My Calm Before the Storm

After many requests for us to try begniets, we had to make a stop at one of the Cafe du Monde restaurants in the French quarter. The one we visited was in the riverwalk in the food court. It was situated so its seating had a good view of the Mississippi, so we got some good sights in, too.

We got begniets, which are essentially doughnuts, covered with powdered sugar. And believe me, they were DELICIOUS!

they even had pastry mix that you could buy to bring home to make your own begniets. I should have gotten some, now I regret that I didn't!

The workers were really nice and it was an enjoyable stop in a busy day. It might sound funny, but sometimes I have the strongest craving for this very treat!!

These were the biggest sandwiches I had ever seen.

This eatery was in the middle of the top floor of the riverwalk. It had the most inviting look and smells emanating from it!

They displayed all the toppings that could go on your po boy, you could just pick out what you desired and they would make it.

We only ate there once, but if I had had the energy, I would have walked there just to get something else the next day...

Just thinking about it, now, makes my mouth water.

This eatery was a welcome sight with its neon green sign in its window. The family all got po' boys and pigged out.
I remember that they loaded down my son's sandwich, and it was so big that he took it to the hotel to eat later. It also had a very cool atmosphere which was a nice feel. it was so hot outside, but inside was perfectly cool. I highly recommend this eatery!

My first sight of New Orleans was from the window of my Amtrak window. the station was right next to the Superdome. Since the day was not too hot and we were light on luggage, we decided to walk to our hotel. That was okay, till about the last couple blocks, then i wished we had hailed a cab! The hotel, Hotel St Marie, was awesome! It's decorated in a French style, and we had a room with a balcony. we took advantage of it and enjoyed the sights and sounds of Bourbon Street one block away. We booked rooms during the week, and the prices were drastically cheaper than on the weekends! Our first night there, we took a stroll through the French Quarter and were amazed at the architectural designs! I think I found my dream style of architecture! All over, there were cast-iron railings with beautiful flowers overflowing from them. Beautifully colored buildings were all over the place. The pastels were beautiful. We took a ride in a horse drawn carriage and learned a LOT of info about the city. One of the stops was the famous cemetery that's now the resting place of Marie Laveaux! The next day, we took tours of surrounding buildings. The Louisiana State Museum was wonderful!! The inside of the building itself was a sight to take your breath away with its graceful, wide, sweeping staircases. The cathedral was beautiful, but not as exciting. Later, we took a river cruise on the Natchez steam powered paddle boat. THAT was a lot of fun. They even supplied a buffet. For a little shopping therapy, we enjoyed the Riverwalk Mall. That really rejuvenated me. Got to get a little shopping in and enjoyed their huge food court! I can't leave out NOL's IMAX or their famous Audubon Aquarium. Harrahs is right in walking distance of the river, as are the other 2 attractions I listed. We had such a pleasant time that we felt like we connected with the place. Since then, we have made a special place for NOL in our hearts and look forward to the day we can get back to it!