new orleans

Once again, in early February, we escaped the gloom of Seattle winter by visiting New Orleans. Not only did we get several days of sun, but we celebrated Chris’s birthday with gumbo and Bourbon Street drinks. Learning from experience, we skipped lugging a car seat and used the street car to get around. We rented a place one block away from a St. Charles Streetcar stop in the Garden District. It had a big gated front patio were we enjoyed the morning sun, and a back patio with a fire pit we sat around a few evenings.

In addition to relaxing outside; we watched the Superbowl, ate beignet’s on Bourbon Street, visited a cemetery, had some yummy crawfish (twice), toured Mardi Gras World and the WWII museum, wandered a night art market, saw several different bands perform, and I made it to the art museum. Aside from one day of heavy rain and hail, the weather was nice. Dom loved riding on the street cars and this trip may mark the end of our traveling with a stroller! He managed to explore the streets on foot the whole time. At one point he even announced that he wanted to “explore more of New Orleans” rather than head back to the house.

Even after this, our second trip to New Orleans, I still feel there is more I would like to see and do in the city. Who knows, a third trip may be in our future.

Anyone planning a visit I would recommend Boil Seafood House, walking down Frenchmen Street at night, Domenica, and wandering off Bourbon street a few blocks for drinks.

Chris’s Comments: I realized some time ago I really wanted to go back to New Orleans. There’s always something cool around the next corner and I was convinced it’s a family friendly city everywhere but the French Quarter. Having been there before, we wanted to dig a little deeper into local culture. With a birthday coming up and cheap fares, we decided to go. Every time I go, I can’t wait to go again. It’s just a cool place with great food, music, people, and architecture… and, indeed, there are plenty of things for kids of ALL ages.

: Sun means playing outside.

The front courtyard at our rental.

: Visit to the New Orleans Museum of Art

: Lafayette Cemetery No. 1

The back of St. Louis Cathedral and St. Anthony’s Garden at night.

: Looking at the Stars and Planets.

And a final thought on the trip…

I turned 40 years old in New Orleans. If you’re keeping track, that was nearly four months ago. I’ve had these pictures uploaded for the better part of two months, but I never found the time to sit down and write my thoughts. The interesting thing about writing a trip summary this much later is things are probably boiled down to the stuff that’ll you remember for a long time.

So what do I remember? I’ll say this – I really do like New Orleans as a place to visit. The history, architecture, food, and music make for a city that is a great way to spend a week. People thought we were crazy when we said we were taking an 17 month old, but I submit there are plenty of family things to do there. We walked through the French Quarter a few times, include during a date night for just Melissa and me; there are so many great things that aren’t the New Orleans you hear about.

Our trip was most definitely not as restful as we wanted and a lot of that comes town to a pretty terrible airbnb situation. It was actually bad enough that I never wrote a review… and our host didn’t either. I think we just wanted to be done with each other after the week we had. Anyway, it was nice to get away for awhile and spend time with three generations of family as I ticked over another decade.

Through coincidence, we ended up there the week before Mardi Gras. It was a great time to be in the city, with many parades scheduled for the locals. We ended up at a Game of Thrones theme dog parade – Dom thought it was amazing. I’d been to New Orleans for a 40-hour bachelor party; this was a different experience… in a good way. I know we’ll be back to enjoy more of the food and music the city has to offer. We’ll just need to figure out if it’s a parents-only trip or we make it another family affair.

Oh, and we got a midnight flight time on the way home from the airport. It was one helluva day with an 11 am check out, 7 pm flight (Central Time), and a toddler that didn’t nap. The one thing I appear to do more easily in my 40s is roll with the situation. Having a kid probably helps with that. Anyway, go to New Orleans. It’s a beautiful place. Just make sure you have a/c. :grin: