If you read my Jazz Half recap, then you know Mom and I had been preparing for the Jazz half for months. Unfortunately for me, my training had suffered due to my obsession with studying for my board exam. We flew down on Thursday, October 30th after work, and didn't get to NOLA until after 11 pm. We decided we would sleep in on Friday as we didn't have any real plan of attack for the day. Once we got up and got going it was after noon so we decided to venture out and find some lunch. Some friends of my parents had suggested we try the Central Grocery and get a Muffaletta sandwich. So we walked down to the Central Grocery, bought our sandwich, then walked back to Jackson square to eat. The Muffaletta sandwich consists of olive salad, mortadella, salami, mozzarella, ham, and provolone. I wasn't a huge fan of the sandwich as I don't like olives or ham, but at least I can say I tried it.
After walking around the square we decided to go on one of the carriage tours through the French Quarter, and out to one of the St. Louis Cemeteries. This was a fitting activity to do considering it was Halloween!
(This was a great way to see different parts of the French Quarter!)
(It was definitely fun touring the cemetery on Halloween)
After the tour, mom and I ventured back to the hotel and stopped at a few of the shops on the way. Friday was a pretty low key day considering we had the half marathon in the morning.
We relaxed at the hotel for a while before getting ready to go out for dinner. We weren't really sure where to go for dinner since we didn't know the area too well, so we stopped down at the front desk to ask about a good Italian restaurant to fuel up before the race. They made a few recommendations that were within a few blocks of where we were staying. Before we went to dinner we decided to walk up to Lafayette Square where the race was set to start and finish, so we had an idea of what time we needed to leave the hotel in the morning to walk there. I don't think it took us more than 15 minutes to get there, so we would be in good shape.
As we were walking back toward the hotel and in the direction of the restaurant, we passed a few people dressed up for Halloween. One guy stopped me and said, "What do you think of my costume? I'm a formal apology!" He was wearing a tux that had "I'm sorry" written all over it. Haha
Mom and I had dinner at a small restaurant that wasn't too busy in the warehouse district. We both ordered ravioli, and they were pretty good (even if I had to force feed myself). After dinner we went back to the hotel and got our stuff around for the half in the morning. I won't go into details from the half as you can read about that here.
After the cold and windy half, I melted into a hot bath for about an hour to thaw my frozen muscles. Once I thawed, I swear I must have napped for about 2 hours. Once mom and I got up, we took our time getting around for dinner. We decided to go to the other restaurant that the hotel recommended the previous night.
(Dark, but enjoying a well deserved glass of wine)
After dinner we went back to the hotel to relax and get to
bed early. Sunday morning we decided to get up and head to Cafe Du Monde for
Coffee and Beignets! The line was SO long, but surprisingly, it moved quickly!
To make the wait seem shorter there was even a jazz band playing on the corner
by the cafe!
Mom and I enjoyed 2 orders of beignets, and they were absolutely worth every calorie! After breakfast we ventured around the French Quarter a little more. We scheduled a tour of the Old New Orleans Rum Distillery at 2 pm, and the shuttle service was picking us up around 1:20. The tour was a lot of fun, and honestly not at all was I was expecting (in a good way). We got to sample each type of rum they make there, and they gave us a complimentary tea. The Gingeroo was definitely my favorite!
After the tour we were dropped back off at our shuttle stop and mom and I walked back toward the hotel along the Mississippi River and looked into maybe having dinner on one of the river boats. We decided against that though.
That night, mom and I went to dinner at Origami, a sushi bar in New Orleans not too far from where we were staying. We still look a taxi even though we would have been able to take the street car. The sushi was outstanding, and I honesty don't even remember what I ordered. After dinner we headed back to the hotel and went to bed.
Monday we got up and had realized that we had soaked up a lot of what we wanted to see, but headed back down to the French Quarter for the afternoon. We decided to walk Bourbon Street...
(Being a goof ball)
Then we went to Pat O'Briens for a Hurricane...
(Probably more than I needed, but delicious!)
After Pat O'Briens mom and I ventured back to the hotel to get ready for dinner. We had made reservations at NOLA's, one of Emeril Lagasse's three restaurants in New Orleans. Mom and I enjoyed a great meal and a glass of wine. After dinner we went back up to the river walk to take a few pictures. Then we made our way back to the hotel to pack to head home in the morning.
I had a great time exploring New Orleans with mom. I would go back again during a festival or Mardi Gras so I could enjoy a different experience.
QOTD: If you've been to New Orleans, what was your favorite thing to do?
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