Ramblings From the South: Day 6

For someone who hardly rang in the new year in the same fashion as those on Bourbon Street, I woke up more exhausted and sluggish than I expected. Other hotel guestsdrifted by one another in the eating area, exchanging the same drowsy nod, signaling "You had a rough one too, huh?"

After housekeeping continually inquired if we still wanted our rooms cleaned, we made our way out the door. Heavily recommended by a native Louisianan we know back home, we spent the afternoon at the National World War II Museum, located just three blocks from our hotel . A seemingly peculiar place for such a museum, it does an incredible job of capturing and presenting not just the European front of the war, but also giving the Asia-Pacific War a thorough and impressive examination. Similarly, a well-done 4-D film, narrated by Tom Hanks, detailed the war efforts from the U.S.'s initial isolationist policy to the Allies' triumphs in Italy, Germany, and Japan. I realized how fortunate we are that we don't live in an era with the same fears and dangers, but I also realized that that fortune only came to be because the admirable feats and prevailing efforts of those that lived in a time where that was an everyday reality.

Following the museum and mass that would only take place in New Orleans, we made our best attempt to eat dinner, despite the restaurant's service's best efforts to prevent us for doing so. Fortunately, but eventually unfortunately, my dad's beloved Dallas Cowboys were playing in a season-defining and -ending game against the New York Giants to distract us at least a little bit.

There's not too much to tell from today, but I don't say that regrettably. Having covered hundreds of miles by car and on foot over the past five days, along with the sights we've seen along the way, we've earned a lazy and relaxing day, which seems counterintuitive to say on a vacation, and I think I'll do the same with this entry too.