpuppies were really good with the honey butter and bits of sprinkled salt --- yum! The grilled lamb skewer with cucumber salad was a teensy bit too salty, but I still licked the plate clean. The bite I had of Joey's smothered catfish was tasty. My jumbo shrimp entree was just what I was hoping for. The 3 desserts I ate to the face were spot on too. It's no wonder the restaurant has won two coveted James Beard Foundation Awards: Best New Restaurant & Chef Ryan Prewitt Best Chef, South.

listen to jazz

My soul was fed with jazz music too. For a girl who chronologically turned 31, my old soul was meant to grow up during this era. I just love jazz. I love how it makes people feel alive and how it makes people get up and dance! 

It's no shock to me that a city already used to feeling jubilant, a city where you can dance down the middle of the street, in the middle of the daytime, in the middle of the week, and instead of people wondering why you aren't at work, they join you, birthed this new, wild music. Joyous anarchy. But enough chatting - take a listen!

Preservation Hall Band

Post race, this band headlined at the finish line festival, and we rocked out to their invigorating tunes. 

Roamin' Jasmines

We stopped at Bacchanal, a wine laboratory if you will, where food (read: dessert), music and culture colluded with a lot of Holy Vino to create my favorite evening. We wined & dined under the stars while listening to the Roamin' Jasmines, an eccentric six piece jazz ensemble led by bassist, vocalist, and bandleader Taylor Smith. They were PHENOMENAL!!!

Top picks: One cannot simply drink red wine without dark chocolate. Or atleast I can't. No surprise here, my fave dessert of the weekend came from mixing these two heavenly desserts from Bacchanal. 

GOAT MILK PANNA COTTA honey, lavender, pine nuts
CHOCOLATE BARK extra virgin olive oil, marcona almonds, sel gris

experience Katrina

After Hurricane Katrina, over New Orleans, my helicopter crashed and the pilot and I were only saved because we fell on the roof of a flooded house that absorbed the shock. When the helicopter was spiraling downward out of control, I didn't expect to survive at all. - Yann Arthus-Bertrand, French photographer, journalist, reporter & environmentalist

Over the past 11 years I've learned a lot about the deadly hurricane that flooded New Orleans and left ~1800 dead and millions of others homeless, but it wasn't until we drove through the 9th Ward that I experienced it. Took a bit of persistence to get there though...

We found out in the middle of the bus tour that there is a city ordinance that prohibits tours to go through those areas most affected. The guide did give us a better understanding of events pre- and post-Katrina, but we were hoping for a first-hand look at the neighborhood that experienced the catastrophic damage. So in Amy fashion, I asked our uber driver who was bringing Joey and I back after the tour if it was possible to detour. (Not something to do if you're alone!) Tim Burnside was the unsung hero of our trip. He navigated us through the areas and shared personal stories that truly exposed us to the heartaching devastation that was caused by the unexpected storm surge.

80% of New Orleans was under water, up to 20 ft deep in places! Arthus-Bertrand's quote seems far-fetched until you drive through and see the watermarks at the top of buildings. The reality is that this neighborhood is still neglected. Unoccupied, blighted houses are the only structures remaining on some blocks, over a decade after the flooding engulfed the region.

All that being said, it was an amazing trip, and thanks to our gracious host, I can now surely say that I do "know what it means"!

                           

Cat's outta the bag

For most of you reading this, you know me. So you know that I believe in what I want so much that usually it has no choice but to materialize. Like when we moved to San Diego. Or when I knew, I just knew!, that I was going to meet John Legend. Or when we moved 2 BLOCKS FROM THE BEACH! (Post pending.) But I never intentionally manifested this.

...Well maybe I kind of did...

Flash back to when I was hardselling San Diego to Joey. Over and over again. This was a 5-year sale cycle, so by the end I knew I needed to negotiate to get this deal done. And there, to seal the deal, I said something I never thought I'd ever, ever say.

If we move to San Diego, we can get a dog. 

And for those of you who really know me you know how absolutely crazy it is for me to even have mumbled these words. I don't need to explain anything to you. I'm sure you're over there like "Amy Levine's getting a dog??? Yah right!" 

And for those of you who really don't know me... Well, the story starts when I was chased home from a playground as a little girl. (If my memory holds true) The dog climbed the stairs of the slide, slid down behind me, and continued to race me half a mile home. I tripped in our garage and the dog trampled over me and into our house. I'm sure you can imagine how scared a kid would be after this, but just imagine it 100x worse. And even years later I am/was the awkward adult who hides behind the sofa if a dog is in the same room. I'm telling ya, it was Bad with a capital, bolded, underlined B.

But, I made a promise. And Joey deserves his fair share of our compromise. He's given a lot to my dream and has waited pretty patiently for his dog. I've got to give him credit - he played his cards right because I am actually excited about our pup.

