Our family just got back from a wonderful trip to New Orleans. It was the perfect vacation to cap off a year of new experiences.
Although I have been there several times, mostly for work, I had not been back in many years. This was the first time for Sherry, Ali and Cam. I loved sharing one of my favorite places with them.
A great place to walk
New Orleans, also known as “The Big Easy” is a place with a slower pace, incredible food, a rich history and, of course Jazz – one of my favorite pleasures. We took several walking tours and learned its origins, dating back to the early 1700s when the city was formed by the French on the site of a Native American trading post.
It changed hands from French to Spanish, back to French and finally becoming American (in the “disaster” of 1803 – the Lousiana Purchase). It attracted a rich mix of people from each of those countries, the Caribbean and West Africa.
On our first tour we explored the architectural history of the French Quarter. Architecture and construction is a shared passion of our family, and this area was a rich mixture of differing styles from Creole, Entresol and Shotgun to Greek Revival and Italianate style for some of the more ornate buildings. We also learned about the decorative ironwork in many of these buildings and now know how to distinguish cast iron from wrought iron.
There is a substantial difference in styles between the Creole of the Latin Quarter and the Americanized Garden District. We enjoyed a morning walking tour there with more Greek revival and Italianate but also many beautiful Queen Anne and Second Empire style homes. After that tour we took a short visit to Magazine street for lunch and browsing in the thrift stores.
We finished our afternoon with a tour of Mardi Gras World. I did not realize that there were actually more than 40 parades during Mardi Gras, starting on January 6th and ending on Fat Tuesday (2/17 this year), each with their own theme and floats, many of them made in this warehouse.
Our final walking tour was one with a Jewish theme and we visited the beautiful Holocaust memorial and learned of the many Jewish leaders who helped to shape New Orleans including a few that held slaves and served in the Confederate government.
Some Daytime Highlights
One of the very best experiences of our trip was a guided tour of the National World War II Museum. Our guide was a former history teacher with a passion for the subject. He started with the often overlooked war in the Pacific, which was the perfect lens to better understand how the USA was able to succeed in Europe. It’s a must go stop if you are in town.
We got around town using the slow, but charming streetcar system. Each of the girls signed up for a 7 day “Jazzy Pass” and I enjoyed a “priority” senior discount of just $0.40 per ride!
One of our excursions was to enjoy the sculptures of City Park. While we are up there we stopped for Beignets at Cafe Du Monde.
Of course a trip to NOLA would not be complete without an airboat visit to the bayou to see some Alligators. During our stay, we experienced great weather with sunny skies and highs in the mid 70s. This was perfect to see the gators. Our captain, Larry used marshmallows to lure the alligators out of the water for us. He even petted one, while I reminded him that in the maze of the bayou, we were not getting back to the dock without him.
Amazing array of food choices
In the evening in NOLA, the day is just beginning. We had some fabulous food including on Christmas Eve at Annunciation (Warehouse district), a great dinner at GW Fins (Latin Quarter) and additional meals at Gianna, Thai Bistro, and Besame which were closer to our apartment.
Jazz brunch at Muriels was also fun (and we tried the turtle soup and jumbalaya). Earlier in the visit we tried fried Alligator for the first time.
A surprise gem was a late night trip downstairs from our VRBO on Camp Street to a very special place called Drip – specializing in affogato (ice cream with coffee) and other desserts. Delicious!
Incredible variety of music
We had several after dinner activities including a pub crawl of Frenchman Street where we heard rock, funk and all types of Jazz. One of the reasons I love New Orleans is the sheer volume of music – if you don’t like the tunes, you can cross the street and find some more.
Our last evening was my favorite. We walked down on Burbon Street – which can get wild, but was a little less busy on Sunday night. Our final evening activity was a set at the Jazz Playhouse and an hour of acoustic Jazz at Fritzels. Simply superb.
A Family Experience
Traveling with our daughters was a special opportunity to see them as adults. There’s a big difference from when they were younger, and just “along for the ride.” On this trip they were active participants, helping to make dinner reservations, arranging and funding our car services, getting us out of the apartment on time and paying for drinks. They brought their own interests and perspectives which added to our enjoyment. They also happen to be two of my favorite people.
I started this year of 65 Adventures to help define a tone for my retirement. I cannot think of a better capstone for this year of challenges than to spend time relaxing, sipping a gin and tonic, sitting with my girls, while listening to some live jazz. Just wonderful!
