NOLA Getaway

My much awaited first trip to New Orleans was incredible!  Finally, after COVID restrictions, job and financial restrictions, and all other possible road blocks were eliminated, we were able to make a Valentine’s Day trip to NOLA.
 
Since Clay had been there before, and had idea of what he wanted to show me, we made very little plans other than a few tours I knew we couldn’t miss.  Day one we stayed in a romantic AirBNB just outside the Quarter on Frenchmen Street.  This is a great area if you want the charm of the Quarter, without the chaos. “The Red Room” featured beautiful Victorian furniture, local artwork highlighting the music scene, and even a few spooky elements. Our host was also very accommodating and, instantly we were relaxed.

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My much awaited first trip to New Orleans was incredible!  Finally, after COVID restrictions, job and financial restrictions, and all other possible road blocks were eliminated, we were able to make a Valentine’s Day trip to NOLA.
 
Since Clay had been there before, and had idea of what he wanted to show me, we made very little plans other than a few tours I knew we couldn’t miss.  Day one we stayed in a romantic AirBNB just outside the Quarter on Frenchmen Street.  This is a great area if you want the charm of the Quarter, without the chaos. “The Red Room” featured beautiful Victorian furniture, local artwork highlighting the music scene, and even a few spooky elements. Our host was also very accommodating and, instantly we were relaxed.
 
After spending time walking around the Quarter, getting a reading from the modern day “Voodoo Queen” which was accurate, inspiring, and fascinating all at the same time, we met up with our first tour – a “Spirits and Bar Crawl” from a local gentleman who has connections to the local bar scene.  With the overwhelming number of bars in this city, this was the perfect way to “start” our trip.  He led us, including a small group from Phoenix, to three of the “best” bars in the city.  Walking from bar to bar, he told us ghost stories that related to the very interesting history of the town.  And for someone who’s not quite into history like myself, he told each story in such an animated way, he made it interesting and relevant while I was able to learn more about the city.  We were able to try absinthe and hear the story of it’s “medicinal” use. We stopped at LaFitte’s Blacksmith Shop and learned about the building’s history, as well as the storied history of the LaFitte family.  We also were able to try a New Orleans classic cocktail, the Hurricane, made properly with out all the usual syrupy sweetness and lastly, he took us to my personal favorite bar of the trip – Bar Tonique.  This was a small, cozy establishment with fireplaces and craft cocktails made with the freshest ingredients by the coolest bartenders.  Here the entire tour group ended up trying Sazeracs.  I can’t write highly enough about John and how awesome of a guide he is.  He tailored his stories to our interests, always assured the group was intrigued, kept us moving at the perfect pace so we could hear a lot of information and see a lot around the city, and most notably, touched base with us several times following the tour to give us further recommendations about the parades, the Garden District, and anything else we might have had questions about.  It was a true five-star, personalized experience. 

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While on the hunt for coffee on Saturday morning, we accidentally stumbled upon The Ruby Slipper, which I had heard about on the Food Network, and it was every bit as delicious as I expected.  Clay and I split breakfast tacos (of course) which had local seasoning, and we also enjoyed the bottomless coffee and iced tea.  We even got to enjoy a sunny spot outside – while I basked in the sun, Clay got burned.  But we’re used to that…. Next, we visited the Museum of Death, and those of you that know I’m obsessed with true crime, this couldn’t have been more intriguing!  There were endless amounts of memorabilia from Serial Killers which I could have spent the day looking through.  It was a great highlight to see things I’ve only read about, as well as learn a plethora of new information.  There was also some taxidermy of unique animals, preserved body parts, historic mortuary tools, and other oddities that caught our interest.  They even had on display - one of Dr Kevorkian’s original “suicide machines” as well.  Although it was a small museum, it was packed with information.  It was a great mid-day stop.  Then we made our way to Café Beignet where we enjoyed some beignets which Clay had been raving about!  It was definitely worth the 30-minute wait in line.  We got to enjoy them while relaxing in a lush garden, and by the time we were done, Clay had covered himself in powdered sugar. 

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​​Later in the day, we were lucky enough to get in on the last St. Louis #1 Cemetery tour of the day, and yet again, we had an awesome guide!  Charles was a delight – he brought to life so many stories about the people within the tombs, as well as telling us the history and practices of the different religions within the cemetery. His information kept us intrigued and before we knew it, we had explored most of the cemetery within the brief hour.  Yet another must for first time visitors of the city!  There was so much more to these “burial” rituals than I ever imagined.  And since a tour is the only was to get access to the cemetery, we were thankful to have had the opportunity to be guided by Charles.
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Next, we made our way to our next AirBNB in the Garden district.  Since the listing described our room as the “haunted bedroom” we really weren’t sure what to expect.  To our amazement, we found a beautiful historic home among the grand gardens.  We were greeted by two friendly dogs, and our welcoming host.  Adrienne showed us around the house, which looked more like a museum – there were interesting things around the house – EVERYWHERE.  You’d have to watch the video below to really believe it – but there was stained glass in the 3-story staircase, gorgeous Victorian furniture, eclectic artwork celebrating New Orleans culture, plenty of spooky artifacts, and even some creepy dolls beside our bed.  Needless to say, I was too scared to open my eyes once the lights were off.  But our host Adrienne had such a pleasant energy, and her dogs were calm companions.  Staying here was truly a delight.

