Wedding Blog

I went to New Orleans for a couple of days in January of this year with a good friend of mine — it was definitely one of my all time favorite vacations!  Unfortunately I lost a good portion of the pictures I took when my computer crashed, but I had to share the utter awesomeness that is New Orleans with you, so here goes!

We started our first day with a trolley ride uptown for brunch at the highly Bee recommended Dante’s Kitchen.  Unfortunately it was closed, so we ate at the Camellia Grill — luckily it was delicious!  We had their famous chocolate freezes…

…with their pecan waffle and a chili and cheese omelette with fries.  Artery clogging deliciousness!

After brunch we followed the Garden District Tour outlined in the Frommer’s New Orleans guidebook. Whether you decide to walk the tour yourself or go on a guided tour, this is a must do for your New Orleans trip.  The variety of architectural details, the history, and celebrity houses galore was fascinating!

This house below was owned by Anne Rice and her family.

I think this is Nicolas Cage’s house below.  You can’t really tell in the picture, but it’s a ginormous mansion!

Horse Parking

The Lafayette Cemetery

We had a very yummy dinner at another famous New Orleans restaurant, The Palace Cafe.

At the time we were obsessed with Twilight, so we had to do a Vampire Tour in the French Quarter.

Don’t our guides look like vampires?!

We had to have a hurricane from Pat O’Brien’s.

We came on the weekend of the Sugar Bowl, so the streets were filled with Utah and Alabama football fans!

Bourbon Street

We started the next day bright and early with the beignets at Cafe Du Monde.

Even the horses were beedazzled!

St. Louis Cathedral

This shop in the French Quarter had weapons, plantation keys, deeds of sales for slaves, money from when each state used to issue its own currency - a fascinating glimpse into southern history!

Remember that scene in Interview with a Vampire when they’re carrying out all the coffins of the bodies that Tom Cruise and Kirsten Dunst have killed?  This is that building!

I was obsessed with all the colorful plantation shutter doors.

This was one of the highlights of the trip — a muffaletta from the Central Grocery.  It’s a plate sized sandwich made of cheese, olive salad, and various cured meats.  All the food in New Orleans is to die for, but this was my single favorite meal!

These college kids were asking us to flash them in exchange for beads.

We even scored some tix for the Sugar Bowl! (Utah won.)

We bought them off this couple, who were very recently engaged!

We took a ferry across the river to visit Mardi Gras World!  Riding on a Mardi Gras float is now on my bucket list!

This trip was all about the food.  I ate so much, I couldn’t fit into the only pair of jeans that I brought.  I had to buy the dress below and wear it everyday to accommodate the 3 pounds I gained in my stomach over one weekend!

Harry Connick Jr. has the most prestigious krewe, called Orpheus.  You have to pay I think $2000 to ride on the float, and spend another $1000 or so on beads to toss!

Oysters, fried crawfish, jambalaya, and gumbo at Felix’s Restaurant and Oyster Bar.

Another absolute must do is listening to jazz at Preservation Hall.  I can’t say I’m a huge jazz buff, but this show was phenomenol!

Not pictured but we also:

• had brunch with the adorable BOPS!
• ate delicious po boys at Mothers
• did a cemetery tour of St. Louis No 1
• visited City Park (it was deserted and is still recovering from Hurricane Katrina)
• stayed at the International House (a very nice hotel conveniently located 2 blocks from the hubbub of the French Quarter)

Please feel free to comment with any questions about New Orleans, or if you have any suggestions for places I should visit next time!  I don’t often visit a place more than once because there are so many places to see in the world, but New Orleans is one place that I must definitely return to with Mr. Bee.   The food! The culture!  The history!  The partying!  Whether you’re looking for a great minimoon, bachelor or bachelorette party destination or just a little getaway, New Orleans truly offers a little something for everyone!  I’d come here over Vegas any day!