Our Sunday began with a road trip the “Big Easy,” aka the one and only New Orleans! During our 2 hour road trip to NOLA, we bonded with music varying from Indian pop to Spanish reggaeton.
Selfie in between jam sessions during our 2 hour road trip to New Orleans, Louisiana.
When we finally reached New Orleans, we visited the Hurricane Katrina Memorial. It was a great opportunity to reflect and actually think about all the lives lost. The Memorial is set up in the shape of a hurricane’s eye, which we found very interesting. We also walked through the cemetery next to the memorial and were able to see above-ground tombs dating back to the 1700s.
Contemplating and walking through Katrina Memorial in New Orleans, Louisiana.
NOLA
After stopping for necessary restroom breaks, we parked our Dodge Grand Caravan in Panda Parking. Then the fun began…. we began our walk through the city!
Our first destination was historical Jackson Park which was built in 1721. We saw the St. Louis Cathedral (whose back can also be seen on Bourbon Street lol). Then we stopped at Lafayette Square, also known as the heart of NOLA. There was live music everywhere, carriage rides, and even artists painting in the streets!
Historic building,, former New Orleans city hall
St. Louis Cathedral
Our next destination was the French Quarter! We stopped and ate lunch at Gazebo’s! We ate really good po-boys, Smita and Natachi danced to jazz music, and we bought souvenirs at the French Quarter Flea market. Natachi also had a jam session in the flea market with a little drummer boy. We can certainly said we had great live music!!! I was also able to see my parents for lunch, which was really great!
We then ventured for about ten minutes through Bourbon Street! Different kinds of music were blasting through the street, and we were able to see another side of New Orleans.
We then stopped at Cafe Du Monde and ordered beignets, a delicious French pastry. We then walked to Riverwalk, where we ate our beignets and sat along the banks of the river feeling the cool breeze. Then, we trekked to our next restaurant, Bacchanal (ironically, we heard and a lot of Columbia references such as John Jay, JJ’s, and Bacchanal). Unfortunately, the line was too long, so instead we took a taxi to another restaurant called Mother’s Restaurant.
Our great NOLA adventure ended at Mother’s Restaurant where we had another mini family reunion, this time with Oliver and his older brother, Joe. We ate great po-boys, such as calamari, shrimp, and roast beef. After an entire day of walking, nearly everyone crashed in the car or as soon as we got home! And as they say in NOLA ,especially around my favorite holiday Mardi Gras, Laissez les bon temps roulez (let the good times roll)!
-Kimberly