Once we were settled in, we took a long hike back to the French Quarter for a “parade” that our tour guide John had told us about.  To our surprise, this parade was very sexually and politically charged.  But standing on the crowded streets, wide-eyed, we enjoyed every bit of the reverie.  The costumes were extravagant, the floats were seriously next-level, and everyone’s unique expression really let us see this celebratory side of New Orleans.  This was very much a spontaneous trip, and we were unaware of all the events that led up to the famed Mardi Gras.  We had no idea it was Carnival season so seeing this parade, and so many of the homes adorned with green, purple and gold made it all make sense – the city was preparing for Mardi Gras! Again, you’ll have to watch the video below to really understand what a memorable event we witnessed. 

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On our last full day, New Orleans decided to show us it’s chilly side.  With temps dropping into the 40s, and blustery winds, made it difficult to walk around and explore.  Fortunate for us, we had one last incredible tour – an Oral History of Black Culture in New Orleans, which included an in-depth look at hoodoo and voodoo.  Our amazing tour guide/artist Jean-Marcel wove his personal history, and family heritage along with black history in New Orleans.  For someone like myself that doesn’t know history, being able to hear it alongside his personal story, really brought everything to life.  After standing in Congo Square to hear most of the historical aspects, we walked to his home/art studio in Treme.  There we were able to see much of his art, along with so many other traditional aspects of his mixed culture including his beadwork, his religious and spiritual symbols and alters, and he even taught us about the significance of Haiti while giving us all shots of Hattian rum.  To complete the tour, after explaining about the mojo hand, he gave us all our own mojo hand to “bring to life” with our own unique elements.  Although this tour was a little over 3 hours, it was so well worth it to feel like I was learning a friend’s culture through family storytelling.  Following this tour, we went out and found a little po’boy shop which served good food, but because the front of the restaurant was entirely open, we pretty much froze.  So my suggestion was to return to Bar-Tonique to relax beside the fireplaces. On the way to get some cocktails we stopped at a little art gallery featuring all original Dr Seuss prints and originals!  This place was tiny but so cool.  It’s something special and magical to see art like this in person, especially having shaped so many landscapes in my young imagination as a child.  Who knew we’d find this gem in a small very unassuming store in the French Quarter?  Once we made it to Bar Tonique, we were able to score seats by the fire and enjoy the bartender’s special mezcal drink – the Mexican Firing squad (Mezcal, grenadine, fresh ginger and lime).  Not only did we have the best seat in the house, but the bartender put on an amazing 80s playlist I completely enjoyed with all my heart.  So, we spent the afternoon there relaxing together, singing 80s tunes. 
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Our trip concluded with a delicious New Orleans inspired Thai meal at Cho Thai in the Garden district.  Then we returned to our AirBNB to get warm and watch the AMAZING halftime show and the second half of the Superbowl.  Before leaving in the morning, we stopped by the local coffeeshop, French Truck Coffee, to check out the local flavors.  Clay enjoyed a smooth blended latte, and I had a delicious, fresh brewed iced green tea.  We even got to see them making Oji Drip coffee, which is the Japanese method of slow brewing ice coffee.  Single drops of water cover a bed of coffee, for a period of 16 to 24 hours, gently extracting a more flavorful profile.  Although neither of us tried this, it was helpful to expand our coffee knowledge. ​

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​And we heard, our experience wouldn’t be complete without trying some King Cake, so we made our way to a local bakeshop Haydel’s and bought a traditional King Cake.  We’d seen various signs and shops advertising “King Cake” referring to theirs as the best and the original, one-and-only, etc.  Meg asked me, “what kind are you going to get?” as there were several varieties.  Having no idea about the size but based on the price I conclude that $17 each probably buys a fair amount of cake.  So I proposed that we get one – the “traditional” of course.  This traditional cake was a cinnamon brioche pastry COVERED with icing and heavily dusted in what seemed like ½ cup of brightly colored sugar - purple, yellow, and green sugar!  This ultra-festive delight didn’t’ stand a chance and was devoured quickly with only a few bites left for snack on the plane.  It also came with a small ceramic trinket and a note explaining that due to last years’ “crappy” festivities, this cake comes with a mini port-a-potty for you to keep.  Indeed, it was a bright yellow port-a-potty!  Another feature of this unique dessert was that there was a small plastic baby baked in the cake as a hidden “lucky” prize.  And as it would turn out, I was the lucky one and found the baby in my last bite (or perhaps because Clay ate a majority of the cake, his odds were better).  This awards me the title “King for a Day”, or so I’m told.  I’ll be taking advantage of that as long as I can, for sure! All in all, this was a WONDERFUL quick, memorable, NOLA getaway.  We can’t wait to return again soon to experience more of this unique city!

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