1 Day in New Orleans

I had the opportunity to go on a trip paid by work to visit for 2 days (the perks of working for a travel company, even for such a short time!). In reality, this ended up being 2 nights and 1 day in New Orleans.

New Orleans has always been someplace I wanted to visit, but was very hesitant because I am not much of a drinker or into parties. Don’t lie to me, the first thing you think of when it comes to New Orleans is Mardi Gras and people in crowded streets drinking and trying to get beads. Yea, that is my worst nightmare.

However, that is not all that New Orleans is.

Getting There

Depending on where you live and what your budget it, there are three ways to get to New Orleans:

1. Flying (most common)
2. Drive
3. Take Amtrak

We did the third option, and took an Amtrak train from Memphis to New Orleans. This was the tail end of a longer trip that included also Chicago and Memphis. We got to the train station in Memphis at about 6:30am, which was a lot harder to do than thought. Ubers and Lyft’s were not as readily available as we thought, and getting a taxi was also pretty difficult at that hour as well.

The time of day was a factor, but the fact that it has also been snowing the day before didn’t help. Apparently in Memphis people don’t like to drive when it’s just flurries. Sorry, that’s the Northerner in me coming out. I hate driving in snow, too. Luckily the hotel we were staying at had its own shuttle to the airport and the driver was willing/able to do a detour to the train station. We were not the only ones trying to get there, either.

The train left at about 7am, arriving a lovely 10ish hours later at 5pm. We sat in coach, and let me tell you, it is not as bad as it sounds. The seats were comfortable with foot rests that went up and seats that actually lean back (unlike planes). I honestly slept off and on about 6 of those hours I was so comfortable. My co-workers spent the time in the Observation car with the domed ceiling enjoying the views.

Now let me tell you about getting from the train station to our hotel, the awesome Monteleone! As predicted, there was a line of taxis waiting outside the station waiting to pick people up. As a group of five who, for ease of paying (thank you work), couldn’t really split up. So, we found the first minivan available in the line. We saw a woman getting out of the front passenger side and thought “Awesome, he’s just dropping her off, we can grab this one!” Yea, she was not a passenger, she was the driver’s daughter.

The woman is very nice, and helps us load our suitcases into the back while asking us the typical general questions all taxi drivers do. Our group leader is also talking to the driver letting him know where we were going and confirming that he takes a credit card. Everything seems kosher so we load in and off we go… sort of.

I don’t know what was wrong with his car, but it should not have been on the road! From where I was sitting, I could see the check engine light was on, and rightfully so. The sound the minivan was making is not a sound I want to hear ever again. He kept on having to put the car in neutral when stopped to stop the sound. We asked several times if it was okay, and kept on being told it was fine. We also learned why his daughter was along. She was acting as tour guide, but was really there making sure her dad did not kill us or someone else on our way. There were several times where in the middle of a spiel she would go “watch out for that car!” or “don’t hit that person crossing the road!”.

There was a lot of road work going on, so he needed to take a less direct route to the hotel. We ended up about a block away and just told him to pull over, we would walk the rest of the way. We did not need to detour more and be dropped off right in front. We stood around for what seemed like forever while our leader paid the driver and daughter. Being curious I walked up to our leader and he just looked at me and was like “his machine doesn’t work and wants cash; I don’t have cash. He had confirmed before he could take a card”. Luckily for him I did. It was roughly $20 for the entire trip.  I paid the man, but couldn’t get a receipt. I honestly don’t know if I ever got reimbursed for it. At this point, I’m just glad the car didn’t blow up and we didn’t end up in an accident.

The Hotel

I don’t know how, but we lucked out and stayed at the Monteleone hotel. Yes, it’s just a nice as everyone says it is and I highly recommend trying to stay there. The way the lobby is decorated it could go one of two ways: Outdated or Breath Taking. The classic style of the Monteleone is definitely in the Breath Taking category. With clean lines, simple paint, elegant columns, and chandeliers, all you want to do it stop and take everything in. Which I recommend, but please step to the side, there’s nothing more frustrating than just wanting to get to your room and people just standing in the middle of the lobby and not moving out of the way.

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One of the features that the Monteleone is famous for is their carousel bar. It’s just as it sounds, it’s a rotating bar, just like a carousel. The bar itself is round, with chairs pulled up and the floor slowly rotates. The novelty of it is great, but the practicality of it is, eh. If you can get a seat, I can see how this would be fun. However, we were not able to get seats, so we had to walk with the bar to try to get the bartenders attention. I also saw people where one person was able to grab a seat, but the other person then had to walk to keep up with them.

But not to worry! There is a second bar area where the bar is stationary and there are both bar stools and couches to relax on. There was even some live jazz music happening. If this was my scene, I would have enjoyed it more. I just don’t do crowds very well.

The rooms are not a letdown. We had two queen beds, both very comfortable, right at that Goldilocks level; not too soft and not too firm. I find a lot of hotel beds are on the too soft side, once I even slept on the floor because a bed was too soft and it hurt my back. But not here. There was a nice high back chair in one corner, and a table between the two beds. And of course, there was a credenza with a large screen TV. The bathroom also was a good size. Plenty of counter space for two people to keep their stuff on as well a shower/tub combo. Oh, that shower. I fell in love with that shower. My coworker still laughs at me, I was probably in there for an hour. And I swear to you, the first 10 minutes was just standing there with my arms in front, palms up, just enjoying the water. It’s probably because it was the first shower I had had in 4 months that actually had water pressure. Never under estimate the power of good water pressure. And male landlords, your female tenants need it if they have longer hair. It helps wash out the shampoo and conditioner, otherwise our showers are longer and use just as much water as if there wasn’t a water saver thing attached (not speaking from experience…).

