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Monday, July 2, 2018

Discovering New Orleans with TripAdvisor Day Two

If you haven’t read my Day one of New Orleans, please go do so. To recap, we did some sight-seeing of the French Quarter, Lafayette Cemetery 1 and the Garden District.




So, day two started out with a light snack of grits and scrambled eggs, thanks to our host. Then we got ready for the day. Since we didn’t have a full breakfast we went to eat at this little café called New Orleans Cake Café & Bakery. I could eat there daily. For real, this place was amazing and not bad price at all.



I had an omelet with crab and Brie cheese and a biscuit that was out of this world good. Dan ended up getting Lox and eggs. If you don’t know what Lox is, no worries, I hadn’t heard of it before. It’s a smoked salmon. The serving sizes were large, but it was so good Dan said he could have eaten even more. If you want to make some at home, I recommend it. I found lox at my grocery store, got some eggs and cappers and re-created it, and man it was good.  The only part I regret was getting some pastries to go.

From there we went back to the house to drop off my left overs and then headed back to the French Quarter as Sunday was our shopping and just wandering day.



We first went to Louis Armstrong Park as we promised Dan’s son that we would get a picture of his statue. The park is small but really pretty and well maintained. From there we went into a few shops to get souvenirs.



After a while we were ready for lunch (we ate so much that day). So we headed over to Pat Obrien’s for some lunch. I know they are super famous for their hurricane drink, but I can’t drink so we passed that up, although they looked really good. This was the only “chain” place we ate in NOLA. If you want an appetizer that is out of the ordinary, then you need to try the Alligator Bites. Comes with honey mustard sauce. Make sure you ask for extra sauce.



For the main course I god Red Beans and Rice. It’s a pretty traditional dish topped with some smoked sausage. For being such a simple meal, it was so good and full of flavor. Dan had never tried crawfish before, so he got the Crawfish etoufee. They sauté the crawfish in butter and garlic, then cook in chicken stock and etoffee sauce. Much like the red beans, it’s served over a bed of white rice. I of course had to have a bite to try and it was really good.  


After we were good and full, we decided to head over to st Louis Cathedral. We didn’t time it very well as it was closing soon, but we were able to get a quick look at the inside, and wow, it’s breathtakingly beautiful. So many details everywhere you look. It is an active church, so if you want to go to mass you certainly can. If you get a chance to visit it, please do so as it’s worth seeing. I was also lucky to have some perfect weather to get a pic of the outside with the flag blowing in the wind at full staff.









Our driver recommended seeing the Katrina Museum if we had time. Since it was right next door to the Cathedral we figured why not. Entry is not free, but only $6 a person, so very reasonable. Once we got there we learned that the Katrina part was on the main level and Mardi Gras was on the upper level.



To say the images of Hurricane Katrina were haunting on the news, you need to see them in person at the museum. I used to work for an insurance company and got calls for claims when the hurricane hit so I had an idea of damage even without all the media. One area showed home video footage of the water just coming into their homes. Another area was interviews with survivors about what they went through during those horrific days.




I think the one thing that got me the most was an actual garage door that was on display. On it the owners of the home wrote their dog died and told not to remove the dog as they would be back to burry. Then there was an X indicating that officials had checked the home and wrote what they found. We would learn later that they would write if they found any bodies etc. every home in New Orleans was checked after Katrina to make sure everyone was accounted for dead, or alive.



When we went through all the Katrina information, we went upstairs to the Mardi Gras. I didn’t really know anything about Mardi Gras other than it was a giant party. What I learned was all that went into it is a ton of work. The most interesting to me were the costumes. They had on display costumes from over the years, for both men and women, but mostly the women. The gowns some of them wore, I cant even imagine having to wear for a few minutes, let alone for hours on end in the New Orleans heat.





Like I said above, the Meseum is located right next to the cathedral in the Presbytere Museum, which is actually the Louisiana State Museum. If you have time, please go see it. It’s well worth your time, and it’s air conditioned which is so nice when you are dealing with the humidity that is New Orleans.  






After the Museum, we did more shopping, I know, MORE. We made out way down to the end of Decatur st where the French Market is. It’s a mix of food stands, and a flea market. People are selling crafts, the best organic smoothies (so good), clothes and everything in between. One vendor also had boiled peanuts. Dan had never tried them, so we just had to get them. I know from experience that it’s usually a love or hate type of feeling with boiled peanuts. Dan didn’t think they were amazing but didn’t hate them. So, he was in the middle of the love/hate.



