Summer Roadtrip 09

[Lucinda]

We did consider buses and trains, but it seemed more secure and easier to be able to drive wherever we wanted if we got our own hired car. We're two girls, so we'll be lugging around heavy suitcases - which would be a hassle if we had to use trains and buses all the time.
I've been using tripadvisor for hotel reviews, which is a brilliant website. However, New Orleans has become a stumbling block at the moment when it comes to choosing hotels.

I've come across a place called Crescent Palms motel, which is down Martin Luther King Blvd. There's only one review on tripadvisor, which is a positive one, but it seems too good to be true. It claims to be ''located in the heart of New Orleans, minutes from the French Quarter, Superdome and other local attractions.'' It came to $190 for 3 nights, and the pictures look really nice. So there must be something wrong with it lol Is it in a bad area? Is anyone familiar with it?

Thanks everyone :)

[glc]

I've not had any problems with the newer Motel 6's outside of cities, but the old ones and the ones in cities are pretty bad. Look at the outside and look around the lobby - if it looks well-kept, the rooms should be fine. If it looks dingy, it's probably a fleatrap. I don't stay there much, I usually do Super 8, and the same thing applies.

Lucinda, let me give you a tip, at the risk of being called a racist - anything that's on Martin Luther King Blvd. in *any* city is not a place where a couple of young Caucasian ladies should probably be, especially if they are unfamiliar with the particular city.

[Lucinda]

I've not had any problems with the newer Motel 6's outside of cities, but the old ones and the ones in cities are pretty bad. Look at the outside and look around the lobby - if it looks well-kept, the rooms should be fine. If it looks dingy, it's probably a fleatrap. I don't stay there much, I usually do Super 8, and the same thing applies.

Lucinda, let me give you a tip, at the risk of being called a racist - anything that's on Martin Luther King Blvd. in *any* city is not a place where a couple of young Caucasian ladies should probably be, especially if they are unfamiliar with the particular city.

Oh damn. I was a bit wary when it said on the website that it was the first motel opened in the 60's that allowed black people. I thought maybe it was only for black people. It looks all kitsch and fun, but I google mapped the road, and had a look around in street view, and it looked like the pictures were taken after hurricane katrina or something. Maybe it was? It's renovated now, but that street looked scary.

Back to the drawing board then!

[Lucinda]

Hello again,
I was looking at the walmart website, to get some ideas on the kind of food thats cheap and easy to prepare when there's just a microwave in your hotel room, instead of spending money eating out.
I tried to search for juice mixers, like the 'robinsons squash' that we have in the UK, but I can't find anything even vaguely similar. Does America not have cordial? I find it really hard to drink water, so being able to find the American version of this would be brilliant.

For anyone isn't sure what I'm going on about, here's wikpedia's description:
Squash (also cordial) is a highly-sweetened fruit-based concentrate which is mixed with a liquid, most commonly water or seltzer, before drinking.[1] It is also the name of the resulting drink.
Squashes and cordials are common in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Scandinavia, South Africa, Kenya, Australia, Israel and New Zealand, and have a large market share in competition with fruit juices and soft drinks.
Typically, squash is created by mixing one part concentrate with four or five parts water (depending on concentration and personal taste) directly into a glass or mug or into a jug. Common flavours are orange, apple, grape, raspberry, blackcurrant, lemon, peppermint, mixed fruit, lemon, peach, strawberry, and kiwi fruit.
Manufacturers of squash include Britvic under the Robinsons and MiWadi brands, Nichols (under the Vimto brand), GlaxoSmithKline (under the Ribena brand) and Coca-Cola (under the Kia-Ora brand). Australian brands include Cottees, Bickford's, P&N Beverages and Golden Circle cordials.'

Please help!
Lucy x

[Mass Tim]

Hello again,
I was looking at the walmart website, to get some ideas on the kind of food thats cheap and easy to prepare when there's just a microwave in your hotel room, instead of spending money eating out.
I tried to search for juice mixers, like the 'robinsons squash' that we have in the UK, but I can't find anything even vaguely similar. Does America not have cordial? I find it really hard to drink water, so being able to find the American version of this would be brilliant.

When I think of squash, I think of vegetables. We do have concentrated fruit juice available, and it should be labeled as such. Most likely you will find these in the frozen foods section. I can't recall seeing any that are at room temperature.

I'm also glad to see I'm not the only person on here that prints out these pages of information about things to do and places to see and puts them into some form of book (I get mine bound at Staples).

[Southwest Dave]

It would appear to be only available through specialist stores and not very popular. I think the equivalent in America is in a powder form and known as Kool aid.

[MrsPete]

I tried to search for juice mixers, like the 'robinsons squash' that we have in the UK, but I can't find anything even vaguely similar. Does America not have cordial? I find it really hard to drink water, so being able to find the American version of this would be brilliant.

No, we consider a "cordial" a tiny after-dinner drink, usually made with a super-sweet liquor.

I remember a couple years ago there was a product like you're describing that was available for a short period of time. It was kept at room temperature, and it was in a 12-ounce can like a soda. You mixed it with water and it made a fruit juice. I think it was one of those products that never "made it" here.

I think you'd be pleased with Crystal Lite singles, Kool-Aid singles, or Power-Aid singles. Oh, Country Time is another name brand. I've also bought store-brands that were equally good to the name brands. These are small packets of powder that you pour into a standard-sized bottle of water. I like the lemonade or pink lemonade that's made by several companies, and the fruit punch is okay, but the tea is to be avoided! Kool-Aid is more of a kid's drink (and you need 2 packets for an adult-sized water), while the other name-brands are less sweet and aimmed at an adult palate.

Here's a website I've looked at -- but never ordered from -- that may have such things: minimus
I saved that website thinking that I might one day need to order things for a trip. Before we make a trip, I do like to "save up" individual packets of mayonaise, mustard, etc. from fast food restaurants. My husband is the only person in our family who eats condiments, so I don't like to have big bottles taking up cooler space.

[Lucinda]

Thanks for the replies everyone. The tips and suggestions have honestly been great and such a help in planning this.

At the moment, I'm trying to figure out the route from New Orleans to Clarksdale, Mississippi to include driving the Natchez Trace Parkway.

As we're coming from the south, I think that means that we don't get to go to the visitors centre and get all the information on the Natchez Parkway? Is there many historical things to see on the way up to Clarksdale? It seems that as we are only driving so far as Clarksdale, we'll be missing out on a lot of things that are start of the parkway from Tennessee? I'm not 100% on all of this, so any help would greatly appreciated. If anyone can think of a great route to take to get on to the parkway, and what sites are along the part we'll be driving, it would be brilliant.

Thanks again everyone
Lucy x

[Lucinda]

P.S
So far I've google mapped the route, and the route it's given me takes me close to 'Washington' and 'Selma'. I can see that it has taken me to the Natchez Trace, but it turns into Traceway Drive. Am I completely wrong, or is this the same thing?

[Lucinda]