Well, our vacation is over and I’m back at work…ugh! I finally have all my pictures edited, so today I want to recap some of the highlights of our trip! I have so many other stories and pictures, but I won't overload you with everything.
We left Phoenix Monday morning and arrived in New Orleans that evening. We had a layover in Houston and our flight was delayed an hour because of rain in New Orleans. But we made it!
We started off Tuesday morning with beignets from Café du Monde…and they were delicious! My mom said they were the best thing she ate the whole trip. While we were there I bought a box of mix to try to make them at home. We'll see how they turn out...
We spent the rest of the morning/early afternoon exploring the French Quarter,
Jackson Square,
and St. Louis Cathedral.
Oh, and we tried a muffuletta from Central Grocery...I didn't like the olive spread.
Anyway, that afternoon we took a food tour through the French Quarter. It was really nice, except that it was pouring rain the whole time!
That night I had my favorite meal of the trip - BBQ Shrimp at Deanie’s. YUM, YUM, YUM!
Can you tell that we spent a lot of time eating?
The next day we went on an airboat tour through the swamp!
And it was one of the coolest things I’ve ever done. If you ever go there, I highly recommend it – it was the highlight of our trip! We went with The Louisiana Tour Company and had a great experience. Oh, and pay the extra $20/person to get on the smaller airboat. It’s definitely worth it! Airboats don’t have reverse, so the bigger ones can’t get into the same areas as the small ones…and that’s where we saw all the gators!
That’s Hercules. He’s about 14 feet long and about 50 years old.
Our guide was very knowledgeable (and ADORABLE). He told us all about alligators, the vegetation, the swamp and everything else you could want to know about the area.
The next day we took a walking tour through St. Louis Cemetery #1.
We took a group tour because reviews online said it wasn’t safe to go by yourself. And they said it’s a giant maze and you could easily get lost. I think that’s complete crap. It’s not that big and if you go during the day there are plenty of people and other tours around. You can get a self-guided tour booklet and walk through yourself. Maybe I’m just crabby because it was really hot and our tour guide was talking WAY too much. Regardless, the cemetery was definitely interesting and creepy.
And Friday morning we boarded our plane back to Phoenix. We had an amazing trip and all enjoyed our time in New Orleans. Let me know if you ever need recommendations. I’m definitely not an expert, but I can share a few things we liked/didn’t like.
Now that it’s almost summer, anyone else have any fun trips planned? I’m trying to convince my boyfriend that we need to go to Seattle for a few days this summer.
Looks like a great trip! :)
ReplyDeleteOh my gosh that looks like so much fun! We are trying to go there within the next 2 years...just me and hubby. I'll keep this post in mind when I'm booking!
ReplyDeleteI hate group tours. I would have been kinda crabby about that, too. We like wandering and getting kinda lost and figuring out our own adventures!
Wow looks like you had a fabulous trip! I would love to go there. Scarlett x
ReplyDeleteso jealous, i love cafe du monde. it's where i had my first iced coffee and now i'm addicted. that was almost 18 years ago! yikes i'm old.
ReplyDeleteGreat pictures! I went to New Orleans years ago, 2001. One of the coolest things I remember doing was a Ghost Tour. All the creepy history like bars that were once morgues(where you beer is kept cold is where dead bodies once laid. EW!).
ReplyDeleteExcept for the swamp tour and shrimp, I did everything you did! The cemetery tour was so informative, I'm glad we paid for a guide. I can see it being unsafe, but I can't see how one would get lost in it...weird.
ReplyDeleteEating is one of the best parts of vacation. :). Cool shots you got of New Orleans! You should definitely check out Seattle. The summer months are hard to beat up there.
ReplyDeleteYou are so lucky! I've always wanted to visit New Orleans. Someday...
ReplyDeleteWow! That is an impressive amount of ground to cover in just a few days! I've been stalking on your FB waiting for pictures to post! I love that you went to the cemetery! It's so steeped in lore and history that it gets my little English major brain spinning! (Think Anne Rice.. Interview with a Vampire... yeah. That's your BBFF!) lol. I'm glad that you are back and I'm glad that you had a fantastic time!
ReplyDeleteNow I want to go to New Orleans.
Yay!
Looks like you had a blast Sam. I hope to one day take a trip down there :)
ReplyDeleteI would love to go to New Orleans (I've never been to the USA at all yet, but New York is on the agenda for my anniversary next year) - it seems to have a lot of history. Amazing photos, although when I went to Cuba I was way too near the crocodiles for my liking - definitely not sure about giant alligators!
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