So let me be the first to introduce you to Grizzly Benoit* (or one of his brothers who looks almost identical to him).

*Pups are designated right before they go since the breeder wants to make the most informed decision possible for good matches based on their still developing personalities, so male #3 may or may not end up being Grizzly. We'll know soon enough.

So the cat's outta the bag, or should we say the dog's outta the bag (that's for you, baby) <3

Grizzly

Male#3, 2.5 Weeks Old:

  

M3 -- 5 Weeks Old:

  

Meet the parents Annie & Jerry 

    

10 things I know now after honeymooning in South Africa

10 things I know now after honeymooning in South Africa

1. We will always pack whatever size suitcase we have to the absolute exploding point… it must be some kind of immutable law of physics. 

Seriously, we went through our packing list a month in advance for this purpose. We laid out everything we planned to take and with every item we asked why we’re taking it and cut down the non-essentials. And we still packed heavy.

So what have I learned? Our children will be carrying their own things. Family motto: Every Benoit for themselves.

2. I need to learn another language. South Africa possesses a remarkably diverse population and given that diversity they made all 11 languages spoken in the country an official language. Zulu, Xhosa, Afrikaans (a language derived from Dutch), and English are of the most common. Every South Africans we asked spoke at least a handful of languages. I can read Hebrew. Does that count as 2? 

Dominant languages in South Africa.

Afrikaans   English   Northern Sotho   Sotho   Southern Ndebele   Swazi

Tsonga   Tswana   Venda   Xhosa   Zulu   None dominant

3. Johannesburg is, unfortunately, known for its crime rate. I read that if you are stopped at a red light and someone runs up to the car, be prepared to break a traffic law or two in order to get away. Say what! With that we listened carefully to advice on where to go and that meant we didn’t see much of Jo’burg. The day we arrived to South Africa we stayed overnight in Sandton City, in the northern part of greater Johannesburg. Interesting fact: Sandton is considered the “richest square mile in Africa,” the economic hub of the continent.

4. On the second day a private driver named Mmeli drove us five hours from Sandton to Jock Safari Lodge in Kruger National Park in the Mpumalanga Province. Mpumalanga literally means “the place where the sun rises” in Swazi, Xhosa and Zulu. I just love that…and those sunrises were stunning! But what I learned here …and continued to learn throughout the trip… was that I was mispronouncing some words. Did I miss the English class where we learned that there are rules about what letters are silent before or after certain letters? My new cheat sheet…

silent 'k' before 'n'	knee	know	knuckle	knock
silent 'w' before 'r'	write	wrist	wrong	wrap
silent 'g' before 'n'	gnash	gnat	gnaw	gnarl
silent 'p' before 's'	psalm	psychic	psychology	psychiatry

Not sure if we can add silent ‘m’ before ‘p’ but Mpumalanga is pronounced with a silent ‘m’. And Knysna is NOT pronounced ‘Kin-snah’. We will get to that later…

5.  AIDS is a real problem in South Africa, especially in hetero relationships. The numbers are unbelievably sad. The estimated HIV prevalence nationally is 30%. 30%!! Just for reference, compare that to the United States where it’s 0.37%.

The disease is leaving millions of children orphaned, and the number of child-headed families is a growing concern for the government. Unlike in North America, the people suffering from AIDS in South Africa often do not have access to the drugs that could enable them to live a relatively healthy, normal life. The pandemic continues to outpace efforts to control it, which is why foundations like the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation with the goal to significantly reduce the incidence of HIV infection and extend the lives of people living with HIV is critical.

6. Kruger National Park in the Mpumalanga Province is the world’s oldest game reserve with 7,000 square miles of unspoiled wilderness and 147 species of mammals (more than any other African game reserve)! It is still very nearly pristine. Here you feel the magic of Africa’s enigmatic stillness; and when you see these magnificent animals in their natural habitat you clearly understand the allure of them.

Besides the Big Five (lion, leopard, elephant, buffalo, and rhino), the park is home to giraffes, zebras, cheetahs, hippos, impalas, hyenas, warthogs, kudu, springbok, wildebeest, baboons, vervet monkeys, helmeted guineafowl, yellow-billed hornbill, lilac-breasted rollers, crocodiles…the list goes on. We spotted all of the Big Five (which were famously nicknamed by early hunters because of their ferocity, power and courage) during our second drive!

Some things I learned about them…

Not surprisingly the African elephant is unmistakable and utterly majestic! You can’t help but be awed by the power and grace of these compassionate animals with their tight family ties. Herds consist of related females and their young. All decisions are made by the eldest of them, the matriarch. Reminds me of someone I know.

Lionesses raise cubs cooperatively, and cubs suckle from any placid lioness. In the wild, competition for food is fierce – more than 75% of all lion cubs die before reaching two years old. That was shocking.

