Day 2

Away, away, away down south to Dixie...

Left Chattanooga, TN 10:30AM EST.  With stops in Birmingham, AL; Tuscaloosa, AL; and Laurel, MS.  Final destination New Orleans, LA approx. 9PM Central Time.  500 miles.

Woke up refreshed in Chattanooga.  Listened to death metal, had three cups of coffee, and ate the best pancakes on the planet at Aretha Frankensteins.  What a treat!

Driving tour of downtown and the country club followed, led by none other than one of our best friends in the entire world - Evan.   

Said goodbye to Evan (at where else, the liquor store) and hit the road for (sweet home) Alabama.

 Arrived at Birmingham at noon on the dot, and joined Christopher and Helen for a delightful lunch at Demitri's BBQ.  Killer baked beans, our first taste of fried pie (it certainly will not be our last), and company that kept us laughing and made us feel at home.

Christopher took hospitality a step further by giving us a driving tour of Mountain Brook, AL.  Truly one of the most elegant towns in the country, bar none.  How fortunate it was to get a tour by a local - Thanks to Christopher and Helen.

And what a view from the top of the mountain of downtown Birmingham...

From Birmingham, we floored it down to New Orleans, but not before we stopped at the University of Alabama [Note: Evan made us a CD of Southern Songs - aka country music mostly about Tennessee -  for this southern leg of our journey.  Serendipitously, the University of Tennessee fight song came on as the Alabama football stadium came into first view.  Now, there's a rivalry.] .  Explored the football stadium.

Invited ourselves to the Phi Gamm house.

After we left Tuscaloosa, we took the liberty of driving shirtless (in our defense, it was a scorching 100 degrees) at very high sustained speeds...

Hit the 1000 mile mark on the journey somewhere in MS.

Pulled into New Orleans at around 9.  Checked into the quaint hotel and met up with Farrell for dinner and drinks in the French Quarter.  Fun time on Bourbon Street on a Thursday night!  Thanks to Chris for showing us his city and for the Hurricanes and Hand Grenades.

Off to see more of the Crescent City after a much needed night of rest.  

All the Road's Best,
The Dudes