New Orleans, Louisiana

New Orleans, baby!!! I had been wanting to visit NOLA for years and I finally found myself on the jazz-filled streets in May. From the moment I stepped foot in New Orleans, I knew I was somewhere incredibly unique.

As you drive around New Orleans, you will notice that none of the houses match. I found that especially to be true the closer you are to the downtown area. Any suburb HOA would be losing its mind at the colors and architecture variety in each neighborhood. I absolutely loved it. The drive from Montgomery wasn’t too bad so Blaine and I did not hesitate in immediately heading out to the jazz clubs to see more.

We were dropped off by our Uber at Frenchman Street, the hub for jazz clubs. It was captivating. There were at least a dozen places whose establishment was filled with guests, shoulder to shoulder, listening to the live bands. After walking around to view the options, Blaine and I settled on a place named 30°/-90° (pronounced as Thirty Ninety). The band “Single Malt Please” was playing. Oh my goodness, there is nothing like a live saxophone. They were magical! The saxophone is my personal favorite instrument, but all the band’s musicians deserve recognition. The trumpet player doubled as their hype man. The Bass player, electric guitarist, and drummer (who notably had a cowbell with his kit) were all exhilarating and so much fun to watch. Blaine and I stayed out for hours listening to them play.

The morning of day 2 in New Orleans brought us to the oldest café in the United States, Café Du Monde French Market. Their menu is short and simple, only serving café au laits, chicory coffee & beignets since 1862! Despite having a limited menu, the lines are massive for the sugary beignets. This café is cash only. Even if it is just to say you went there, it is worth it. I was covered in powder sugar and on a bit of a sugar high by the time we left.

We walked around Jackson Square and the streets of the French quarter. There are musicians literally on the corner of every street who are all worthy of your attention. You are also allowed to walk the streets with alcohol, just don’t be a jerk warned the bartender. It honestly felt like a trap as we left a bar with two cocktails in hand and restarted our exploring. After a few nervous glances, no one stopped us, and we continued.

We made our way to the Garden District, which is stunning, by using the trolly cars. Day passes are only $3 per person which is way more affordable than Ubers! I am a big fan of well-funded public transit in cities. You can schedule tours of the Garden District to view the beautiful area.

There is a massive mansion you can stay at but be warned as it is haunted. The Mansión Magnolia is known for being the most haunted place in NOLA. To read about the history of the mansion and some of its guest’s ghost experiences, click this link!

https://ghostcitytours.com/new-orleans/haunted-places/haunted-hotels/magnolia-mansion/

Blaine and I had lunch at Juan’s Flying Burrito, which offers pitchers of margaritas during their happy hour. It was beyond refreshing after I accidentally read the map wrong (a habit of mine I’m desperate to break) and we ended up walking an extra 30 minutes in the hot sun.

Blaine contributed his own mistake on our way to Juan’s but that only added 12 minutes. It is a creole Tex-Mex-style place, and their street tacos are delicious.

That night we visited the very famous Bourbon Street. There were beads everywhere! Before we engaged in the chaos ourselves, we went to Lafitte’s!

This bar has been around since the 1700s and is so cool. It is said to be the oldest bar in the United States. There is a live pianist in the middle who serenades the guests of this stone wall icon. Blaine ordered his go-to, an old-fashioned. I had their statement drink, VooDoo juice. I absolutely recommend stopping here!

We then headed into the heart of Bourbon Street, and it lives up to its reputation. Blaine and I however preferred Frenchman Street’s style and made our way back there. We tried to get into Speckled Cat, arguably the most well-known jazz club but it was packed.

Instead, we returned to Thirty Ninety and had another great night of live jazz music. There was a different band playing this time and they had a wonderful lead singer. I didn’t catch the name of this band, but they were just as captivating. At one point, a trumpet player who had performed with Silk Sonic hopped up on stage and just started going crazy. The rest of the band caught onto his tune and followed right along. I thought that was one of the neatest things about many of these musicians. They were all riffing with one another and caught on with whatever the others were playing. It was like they were all having conversations with their instruments, and we were lucky enough to listen to what they were saying. I cannot emphasize enough how much I loved being there.

On our final day in New Orleans, we went for a stroll through City Park. It is a pretty trail next to a lake.

We stumbled upon what at the time we labeled as a blackberry tree and started eating the fruit. After a few handfuls of this fruit, both of us realized blackberries grow on bushes and not trees.

A few Google searches later we decided it to be a mulberry tree. That was later confirmed when fellow hikers walked by and assured us, we weren’t minutes away from death.

It was indeed a mulberry tree. Continuing the trail, we found a clearing near the side of the lake with a tree cut into a bench. It was quite peaceful, and we still could faintly hear a saxophone in the distance.

The last stop before leaving for Dallas was a Po Boy shop (of course). Blaine picked out Melba’s due to high reviews. Arriving at Melba’s, we found it not only had incredible po’ boys but doubled as a bookstore involved heavily with the community.

It focused on books whose themes are about racial justice and equality. It also offered rewards for students who would reach academic goals and volunteer opportunities around the area. While we were there, there was an ongoing meet and greet with an author named Clint Smith. His book How the Word is Passed talks about the truth of slavery throughout America. Clint starts the book in his hometown of New Orleans. From there he visits monuments and cities whose real history has been skewed, lessened, or completely erased. Ibram X. Kendi reviewed the book stating, “Humans enslaved Black people, and then too often enslaved history. But How the Word Is Passed frees history, frees humanity to reckon honestly with the legacy of slavery.” The point of traveling for me is to learn about the history of these areas. This shop created an opportunity to do that. Seeing a spot invested not only in the locals of the area but the history and the future generation was inspiring.

Blaine and I both agreed we needed to revisit New Orleans. The music alone is motivation enough. This area is just so unique, full of life and history. If I ever want a daiquiri or a po’ boy, I’ll especially find myself on the way back here.

Next stop, Dallas!