Ladee's Travels

This is a nice evening dinner, a little pricey, but a nice evening out with friends aboard the old paddle boat (the only game in town.)  The tickets are $67 per person, but look through the local magazines such as "Where" for coupons for $3-$5 off.  The price includes salad bar, buffet, and coffee/tea/soda.  Wine and drinks are extra.  We reserved the tickets through the hotel with an $11 deposit per person (which I think is the commisssion). We met at the dock and purchased the tickets. One member of our group could not attend (she had tripped on a pot hole on the street, scraped her knees, hit her head on a pole and now has a black eye, but that is another story) so we had all of the high finance with the refund for the deposit. The refund needs to be worked through the hotel person who took the reservation but this was not an issue and went quite smoothly.  I don't know if that happens with every hotel, but the staff at Place D'Armes has been super. We were...

Great way to start the day!!

View of the courtyards from the balcony Our room is on the second floor of one of the three brick buildings surrounding the courtyard.  We have two large windows with a view of the large trees and the fountain and bricked patio below. The narrow porch has two chairs and a table, perfect for morning coffee or late night wine.  This is the view to the right of the porch, looking at the pool area.  There are a lot of plants in raised planters and pots, with two huge magnolia trees shading the pool.  The hotel is located in a great spot, near the shopping street rue Royal, a half block from St. Louis Cathedral with beautiful Jackson Squar, and about two blocks from Cafe du Monde.  Inner courtyard Gas lights Entrance to hotel from inside the courtyard Pool area View of the other end of the balcony View of the large courtyard below the balcony Another large fountain in the back courtyard A wall fountain in the back courtyard area h...

Tonight we have a scary adventure planned. We are meeting outside of Rev. Zombie's Voodoo Shop to take the "French Quarter Ghosts and Legends" tour. Who knows what ghosts we will see... We have a reference book for New Orleans, and have visited the table that is set at Muriel's for the resident ghost. Whooooo. Scary.  I watched for the ghost in Antoine's, but did not see him.  Maybe that was him that I felt as I roamed through the back rooms, looking at all of the Mardi Gras memorabilia. (or maybe it was the three pear martini's...just sayin') This is the Amazon link to the book that we are using for information in addition to what is provided by the tour guides.    It's a good book, with two sections on the French Quarter, so there is plenty of info and places to keep all good ghost hunters busy. Ghost Hunter's Guide to New Orleans  (Affiliate Link) Results of the Tour We enjoyed the hour and a half walk through the French Quarter.  The g...

New Orleans is filled with music, all the time.  This is our favorite corner, as the performers here are unique and colorful.  (Watch for the unique and colorful character at the end of the video and notice the toe tapping foot action.)  If you like the music, you can purchase a CD for $10. Choice of Pear or Lemon Drop Martinis today What a way to start: 25 cent martinis!!! We had a choice of Pear or Lemon Zinger.  I will add more food photos later. I'm going to have the $20.11 fixed price luncheon special: cup of gumbo, [another martini], Antoine's Louisianna Gulf Shrimp Creole [plus another martini] and Pecan Bread Pudding for dessert.  Note that this price does not include the 9.75% tax, a well deserved gratuity for Austin, and 25 cents for each martini. This restaurant is huge and seats 1300 people. It is a museum with walls of photos of all of the past Mardi Gras queens. There are party rooms that have been reserved by the Mardi Gras "teams" fo...

How did this get so HUGE?? Wow. I remember when this was a quant little coffee shop. This place is HUGE. Who are all these people? Who told them about my quiet little place? It grew so fast. The last time I was here was, hmm, when was that? Before Kalen. 1983? Ahhh!! Almost 30 years ago!!! Double order of Beignets (powdered donuts), Cafe au Lait, Chicory coffee, and hot chocolate. Cafe du Monde serves one edible item: Beignets.  The fried donuts are freshly made and covered with powered sugar (you will be covered too!)  They offer a variety of both hot and cold drinks, and the chicory coffee is well known. You can buy your coffee in a souvenir mug, which is a fun reminder. TIPS: Make sure that you are in the correct line.  There are two lines - one is for the take-out window and the other is to be seated.  Most times the staff will try to get the take-out line to enter from the back of the shaded outside area. The seating line is to the front of the b...

Time to start planning for my trip to Europe. I like to start with Rick Steves books, because I get a nice layout of what I can see in the limited time that I have. The next trip to Paris is with a woman who has been a friend of mine since we were 18 and living in Pittsburgh.  Tina has decided to get her passport and take her vacation time...and just go.  This will be a lot of fun for both of us, and I'm proud and excited to be able to show Paris to her. Rick Steves' Paris 2011 Amazon Affiliate link. (I get a small commission)  is my starting place.  I've purchased a new one each year that I travel because I normally write in them throughout the trip (keeping the old ones as a memoir reference guide) and use the new ones to confirm open hours, new ideas, and to make out a new route.  I want to be sure to include the wonderful chocolate shops, bistros, and cafes that are on the way from our apartment to an attraction.  I spend a lot of time thinking a...