New Orleans for Thanksgiving

A small, casual cafe/bar at the corner of University and Canal street, just across from the French Quarter and the Ritz Carlton Hotel. If you are looking for a quick bite of Creole cuisine at a reasonable price, drop in here. They serve breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Very casual, small, and quiet.

I tried their gumbo and muffalletta sandwich. The gumbo was great, with big chunks of fresh seafood. The muffalletta was more appealing to me than the "original's" served at other locations--I don't like garlic ! It reminded me of the olive loaf sandwiches my mom used to fix for us as kids. The poorboys looked very inviting also.

The Cafe Du Monde is the favorite gathering, people-watching, tourist spot in New Orleans. Be entertained by balloon artists and street musicians while you sip your coffee and eat beignets, a favorite French breakfast pastry.

The menu is limited and the indoor/outdoor seating is "first-come, grab-a-table". It can get very crowded, but the turnover is swift. One order of beignets includes three fresh, hot pastries covered in a mound of powdered sugar. They melt in your mouth! We went there twice. Be careful, the cafe au lait is very HOT!

A great way to spend a couple of hours! Take the free Canal Street ferry in the French Quarter to Historic Old Algiers, then hop the shuttle bus to the museum.

Browse the shop until your group is ushered into the costume room, then have fun trying on costumes and masks. This is a great photo opportunity. A short movie about how the floats are made is then shown.

Continue on to the float storage area where you will be given coffee and King Cake. The person who finds the doll in their piece of cake wins a free prize!

Then you are guided through the warehouse to view the floats. Wander through after the tour to take photos, then catch the shuttle van back to the dock.