It had been a few hours since we had our huge lunch even though we just had a snack, we were ready for dinner. Since we were at the market, we decided to have dinner at the Market Café. I’'s a cute café where you can eat inside or outside (outside is still covered), and live jazz music. Since we really wanted some live music we decided to dine outside. Since you are right there on the Gulf, seafood is all over the place. So we ordered the redfish, and I’m so glad I did. I’ve eaten plenty of fish in my day, even as a kid catching them myself and eating them that night. Served with some jambalaya and veggies, it was a perfect dinner.



I’m a tattoo fanatic (now have 18), and my dream was to get something while in NOLA. So our last stop of the day was to the tattoo shop that was recommended to us. They didn’t have time for us that night but we booked times for the next day. After that, we were exhausted, especially Dan from pushing me in the wheelchair all over the place. So, we headed back to the house and just pretty much crashed for the night.


Even though we didn’t really have anything planned for the day, it was still packed full of adventure and sightseeing. Please make sure you read my Day one and look for Day 3/4 coming soon that will have the end our or trip. Hint, there are alligators and wild boar involved, so don’t miss out.

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Disclosure: The reviewer has been compensated in the form of a Best Buy Gift Card and/or received the product/service at a reduced price or for free. Top Notch Material blog will always provide honest opinions, beliefs or experiences on products reviewed. We will only recommend products or services that we feel are of benefit to our readers. If you have any questions, please contact me at katrina dot gehman {at} gmail com. The disclosure is done in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission 10 CFR, Part 255 Guides Concerning the use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising. 

20 comments:

  1. New Orleans is one of my favorite cities in the country. It's so full of culture and life.

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  2. New Orleans has so much to see and do and the food you showed was amazing. I need to go there and take all this in on my own.

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  3. it looks like you had a blast in New Orleans. i went there a few months ago, and I want to go back again. A couple of days isn't enough.

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  4. The pictures of the places you visited and the food you ate makes me want to see New Orleans. Such an amazing city.

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  5. That dish of red beans and rice seems so delicious! Totally craving that right now - so hearty and looks like it's full of flavor!!

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  6. It sounds like you had such an awesome trip girl! I would love to visit New Orleans someday and would definitely use Trip Advisor!

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  7. It sounds like you did a lot. I'm interested in these. We just went. Your time there seems better than mine was, for sure. :)

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  8. I am planning a small trip to NOLA next year with my hubby. I am itching to try all of the local cuisine and explore the French Quarter. It looks like you had a wonderful trip!

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  9. There are still a lot of places in the US that I have to see. The southern states are all so inviting. I wish my husband and I would have some better days so we can plan for more trips this year.

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  10. You and Dan are a cute couple! This does look so much fun, and the food - wow!! I'd love to see New Orleans some day, and I'm sure I'd be checking out Trip Advisor reviews!

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  11. Wow what a cool experience you had in New Orleans. I missed out on the Katrina stuff when I was there because it hurt my heart but I would of loved to see the museum about Mardi Gras.

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  12. I've been dying to visit New Orleans for years now! It's so full of history and culture. I think I would have to roll home because of all the food I want to try LOL.

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  13. I've only been to New Orleans once and that was probably 25+ years ago. Everything you did there was really interesting and fun. That Katrina memorial stuff would be so sad though. That sign about the dog. :(

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  14. A friend of mine went to New Orleans last year. She posted a bunch of pictures of the X's that were still on some buildings. Some left them there to remember and others had never been repaired at all.

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  15. The fish looks fantastic! I also like trying new seafood dishes. We plan to visit New Orleans one of these days. Hopefully sooner rather than later!

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  16. Those are some beautiful photos. I would love to go there someday. It's on my list of places to visit. I think it looks so nice there.

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  17. That omelette sounds so good. Brie is delicious. I have yet to visit New Orleans. I have heard from my neighbours that it is well worth the visit. It's on my list alright. I just need to make it happen. This gives me a guide as to what to see and where to go when I finally get there.

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  18. all that food looks amazing. I need to eat my way through NOLA too. I'm sure hurricane Katrina was intense.

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  19. I think I'll pass on the alligator bites. My husband will definitely try them. I will stick to all the fun things going on in New Orleans.

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  20. I absolutely LOVE NOLA! There is no place better for a weekend getaway with your hubby or friends. We just went last summer for a fun girls weekend and it was AMAZING. Listening to jazz bands and enjoying wine and cheese in our shotgun house that we stayed in. Oh take me back....

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