Great Big House in New Orleans
Willie and I are back from the Big Easy! And I must say, it was quite disappointing to come back and discover that the temperature inside my apartment is colder than it was outside in New Orleans AT NIGHT. But enough of that. It would be remiss of me not to share the details of such a wonderful trip, so here I go!
We arrived at our super conveniently-located hotel after a long, but drama-free flight on Monday evening. Since it was already somewhat late and we were tired from the trip, we turned in early after taking a nice walk around the French Quarter and eating dinner at one of its many restaurants. We shared a dozen oysters on the half shell which were served with an incredibly spicy cocktail sauce. Then I had a pulled pork po' boy and Willie had rice and beans with sausage. We also took a trip to the grocery store where we got some PB&J for sandwiches to save some money, but we couldn't help getting a six-pack of the local beer. We were impressed at how many places sold liquor--even the CVS!
On Tuesday, we walked around some more. The French Quarter is so unique and beautiful that you can get a different feeling on every street. We picked up some chicory coffee and beignets at Cafe du Monde and perused the French market. Then we headed up to the slightly creepy, yet picturesque St. Louis cemetery. After a brief stop at the hotel for a lunch of PB&J's and leftover beer, we rode the streetcar through the garden district to the lovely Audubon park. Willie took my picture by the place where they filmed that scene in Benjamin Button, but much to his relief, I didn't pose like a ballerina. After the park, we were in the mood for a drink, so it was off to Pat O'Brien's where we got to taste the original Hurricane recipe, and oh lordy, it was so delicious that I didn't realize I was getting tipsy. By then it was time to start thinking about dinner, so we went back to the hotel where we were met with some unfortunate news from back in NYC which was a big buzz kill. Luckily, with a little help from Brad, our hotel concierge and his magical binder of delivery menus, we were soon full of cheap and delicious meatloaf, mashed potatoes, and muffaletta, which made us feel much better despite an early evening.
Wednesday was the big day: dinner reservations at K-Paul's and a Mardi Gras parade in the evening. Although the weather forecast looked grim, we didn't get any rain at all, just clouds and a bit of humidity, which were not enough to spoil a nice, warm day. We both wanted to take a boat ride, so we took the free ferry over to Algiers, which was disappointingly devoid of things to do, so we came back and decided to walk around the business district where we found a South Street Seaport-esque area complete with stores. Back up at Canal Street, I found a memory card for my new camera, since I had already filled up the one that it came with. After a short rest and costume change at the hotel, it was finally time for the main event! I will not soon forget how dinner at K-Paul's tasted. Even the side of vegetables was amazing. I had a "pirogue" which was a base of fried eggplant served with lobster, scallops and shrimp in a delectable, creamy mushroom and leek sauce. Willie went for the three-course special: turtle soup, perfectly-fried and seasoned chicken with a side of spicy jambalaya, and decadent bread pudding. It was so delicious, but so heavy that I was glad to have the opportunity to walk it off at the Druid parade. The parade got a bit of a late start, but it was still neat to see all of the floats and try to catch some beads. Oddly enough, all the ones I got were green. It was a memorable night.
Our flight back to NYC was at 6:30 on Thursday, so we still had plenty of time to enjoy the city. We started out with the Museum of Southern Food and Drink/Museum of the American Cocktail, which was interesting despite its small size. We then walked over to the Contemporary Arts Center, which we heard was free on Thursdays. Unfortunately, it wasn't. It also wasn't worth the $3 student price. Anyone who's been to the Centre Pompidou with me knows that I'm not a big modern art fan, but I can usually find something to appreciate or amusing enough to make fun of. This was not the case here. It was just plain barren and creepy. So we had our PB&J's and walked back over to the French Market, but we still had some time to kill before the flight, so we watched a fun street band for a while and then gave in to temptation and went back to Pat O'Brien's. This time I had a yummy Bloody Mary. Luckily, we left the hotel with enough time to get to the airport despite the traffic, and then we were on our way.
