Grant and I fly to New Orleans early Saturday morning. It is exciting to be at the game because Colin Kaepernick either will or will not start — I sure think he will — and there will be so much at stake and so much drama on the field.  It is a privilege to cover a game like this.

From a personal standpoint, I’m taking Grant to New Orleans and he’s never been there. “I don’t know what to expect,” he told me. I told him just wait and see. We’re having dinner at Commander’s Palace. I always ate there with Ira Miller, so this is an homage to the old days. But it’s also a unique, one-in-a-million restaurant, so I’m also going there for the food.

Commander’s is in the Garden District, but I’ll also take Grant for a walk in the French Quarter.

I consider New Orleans one of the three great road trips in America. They are, in no particular order, New York, San Francisco, New Orleans.

Other excellent road trips: Seattle, Chicago, Boston.

Good road trips: San Diego, St. Louis — if you limit yourself to the Central West End.

A not so hot road trip: Houston.

I may have written a similar post in the past and ranked the cities differently. I can’t remember. This is how I feel today.