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,,,,

Louisiana Vacation Recap - Part 1

It's back to realty today, after a week long trip to Louisiana! I'm so glad I had the opportunity to travel to Louisiana with my mom to visit family and experience Mardi Gras for the first time. I want to do a full recap of my trip, but don't want to overload one post, so I'm breaking it up in to a few posts.

We left on Thursday, February 4 and flew to Baton Rouge, LA. My cousin picked us up from the airport around 5:00 pm and then we headed to her house...but first we had to stop and pick up the first of many frozen daiquiris that we would consume during our visit. We hung out and chatted Thursday night, since we were a little tired from our day of traveling.

Friday we got up and I experienced my first King Cake. It did not disappoint! I can't believe I've never seen these in Michigan. We are definitely missing out! If you've never had one, they can come in many different flavors, but the "traditional" kind is cinnamon. The one we had was cherry filled. It's kind of light and flakey (not like a cake doughnut) and has frosting on top. SO GOOD! And there is a baby hidden in each one :)

After eating cake for breakfast, we headed toward New Orleans. We stopped at a place called The Cabin for lunch. I couldn't wait to eat all of the seafood and Cajun food during our vacation. And The Cabin was a great way to start. I got gumbo, jambalaya, and black eyed peas. My mom got a sampler that included alligator, catfish, crab, crawfish, onion rings, and shrimp. I ate until I couldn't eat any more. That was pretty much what I did the entire trip--eat all of the food!

Mom's sampler platter

gumbo

jambalaya and black eyed peas

My cousin Kristen, her husband Donnie, and me outside The Cabin.

We had to take a picture of the bathrooms in the restaurant--so cool!

After stuffing our faces, we headed out for a swamp tour! We went out in a boat with a guide to look for alligators and other wildlife. Since it's winter, there aren't many gators out. We did see one, and some other fun creatures. And we got hold a baby alligator!

After the swamp tour, we headed back to my cousin's house and Donnie grilled us dinner. It was so nice to be able to be outside and enjoy it! The weather was in the 50s-60s while we were there. Although it was cold to them, it was warm to us, because when we got home, the highs were in the teens.

The next day we got up early and headed to New Orleans for some Mardi Gras fun! Bourbon Street, parades, beads, and beignets...stay tuned!

You can find Part 2 HERE and Part 3 HERE.

Vacation Time!

On Thursday, my mom and I are headed to Louisiana for a week! I have family that lives in DeRidder and Baton Rouge, so we are headed to there to visit them. I think it's been 15+ years since I've been down there (they've been up here several times since then). Between school and work, it's just never worked out for me to be able to go.  It's also been 10 years since I've flown, so I am a little nervous about that. But I can't wait to get out of cold temps and snow, see family, and relax a little.

Since we will only be about an hour from New Orleans, we are also going to Mardi Gras while we are there! I have wanted to go to Mardi Gras for years, and the timing worked this year so we get to go! So, if you have any tips of places to go, things to see, food to eat, etc., let me know! I can't wait to share my experience when I get back. Make sure you follow along in Instagram to get real-time updates :)

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