We went down to the French Quarter today and I'm sure it won't be our last visit as we have still missed seeing or doing a few things.

Our first stop was to be Cafe du Monde for Beignets but the line up was too long so we continued walking by. Next time we go down will be during the week so hopefully there won't be a line up. Our first stop was the Old US Mint. Borrowed from it's website "The Old U.S. Mint holds the distinct title of being the only mint to have produced both American and Confederate coinage. Completed in 1838, it was designed by William Strickland of Philadelphia, who also designed the Second Bank of the U.S., the Philadelphia Mint and the Tennessee State Capitol. The simple, classic style of the building reflects the Greek Revival era."

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The Old US Mint building.

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The automatic weighing machine was used to weigh and sort gold planchets (the blank coin).

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On the 2nd floor of the mint were a couple of exhibits. One exhibit was musical instruments and old photos of musicians. The second exhibit was Picture of the Year International of the Year. Many of the photos were of news events like the bombing at the Boston Marathon.

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"Sadie Bezzant is crushed by a sheep during the pre-rodeo entertainment of mutton busting during the Strawberry Days Rodeo in Pleasant Grove, Utah." This photo won 2nd place in the Recreational Sports category.

Our neighbour at home e-mailed me a link to an article on the Internet about a restaurant in New Orleans called Coops. When Ed was looking for the best Jambalaya in New Orleans he came across Coops. The guide books I purchased both gave Coops a good review. With all these good reviews Coops was our destination for lunch. Our timing was a little off so we ended waiting about 20 minutes for a table to free up --- the line grew quickly behind us so we figured it was worth the wait.

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It's a small restaurant and very loud for our old ears but Ed and I thought the Jambalaya was really good. Ed also really enjoyed the spicey Bloody Mary.

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The French Market is like a large flea market, lots of little eateries and lots of vendors.

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You can tell Mardi Gras and its associated parades is approaching. Decorations are springing up everywhere.

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We found the 2nd cornstalk fence. This one is on Royal Street in the French Quarter. Notice that the corn cobs are painted yellow.

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We walked down Bourbon street, hopefully for the last time.

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This woman saw Ed and his camera and talked him into giving her a tip in exchange for letting him take her photo.