New Orleans, LA - March Vacation a Month 2014
This month I decided to cross something off of my bucket list -- Mardi Gras in New Orleans. My friend, Andrea that I used to work with at Guest Relations in Walt Disney World moved to New Orleans in July so it was a perfect time to go visit her. Another friend of ours from Disney is only a five hour drive away, so he joined us as well. Such a fun reunion! The fun for me began Sunday with three parades. Krewe of Mid-City, Krewe of Thoth, and Krewe of Bacchus. Little did I know that the parades would be the most fun part of Mardi Gras. Floats go by and people throw beads and swag down at you. It's crazy! By the end of Krewe of Thoth I was ridiculously covered in beads, flowers, and boas. It was great!
On Monday (Lundi Gras) we walked around the French Quarter where I bought some things at a voodoo shop and ate crawfish complete with sucking the juice out of the head of it. It was gross and delicious at the same time. We also met up with another Guest Relations friend and had a big Disney reunion complete with delicious hand grenades. (a New Orleans staple drink) It was freezing, so we went home to warm up after that before heading out to see the Krewe of Orpheus parade. After the parade, my friend Kevin and I went to Bourbon Street to see what all the hype was about. We were getting beads flung at us at high velocity and had to run for cover because they were painful. I dragged him into Saints and Sinners to look for Channing Tatum, but sadly he wasn't there. Then we figured out how to get onto a balcony and I threw one of my beads off the balcony. We walked around a little bit more then headed to Cafe du Monde for some late night beignets before going home.
Tuesday morning we didn't wake up in time for the 8am parade, so we only went to the 10am parade which was the Krewe of Rex. At this point, not only was it freezing, but it was also raining. We were such troopers! We didn't get a lot of swag at this parade, but we still got some. After the parade, Kevin went home to Texas and Andrea and I went down to Frenchmen Street to see everyone's costumes. I didn't realize how much this holiday is like an extra Halloween! The rest of the day consisted of us watching Netflix because I was so worn out from the past two days and she was worn out from the past six! Mardi Gras really is a marathon, not a sprint.Â
Wednesday I got my ashes and then we took a tour of a plantation about an hour away. This plantation is where the Brer Rabbit stories were written, so being the Disney nerds that we are we obviously knew it was fate that we stumbled upon it. I've said for years that all I want to do is live on a plantation in the south some day. Mainly like in the Notebook though - just a beautiful house in the Carolinas or Georgia without slaves. It was really interesting to finally see a real one. They even showed us the cabins that the owner's slaves lived in which was pretty surreal. We left that plantation and drove straight to the French Quarter where we had a ghost tour. Our tour guides for both tours were excellent which being a former tour guide myself, I know how much that can make or break a tour. Andrea and I think a ghost followed us home because her phone started opening up apps and music, as well as calling people by itself. It was the freakiest thing!
All in all my first trip to NOLA was great (minus the weather), and my first Mardi Gras was a blast. I can't wait to do it all again next year! :)Â







