I just got back from a couple of days in New Orleans, exploring the French Quarter for the first time. Arrived on Saturday, which seemed to be the day they were observing Halloween, based on the costumes and parades and wild partying in the streets--or is that the way people behave in New Orleans all the time? I was never sure who was in costume and who was just eccentric or on some heavy medication (or forgot to take it) --does this guy wear nothing but a purple bathrobe year-round or was he one of the revelers?
Anyway, this is about pipe smoking, so I'll say that I thoroughly enjoyed the freedom to smoke almost anywhere, and even got an encouraging "that tobacco really smells great" from a fellow quaffer in a bar (for the Pipes and Wilkes 13 I was smoking). On Saturday I stumbled onto a tobacco shop somewhere off Bourbon Street, with lots of jars of tobacco blends and a nice selection of pipes. I bought a tin of Orlik Golden Sliced, and the proprietor showed me some of his own hand-crafted pipes, and invited me to come back later to smoke and chat, but when I went out later to find his shop again on Sunday, I couldn't remember where it was. I ended up at another shop, the Tobacco Exchange, where I met a friendly shop keeper who let me check out lots of pipes and tobacco. They had a blend called Three Virgins and a Frenchman that they were sold out of (wish I could have tried some of that!) so I picked up some McClelland 5100 instead. I finally found my way back to the Sheraton; maybe one day I'll go back for that house-blended VaPer, or maybe they could ship it.
Anyway, this is about pipe smoking, so I'll say that I thoroughly enjoyed the freedom to smoke almost anywhere, and even got an encouraging "that tobacco really smells great" from a fellow quaffer in a bar (for the Pipes and Wilkes 13 I was smoking). On Saturday I stumbled onto a tobacco shop somewhere off Bourbon Street, with lots of jars of tobacco blends and a nice selection of pipes. I bought a tin of Orlik Golden Sliced, and the proprietor showed me some of his own hand-crafted pipes, and invited me to come back later to smoke and chat, but when I went out later to find his shop again on Sunday, I couldn't remember where it was. I ended up at another shop, the Tobacco Exchange, where I met a friendly shop keeper who let me check out lots of pipes and tobacco. They had a blend called Three Virgins and a Frenchman that they were sold out of (wish I could have tried some of that!) so I picked up some McClelland 5100 instead. I finally found my way back to the Sheraton; maybe one day I'll go back for that house-blended VaPer, or maybe they could ship it.