The leopard is a stealthy, nocturnal predator who stalks their prey before grabbing them by the throat and suffocating them with their jaws. We watched a stalk, but I was hoping to see them leap up into a tree carrying their big dead snack.

The African or Cape buffalo is a powerful beast that is thought to be the most dangerous of the Big Five.

Two species of rhinoceros live in Africa; the black and the white. The names refer not to the color but to the width of the nose and mouth. Wyd (wide) in Afrikaans is pronounced vait. The white rhino has a wide mouth, hence its name. Both are similar in height, but the white rhino weighs twice as much as the black.

7. For five nights we stayed at Jock Safari Lodge, one of Kruger’s Private Lodges. This place gave me a glimpse of bygone days. We ate, slept and saw animals. It was glorious.

Our individual thatched room was an oasis. Napping on the outdoor day bed and awakening to the sound of elephants rubbing against bushes or giraffes eating the tops of the trees across the river was unforgettable. The space imparted this sense of aloneness and oneness with the landscape. OMG take me back!

The lodge is situated on 23 square miles of bushveld and for the exclusive use to the Jock guests. Our ranger Ben took us on daily morning and evening game drives where we saw breathtaking views of Kruger and spectacular game viewings. I loved spotting something unique in the wilderness (I hardly was the first one to spot the animals) while being equally entranced by the ever-changing colors of the sky. The beauty cannot be explained in words.

The chefs tempted us at every meal. Joey could not stop craving his first burger, and I was constantly looking for dishes with Danish feta. Every other night dinner was served boma style, under the stars in an outdoor dining area lit by the light of lanterns and a central fire. Here at the lodge we tried kudu loin, buffalo meat pie, springbok shank, warthog, peri-peri chicken and so much more. On our final evening we enjoyed a private dinner on our verandah, overlooking the river.  

8. We were sad to leave Jock, but happy to see Mmeli, our driver, again. This time instead of driving the most direct way back to Jo’burg we took the Panorama Route, which is said to be one of the most beautiful thoroughfares in South Africa. I really wanted to drive this route because of scenic landmarks with evocative names like God’s Window, Bourke’s Luck Potholes and the Three Rondawels. We stopped to see each of those and also saw part of the Blyde River Canyon, the third largest in the world, which is one of the great wonders of the African continent.

Besides the natural beauty of these vistas, I learned about forestry in South Africa. Who knew South Africa grew trees in an artificial man-made even-aged monoculture? Not me. Apparently, the introduction into South Africa of exotic forest tree species with much faster growth rates than indigenous species brought a major advantage to the timber industry and marked the first phase in domestication of forest species. I admit it doesn’t sound that interesting, especially compared to spotting wild animals on safari, but seeing miles upon miles upon miles of these precise tree farms is really something captivating.

9. We had an overnight in Johannesburg before flying south for a couple relaxing days along the Garden Route, so we spent it eating. (Surprise. Surprise.) We had a taste of the continent while eating a romantic dinner in a cozy alcove listening ~and dancing~ to a live African band playing soulful vibes.

The next day we were trying the world famous wild oysters of Knysna, a town in the Western Cape Province, and I was back to being schooled on pronunciation. Kind of like when I was calling La Jolla, “la joe-la” - for some reason I thought the town was pronounced “kin-snah kin-snah”. So not only was I completely butchering the word, but I duplicated it. Such an Amy thing to do… No wonder none of the locals knew where we were going! I finally figured it out after asking the receptionist where she recommended we try our first “kin-snah kin-snah oysters”.

For the record it’s pronounced “Nize-nah” and we agreed with the critics, Knysna oysters are some of the tastiest in the world. Joey continued to eat them at every meal for the rest of the trip.

So what we learned throughout our travels is that I need a guide to when not to pronounce silent letters. :) Or, that the food and drink are as varied as the country’s population. I’ve already thrown myself under the bus, so let’s stick with the latter.

We ate some quintessentially South African cuisine, where the cooking style is known as Cape Malay, which fused the cuisine of the Dutch at the Cape with that of the slaves they brought from Indonesia. We tried:

bobotie, similar to shepherd’s pie, curried minced meat topped with an egg custard

biltong, air-dried meat, flavored with salt and coriander and cut into long, thin strips

boerewors, sausage made from coarsely chopped meats and also spiced with coriander

crayfish, salty spiny lobster

melktert, or milk tart, milk-egg-sugar dessert custard prepped in a pastry shell

And Joey’s ALL-TIME FAVE --- Cape Dutch malva pudding, a kind of caramelized sponge cake, made with apricot jam, sometimes spiced with ginger, served hot and accompanied by custard. This will be the reason we return to South Africa one day. Who’s in? Zabe, I’m looking at you.

