I know, most of you have been holding your breath with anticipation. When will Greta finally nurse her hangover enough to actually tell the rest of the world what goes on inside this “closed – invite only event?” Well sit back & laugh while I turn my tale of chaos for the world to read. (you know you have to read the whole post)

Hubby dropped me at Hotel Barrone at 5:00. I stayed in the lobby with all our junk as he tried to park the car (hair & make-up done at the house). I love drunk people trying to book hotel rooms who “lost” their credit cards & ID. Yes, I chuckled behind their backs. The bummer was – most people were promised their room ready at 3:00 & none were ready yet – but OURS!!!!

Went up, cracked a beer, walked down the street for a bite to eat. I felt like I was breaking a law walking down the street with an open beer. We went to a little sub shop where the owners were charging a buck to use the facilities. A dollar, I might add, that many women were more than eager to part with! We decided to walk back to the hotel with our subs & crack ANOTHER beer during our fine dining. Did I fail to mention, Bacchus is BYOB & BYOfood? Yep – for real – ball gowns, tuxes & a cooler in tow!

We plotted our map strategy over our dinner & beer and then eagerly got into our evening duds. We walked about a block to get to our car (thank goodness I got fairly low & comfy shoes). We figured we should drive to the Convention Center (only 8 blocks) because we had the “Golden Ticket “(aka free parking pass). 45 minutes later we were back in the garage from which we started. As someone who lived in Maine before, the expression, “You can’t get there from here” came to mind! At least you can’t with the BACCHUS PARADE GOING THROUGH THE CITY!

Plan B in order and it is only about 7:00 now. The parade starts about 5:30 & we were told to be at the Ball between 8 & 8:30 so we could see the parade there (it actually comes inside the building). So we started walking through New Orleans in our evening attire. Hubby had the job of hauling the cooler on wheels through the streets as I tried to keep my hair & make-up together & lift my gown so it wouldn’t get trashed. We walked & we walked & we walked. Getting bored yet?

Well low & behold, the Convention Center is on the OTHER SIDE of the DANG PARADE & yes, police barricades EVERYWHERE!!! Hubby knew I had a better chance than him to “sweet talk” an officer into letting us through. But the wonderful people of New Orleans all knew where we were headed – they begged for us. The ladies helped me lift my gown through the crowd & guys helped hubby lift the cooler. Police Officer A had to ask Police Officer B & C & D. Because this is their #1 rule – DON’T LET ANY MORONS THROUGH THE BARRIERS!!!

Major hurdle, but we were through & d’oh – the parade loops back again before it enters the Convention Center & you have to cross AGAIN!!!! At this point we didn’t feel too bad, because we seemed to have entered into a world of people in formal attire towing coolers. I knew some of them were veterans to this as the women had on sneakers! So we followed & followed & followed! Of course you couldn’t take a direct route, you had to go AROUND the parade!

9:00 and disheveled Cinderella & Prince Charming arrive at the Ball. Now where the hell is our table – oh heck who needs a a table when you can just stand in a open area, crack a beer & catch beads. We met some really fun people there & hung there for the next hour or 2 (lost track of time). As the parade ended, we decided to finally find our table. It only had one other couple from hubby’s work & we opened up our food to share. Brie & bread & Nachos & my home-made Salsa. Then the band started playing & we danced, walked around & I consumed the most alcohol in my adult life that I can remember! We never saw James Gandolfino (Tony Soprano) or the guest that invited us. We didn’t have wrist-bands to go into the police-guarded VIP section.

Hubby & I had soooooooo much fun. We got a cab back to the hotel around 2:30 (only $8) & woke up at 10:30. We headed back to the house where my friends were watching the kids. I did not feel good at ALL! After the friends left, I slept until the next day which was Fat Tuesday. We got up, did parades, drank some more with our neighbors & now it is Thursday! Where did the week go? Who cares – I LOVE IT HERE!!!!

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