New Orleans

One of the perks of driving to Texas is stopping in New Orleans.  We have done it for three years now and each time we see a new part of the city.  This year, we went to the Audubon Zoo.  The weather was beautiful, almost chilly even.  It felt great to stroll around after being cooped up in the car.    

We saw all the animals - except the snakes because I don't do snakes.  Several times a day you can watch the alligator feeding show.  It was very interesting but Tessa wasn't so sure.  She was much more interested in the baby alligator tank located in the gift shop.  They have a great play area called Monkey Hill with a rope ladder jungle gym in the shape of a spider web.  Tessa loved it.  In Ryan's memory, the hill is HUGE so it was fun to see it through adult eyes.   

We headed to the French Quarter for dinner.  There are so many great restaurants in NOLA that it is hard to decide where to eat.  The good news is, you pretty much can't go wrong.  We opted for the casual Felix's where we knew we could get some great gumbo.  I find it very amusing that my child loves gumbo, I wouldn't have touched it at her age.  When we sat down, we tried to order beer and were told the restaurant had lost it's liquor license.  What?!  But, the waitress told us Ryan could just go to the bar next door and bring in a couple of beers.  Yes, it's legal to wander around the French Quarter with open containers.  The food was worth it though.  Ryan's beans and rice were incredible and my gumbo was great.  We even ate oysters, not usually one of my favorite foods, because they were just that good here.  

After dinner, Tessa requested beignets.  Don't have to ask me twice.  Cafe du Monde is great, but usually so crowded it's annoying.  So we set out to find the little beignet place we ate at three years ago.  By this time, the bars were starting to really crank it up.  Music was playing and we were having a great time.  We didn't find our beignet place, but we did find an awesome courtyard bar that served beignets.  The jazz band was really good, Tessa compared them to the Aristocats.  Ha!  We danced to the music while Ryan ordered our drinks and dessert.  Before things got too crazy on Bourbon Street, we headed back to the hotel.  Even though our hotel was close, Tessa had her heart set on riding the trolley.  But the tracks for the line we needed were under construction so we ended up riding the bus for just one stop.  It worked for her.  Did I mention that our hotel was absolutely gorgeous?  Thanks to Ryan's travel points, we were able to stay at the Roosevelt, a Waldorf Astoria Hotel just off Canal Street.  It was total luxury.    

The next morning we went for Breakfast at Brennan's and it lived up to the hype.  The building is beautiful with many different dining rooms so you really get that cozy feel.  Tessa is now old enough to behave like a little lady in nice restaurants.  Don't get me wrong, I came prepared with books, crayons, stickers and a fun activity sheet called Princess Tea Conversation.  So while we enjoyed our three course breakfast, we listened to Tessa tell us all kinds of interesting things.  Tessa charmed our hostess out of several candy bars and made friends with the sweet old lady working as the restroom attendant.  People in New Orleans are so nice and my social butterfly fit right in.

Pleasantly stuffed with fried shrimp, poached eggs, strawberry crepes and Bananas Foster we headed out to do a little shopping.  The French Market is touristy but it's fun.  Plus, I was able to pick up a box of my favorite gumbo mix so we could have a little taste of New Orleans back home.  Time to hit the road for Texas.