Friday, February 19, 2016

Louisiana Vacation Recap - Part 3 (The End)

You can find part 1 of my vacation recap HERE and part 2 HERE

After getting back to Baton Rouge, we headed toward New Orleans for more Mardi Gras parades...where we once again got more beads!




Deep fried bacon. OMG


These are all of the beads and goodies my mom and I got from our Mardi Gras fun...35 pounds of beads (yes--we weighed them)!


Since we had to leave super early on Thursday to catch our plane, we spent Wednesday relaxing, shopping, and of course, eating. We went to Walk-On's for lunch, which is a sports bar place...funny story: On the way to Baton Rouge, I sat next to a chef from Walk-On's that was headed home. We got to talking and he ended up giving me a gift certificate to the restaurant, which is why we decided to go there. They had a great menu and the food was delicious.


My trip to Louisiana was amazing. I loved spending quality time with family and getting to experience Mardi Gras. If you ever get the to go to New Orleans for Mardi Gras, do it! The people watching, parades, and food are so worth it! I would definitely go back again...and I just might have to :)

Have you ever been to New Orelans and/or Mardi Gras? What was your favorite thing to see or do or eat there?

Wednesday, February 17, 2016

Louisiana Vacation Recap - Part 2

You can find Part 1 of my vacation recap HERE

On Saturday, we headed to New Orleans for the day. We headed to Cafe Du Monde for beignets for breakfast. OMG the beignets were amazing! Who knew powdered sugar tasted so good?


We went to the French Market and did a little shopping before heading to the truck to drop off our purchases (and to grab a daiquiri from the cooler). Then we headed to Jackson Square to take a few pics before heading down Bourbon Street.




I had so much fun walking down Bourbon Street and people watching. I can't believe how many people ended up fitting down that street at the end of the day--so crazy! I of course had to try the "hand grenade" drink that everyone talks about down there. It actually tasted good but it will sneak up on you ;)




After hanging out on Bourbon Street for a little while, it was time to go watch some parades. Now, I'm from a small town, so I'm used to parades being 15-20 minutes, max. These parades were a couple hours long each! They were so awesome. We got lots of beads and goodies (and no, you don't have to do anything to get them--except cheer)!

pretty blue skies!

Mom and I waiting for the parade to start.










And this is what the street looks like after one of these parades rolls through:


After watching a couple parades, we headed home (after making our way through the thousands of people on Bourbon Street). The next morning, my mom and I got ready and headed to DeRidder to visit more of our family. We made the three hour drive and were greeted with Crawfish Etoufee for lunch--so good!


There were also two more King Cakes to eat--Maple Bacon and Black Forest flavors (I told you all I did was eat):


We spent Sunday hanging out and watching the SuperBowl with my cousin Nichole, her husband Malcom, their sons (my godsons) Nicholas and Alex, and my Aunt Laurie (my mom's sister). And of course, more amazing food! Including homemade Kimbap (it's a Korean dish that resembles sushi).


We spent the next day in DeRidder just hanging out, eating, and being silly.





That night, we headed back to Baton Rouge where we would spend the last couple days of our trip...with more Mardi Gras fun! The last recap coming soon,,,,