Waking up for our first full day in New Orleans was extremely exciting, but we didn't have any plans and weren't exactly sure what we should do first other than get breakfast. The hotel we stayed at, The Place d'Armes, had a lovely continental breakfast where we all got coffee, a piece of fruit, and delicious pasties. It was filling enough to go out and explore without being hungry, but we knew we wanted a real breakfast.
We walked to The French Market, which was a fun indoor flea market. My Dad was really interested in checking out. I know he ended up buying a wallet and a few souvenirs, but nothing really caught my eye. The items they were selling seemed to be things one could find at any flea market so it didn't interest me too much.
However, inside The French Market were a lot of food stands that really caught my attention, but we decided to not to eat there because there were no seats and places to sit. And since it was August it was crazy hot out, too humid to eat outside on a bench or anything. I would have loved to tried a crawfish pie, or fried gator, or even have gotten a crepe, but it wasn't convenient with the weather. Instead the three of us found a Groupon for breakfast real close by.
It was for a restaurant called, Belle's Diner. I don't have a picture of it, but it was a pretty neat place. Everything was fifties themed, and there was a ginormous Elvis statue in the woman's bathroom. Even though it was a Groupon the food was excellent. I got chicken and waffles, and I have to say, that was probably the best fried chicken I've ever had.
Jake got a burger, and my Dad got a typical breakfast of eggs, bacon, homefries, and toast like he has every morning. They both said the food was good. Jake's burger looked awesome.
Since it was so hot outside we decided to go to The Louisiana State Museum inside of The French Quarter to kill some time and stay cool.
The museum was a bit of a bust. Nothing inside was very interesting. It seemed more like an excuse to make some extra money from tourists than a real museum. My Dad and my boyfriend were pretty bored, but we tried to make the most of it.
This is a picture of my Dad looking at some Mardi Gras masks. The Mardi Gras floor was my favorite part of the museum.
Jake and I watching one of the videos on Louisiana culture.
After leaving the museum we walked back to our hotel and grabbed the car. I wanted to check out a cemetery while in New Orleans.
I'm from Connecticut, and in Connecticut we bury our dead inside the ground, like most places, but not in New Orleans. It's so swampy there they bury their dead above ground and build these beautiful coliseums for their loved ones so they don't float back up to the surface or even worse, float away.
The cemetery we went to was only two miles from our hotel so it wasn't far at all. This was the first and only time of our trip that we left the French Quarter.
And for anyone wondering, yes, going to the cemetery is free.
The cemeteries were in The Garden District of New Orleans so we walked around checking out some beautiful Southern style houses.
I really regret not walking around and exploring The Garden District more, but it really was a hot and uncomfortable day. We drove back to the hotel and decided to buy a few more Groupons.
We stopped at a local bar on Bourbon Street called The Tropical Isle, and got their most famous drink, The Hand Grenade, the strongest drink one can legally buy.
There were no Groupons for these sadly, but they were well worth it. If I remember correctly they're nine dollars, but all you need is one. Having one of these drinks was like having three. They're made with gin, grain alcohol, melon liqueur, rum, and vodka. They taste just like melon, and they're pretty sweet. I got mine frozen, but Jake and my Dad got theirs regular, on the rocks.
At this point it started raining and thundering and this was the loudest and strongest thunder and lightening I've ever witnessed. It was a bit overwhelming so we went back to the hotel room and waited the storm out a bit.
We bought a Groupon for dinner that night, at a fancy restaurant called The New Orleans Creole Cookery, located at 508 Toulouse Street. Again, I sadly don't have any pictures of the restaurant or my meal, but my food was A+. I got a creole pasta dish with shrimp, chicken, and sausage. It was so filling and yummy and I had a lot leftover for a late night snack!
Jake got classic Jambalaya and it was cooked to perfection. The rice was so soft and the flavor was excellent, but he didn't have any leftovers. And my Dad was pretty boring and just got a steak. He doesn't branch out much.
After dinner we bought one more Groupon for the night, a historic haunting tour by Ghostly Galavant. Because how could you go to New Orleans without doing anything spooky?
Our tour was done on a Wednesday night and we met the tour guide in a location at The French Quarter. It was only the three of us and the tour guide, and it was a little awkward, but our guide was so nice and sweet and knew a lot of history so it was pretty cool that it was just us. We talked to her a lot and the tour went over because she showed us places where they shot scenes from American Horror Story because I told her I was a fan. I don't want to talk about all the places and stories she showed us, but this ghost tour was my favorite part of our trip. We learned so much about New Orleans that night. And these weren't made up stories. The first stop had been featured multiple times on the Investigation Discovery, the TV station, and I've heard about that story in the media.
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