10. We left Knysna and headed to the southwesternmost tip of Africa, Cape Town, which was about six hours away. This time Joey was driving. On the opposite side of the car and road might I add. Rockstar rating earned.

As we approached the buzzing cosmopolitan seaport it felt like home. Set on a bay in the shadow of mountains Cape Town has some unmatched natural beauty. From the brightly colored Bo-Kaap quarter to the regality of the Victoria & Alfred Waterfront, from the cape to the monolithic Table Mountain, there is so much to see in such tight quarters. What I learned here is that we know how to make damn good use of our time. We tackled the whole peninsula in just a few days. Plus a trip to Kirstenbosch National Botanical Gardens, a couple museums, a dive with great whites, and at least a sunrise or sunset every day.

On one of our adventures we headed out before dawn to Cape Point, just 26 miles south, to catch sunrise and the dramatic views of crashing waves. WOW was it windy! Then we traveled up the east coast of the peninsula where we walked among penguins on Boulders Beach and grabbed yummy fish and chips (and watermelon and danish feta salad) at the Brass Bell in colorful Kalk Bay, a local fishing community.

And most of you know about our shark diving adventure. For those that don’t I’ll copy what I wrote on Facebook.

……….

((Key: 1 meter is 3.28 feet))

So our tour was originally scheduled for Thursday, but cancelled because of the large swells and strong easterly winds. I was nervous the tour would cancel on Friday too, but fortunately the weather cooperated.

We left from Kleinbaai, a small harbor town, part of Gansbaai in the Western Cape of South Africa. This area is known as a hotspot for the Great White Shark and the best place in the world to see and dive with these iconic creatures in their natural environment. South Africa boasts one of the largest concentrations of Great Whites and other shark species. It is believed that there are less than 5000 Great White Sharks left on the planet, and recent estimates suggest that 2000 of these are to be found in South African waters, emphasizing just how special their ecosystem is.

From the moment we headed out toward Joubertsdam the sun was out and it seemed to be a beautiful day. The 10-minute boat ride was bumpy. The swells were still very high. Once we made it to Joubertsdam we had the most difficult part to do...put on the super tight wet suit. That never gets easier and always looks ridiculous.

The first shark we spotted was quite small (1.9m). The biggest shark of the day was 4m and we also saw a familiar face to the area (dolphin fin) that they had not seen for some time. We saw between 9-11 sharks. Water temperature was high (16.4C or 61 degrees F) for this time of year. It's usually between 10-18C. Because of yesterday's weather visibility was poor under the water (0.5m).

We were the third group, out of 4, to dive. I don't care what they say the water was cold, but you kind of forget about it when you're clutching on to the handrail when sharks swim up to you. The cage is made out of a 25 mm galvanized mild steel frame and covered with 10 mm galvanized mild steel security mesh. You feel safe. There's a lid that covers the top of the cage. I didn't realize before we went, but the cage is always attached to the side of the boat. You can get out whenever you need to.

For me the adrenalin rush and exhilaration I got from being centimeters away from those apex predators with their powerful jaws and razor sharp teeth was crazy! As soon as I got out there was an open spot in the final group and I went right back in.

The truth is - it is 100% more likely for you to get killed by an object dropping from the sky than by a Great White Shark. Humans are not their chosen specie of prey. We are too large, bony, gory and sinewy compared to a soft, fatty and bite-size baby seal meal! Although... after the amount of food we've been devouring I feel more like a soft seal than a bony human.

……….

All that said, shark diving felt safer than scrambling up parts of Lion’s Head, a mountain between Table Mountain and Signal Hill.

On our last morning we were up and at ‘em before dawn (what I also learned: Joey may have converted to a morning person) for a private guided hike to the top of Lion’s Head. The pre-dawn sky was so clear and perfect for stargazing. At a couple points along the path we had to use our hands to ascend rocky ridges, or scramble up the mountain. Oh! and a series of chains and ladders to assist since this particular section was basically vertical. All I had to do was hop in a cage to see sharks. We hit the top minutes before sunrise for astoundingly dramatic views over both the city and the Atlantic Seaboard. What a magnificent perspective over the “Mother City”… on Mother’s Day. (I had to.)

We made it down just to go back up again. This time we ascended to the flat plateau of Table Mountain via cable car. Our legs were done. The coolest part of Table Mountain was the “tablecloth” of clouds that often cover the mountaintop due to rapid changes in the weather. Legend attributes this phenomenon to a smoking contest between the devil and a local pirate. Who knows? 

What I do know is this was a trip of a lifetime!!! So many unforgettable adventures with the love of my life, the malva pudding & oyster loving, left or right side driving, PHENOMENAL photographer Joey. Now go check out his photos! 

P.S. Videos to come.