Made it to Louisiana

We did stop as we entered Louisiana so Norm could have his picture taken with the Louisiana sign. Goodness, Norm is a little guy . . you have to look hard to see him sitting down there on the first step. Norm is such a good traveler. He could teach Chad a few rules of the road. Next stop was our favorite crawfish hole -- Steamboat Bill's in Lake Charles. Norm was happy to look but I don't think he had any interest in tasting the mud bugs! It's always so good to get crawfish after not having them for a year. Next stop was the hotel. I think AAA needs some serious help with their rating system. Granted we're traveling with a dog and finding a hotel that allows pets isn't always easy to do but . . I wouldn't call this place a dump but I'll be real happy when check out day arrives. The first thing we noticed upon arrival was that the roof is (or was) covered in tarps. This is a picture of the hotel taken from across the street. Notice the tarps? Yes, there was a hurricane here 6 months ago and I understand the construction work is going very, very slowly here. We get in the elevator and the maintenance guy is in there. I ask him "when it rains, does it leak?" He said "I ain't saying a word!" I said "But, does it leak in the rooms when it rains?" His response - "I ain't saying a word!" This is something hanging down from the roof .. not real sure what but it is dangling outside our window. The whole place smells funny. You know how it smells when people try to cover up stink with too much cheap smell good. My dad told us the hotel had 8 feet of water during the hurricane. That probably explains the smell. The good news is that we've been here a few hours and I'm starting not to notice the smell. After being here 7 nights, I'll probably think this place smells normal. Despite the damage from the hurricane, this is still such a pretty place. This is the sunset overlooking the lake. The I-10 bridge that I don't want to cross is in the picture too! The best news is . . tomorrow there's a quilt show across the street at the Civic Center. Some of the vendors are staying in this hotel and I talked to them in the parking lot. Oh, I can't close out this entry without sharing this picture. My dad is the funniest man! We were looking at some storm damage pictures and I just had to share this one. Dad was cutting limbs off the roof and somehow one managed to pop him in the face. He had a cap on one of his front teeth and it got knocked off too. He turned in his dental bill to FEMA and they wouldn't pay it! :) Judy