It was really an amazing trip. Since it was my first time going on a vacation with a significant other, I would have been happy just not being sick of Willie at the end. What I got was so much more. We had fun every day and still wanted to squeeze each other when we got home last night. It was a wonderful, well-deserved vacation.
We arrived at our super conveniently-located hotel after a long, but drama-free flight on Monday evening. Since it was already somewhat late and we were tired from the trip, we turned in early after taking a nice walk around the French Quarter and eating dinner at one of its many restaurants. We shared a dozen oysters on the half shell which were served with an incredibly spicy cocktail sauce. Then I had a pulled pork po' boy and Willie had rice and beans with sausage. We also took a trip to the grocery store where we got some PB&J for sandwiches to save some money, but we couldn't help getting a six-pack of the local beer. We were impressed at how many places sold liquor--even the CVS!
On Tuesday, we walked around some more. The French Quarter is so unique and beautiful that you can get a different feeling on every street. We picked up some chicory coffee and beignets at Cafe du Monde and perused the French market. Then we headed up to the slightly creepy, yet picturesque St. Louis cemetery. After a brief stop at the hotel for a lunch of PB&J's and leftover beer, we rode the streetcar through the garden district to the lovely Audubon park. Willie took my picture by the place where they filmed that scene in Benjamin Button, but much to his relief, I didn't pose like a ballerina. After the park, we were in the mood for a drink, so it was off to Pat O'Brien's where we got to taste the original Hurricane recipe, and oh lordy, it was so delicious that I didn't realize I was getting tipsy. By then it was time to start thinking about dinner, so we went back to the hotel where we were met with some unfortunate news from back in NYC which was a big buzz kill. Luckily, with a little help from Brad, our hotel concierge and his magical binder of delivery menus, we were soon full of cheap and delicious meatloaf, mashed potatoes, and muffaletta, which made us feel much better despite an early evening.
Wednesday was the big day: dinner reservations at K-Paul's and a Mardi Gras parade in the evening. Although the weather forecast looked grim, we didn't get any rain at all, just clouds and a bit of humidity, which were not enough to spoil a nice, warm day. We both wanted to take a boat ride, so we took the free ferry over to Algiers, which was disappointingly devoid of things to do, so we came back and decided to walk around the business district where we found a South Street Seaport-esque area complete with stores. Back up at Canal Street, I found a memory card for my new camera, since I had already filled up the one that it came with. After a short rest and costume change at the hotel, it was finally time for the main event! I will not soon forget how dinner at K-Paul's tasted. Even the side of vegetables was amazing. I had a "pirogue" which was a base of fried eggplant served with lobster, scallops and shrimp in a delectable, creamy mushroom and leek sauce. Willie went for the three-course special: turtle soup, perfectly-fried and seasoned chicken with a side of spicy jambalaya, and decadent bread pudding. It was so delicious, but so heavy that I was glad to have the opportunity to walk it off at the Druid parade. The parade got a bit of a late start, but it was still neat to see all of the floats and try to catch some beads. Oddly enough, all the ones I got were green. It was a memorable night.
Our flight back to NYC was at 6:30 on Thursday, so we still had plenty of time to enjoy the city. We started out with the Museum of Southern Food and Drink/Museum of the American Cocktail, which was interesting despite its small size. We then walked over to the Contemporary Arts Center, which we heard was free on Thursdays. Unfortunately, it wasn't. It also wasn't worth the $3 student price. Anyone who's been to the Centre Pompidou with me knows that I'm not a big modern art fan, but I can usually find something to appreciate or amusing enough to make fun of. This was not the case here. It was just plain barren and creepy. So we had our PB&J's and walked back over to the French Market, but we still had some time to kill before the flight, so we watched a fun street band for a while and then gave in to temptation and went back to Pat O'Brien's. This time I had a yummy Bloody Mary. Luckily, we left the hotel with enough time to get to the airport despite the traffic, and then we were on our way.
It was really an amazing trip. Since it was my first time going on a vacation with a significant other, I would have been happy just not being sick of Willie at the end. What I got was so much more. We had fun every day and still wanted to squeeze each other when we got home last night. It was a wonderful, well-deserved vacation.