What to do

Our first night was just pretty simple: dinner and drinks.

As stated above, New Orleans in famous for Mardi Gras and Bourbon Street. Also stated above, I don’t like crowds and I don’t really drink. But I will say that I did suck it up and go to Bourbon Street. My feelings on it are not nice. I thought it was dirty and disgusting, dodging puddles of what I hope were just water, but I don’t think all were. I was expecting several kids in their early twenties to be stumbling around drunk. I was wrong – it was adults in their 40s and 50s. The sounds of different music styles competing to bring you into the bars was an assault on the ears. And the over powering smell of weed in some sections was not appealing. Call me a prude, I don’t care, but that is not my idea of fun.

We did start the night at Pat O’Brien’s bar, where the original Hurricane was invented. This is something I did want to try, but decided not to. For the past week I had been on antibiotics due to catching a very nasty stomach bug traveling home from Romania. The night before I had taken my last pill and I thought it best not to push the limits of alcohol so fresh off the meds.

Instead I settled on a strawberry daiquiri.  Hey, I said I don’t really drink, not that I didn’t drink at all! Pat O’Brien’s is decorated to make you feel like you’re in a French courtyard. Open air, nice tables all around, and a beautifully lit fountain in the middle of the courtyard. I probably would have been happy sitting here for the rest of the night just sipping on my drink. Alas, we had a dinner reservation to get to.

We had reservations at Tujague’s restaurant, not a far walk from the bar. They placed us in a private back room (probably because they knew our company did a lot of work with them) and our server was amazing. I wish I remembered the young man’s name; you could tell he really enjoyed being our waiter. I ordered the chicken, one got the steak, another got the gumbo, and I forget what the other two ordered. But we all gave it two thumbs up. We also got the grasshopper shots. It’s mint green and tastes just like a peppermint patty girl scout cookie.

After dinner we walked around, it felt like aimless wandering, but I think it was actually trying to find the way to where we ended up – Frenchmen Street. We ended up at some place I can’t even remember the name. But it’s alright because I have mixed feelings about it. On the one hand the jazz band playing was amazing. I would gladly sit there and listen to them all night, buying a drink whenever I needed to keep my spot. On the other hand, it felt like the hostess didn’t want us there. We tried getting a table and was told one wasn’t available and to go to the standing room in the back. So, we headed back there, and then was told that the area was closed and we couldn’t stand back there. Somehow, we scored a table but no server ever came and saw us so the guys went up to the bar to order drinks. All the while we were enjoying our time the hostess kept on giving us glares. I was happy to leave when the time came, I just did not feel welcome because of her.

The beginning of our 1 day in New Orleans started with jazz brunch reservations at Court of Two Sisters. Like a lot of the places in the French Quarter, this restaurant was designed to fit right into the ambiance.

While enjoying our buffet brunch we were serenaded by the sounds of a soft jazz band. I stuck with the simple American food of scrambled eggs, sausage, kielbasa, and corn bread for my first round. Second round was going back for some fruit, which I would regret later. Apparently I wasn’t completely over my stomach bug.

I had really been looking forward to the Swamp and Bayou tour, but while I had been sleeping on the train I was outvoted and didn’t even know it. After brunch we grabbed a Lyft to the Jazz Museum. Located at 400 Esplanade Ave, the museum is located in an old branch of the United States Mint where gold and silver coins were produced. The first level is dedicated to this history. The next two levels have several rooms dedicated to the history of jazz. It is a small museum, we probably spent at max an hour and a half here.

Our next stop was the Super City Tour. If you only have 1 day in New Orleans, this is the tour to do. The group had decided to do this because they had been told it was only an hour and half. Wrong. It was actually three hours. The guys didn’t enjoy it, there was some bitching and moaning, and some naps taken. However, I really enjoyed it! It’s Gray Line operated and only holds about 20 people on the minibus. We got a full history of New Orleans, like why it’s called the French Quarter but looks like Spanish architect (it burned down and was rebuilt by the Spanish).

Our driver pointed out and explained a lot of the damage caused by Hurricane Katrina. We saw one water line that was a good 6 feet off the ground. Two stops included one of the historic cemeteries (not #1, the only one where TV and movies are allowed to film), and City Park, one of the largest urban parks in America. Nestled in this park is Morning Call, a shop where you can get some beignets. Of course, this is where the bus stopped and we ordered some. It was the first I ever had, and I thought they were delicious. However, as I was to learn later, they are not the best in New Orleans!  

After a nap the group split. The boys went and explored Bourbon Street more, while myself and the one other girl on the trip decided to do a ghost tour. All the ones to get into Cemetery #1 are all during the day, so we decided on a nice walking one. The plan had been to grab dinner at a restaurant and then do the tour. However, my stomach bug decided to make a short encore and we were delayed. After three different restaurants, each having over an hour to be seated, we gave up and ate at one of the Willie’s Chicken Shack. I have to say, that was some of the best fried chicken I’ve ever had. I wasn’t expecting much, and they certainly surprised me.

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The tour itself wasn’t all that scary. I guess I just have high hopes for a ghost tour, I don’t know why I feel like it should scare me. But it was fascinating learning about the more…morbid history of the city. They’ve definitely had their fair share of serial killers.

After the tour we stopped a Café du Monde. And yes, it is worth the hype! The beignets are so light and fluffy. My two pieces of advice: 1) Do not wait in line, grab a table. Just walk in and sit down. 2) Do not wear black. I was covered in powdered sugar. I mean, just look at these beignets!

The next morning was flying back home after a quick run into a sketchy souvenir shop. I enjoyed my time in New Orleans and am looking forward to go back. I will do that Swamp and Bayou tour, as well as getting into Cemetery #1.