We had a tradition for the past few years to go to NYC with the Raleigh gang over Memorial Day weekend. On this trip, the Raleigh contingent was smaller and consisted of Shawna, Keith, John, JoAnna, Phil and Joyce. While there, we met up with Kim, Tom, Mark, Alicia, Dan and Kristin who all lived in or close to the city at the time.
Accommodations: Hyatt Grand Central - As usual, we took advantage of Keith's points and shared a room here with John and JoAnna. It's a great hotel that is convenient to most of the places we visited.
Activities:
Shawna, Keith, JoAnna and John arrived on Friday night on the same flight out of Raleigh. We were supposed to get into the city in time to meet up with the Snarrs, the Feinbergs and Danelle for dinner; however, our flight was significantly delayed so we missed out on dinner. When we arrived at the hotel, we went out for a few drinks with the Snarrs before we called it a night.
On Saturday, we went for a run/walk in Central Park and then took a 3 hour tour around Manhattan with Circle Line Tours. It's a great way to see and learn about the city from the water.
Kim, Tom, Keith, Dan, John on Circle Line Tour
On Sunday, we went for another run/walk in Central Park and then did a 2 hour walking tour of Greenwich Village. The walking tour was quite interesting as we learned about the speakeasies that had developed in the area and how the gay community started out there.
The Gang on the Walking Tour
On Monday, Shawna and Keith had breakfast with her sister Carmen who lives on the Upper East side. We then met up with John and JoAnna back at the hotel and packed up to head back home.
Restaurants/Bars: Bar Americain - Since this restaurant is owned by Bobby Flay, we thought we would get some slammin' steak. However, we were not impressed with the food and the service was quite slow and rude.
Lunasa - We all met here for a few drinks before going to dinner. Nice outdoor patio.
Brick Lane Curry House - Great Indian place on 6th street in the lower East side of Manhattan.
We went to Jazz Fest in New Orleans with Charlie, Melissa, John and JoAnna for 4 days. Keith and Shawna had not spent much time in New Orleans since Hurricane Katrina so it was nice to go back and see the city again. Keith, Charlie and Melissa arrived early Wednesday evening, while Shawna joined them later that night and John and JoAnna joined the group late on Thursday evening.
Accommodations: French Quarter Chateau LeMoyne - Owned by Holiday Inn, this hotel was nice and conveniently located in the French Quarter. It was a bit pricey as is all of the hotels during this time of year in New Orleans.
Activities:
Voodoo Museum
On Thursday morning, we walked around the French Quarter, taking in the beautiful architecture and Jackson Square. We also visited the Voodoo Museum which is quite an interesting place. In the afternoon, we did a city tour which took us to many of the famous sites as well as to areas of the city that were devastated by Katrina. On the tour, we saw an area that is being rebuilt with affordable 'green' homes in the 9th Ward, supported by a Brad Pitt foundation.
French Quarter
On Friday, we took a bus tour over to Oak Alley, a plantation located about an hour outside of the city. The plantation is beautiful and well preserved, surrounded by many oak trees (thus the name). After a tour of the home, we asked the bus driver to take us for some authentic crawfish. So, we stopped at a dive not too far from the plantation and pigged out on boiled crawfish. The owner of the restaurant was amused at the speed in which we peeled our crawfish -- he even thought that Shawna was too slow at peeling!
Oak Alley
Swamp Tour
To show the gang the true heart of Louisiana, we went on a swamp tour on a fan boat. While we joked about being left for dead (we truly were in the middle of nowhere), we enjoyed seeing the moss and alligators. The drivers of the fan boat were quite interesting, sharing stories of killing and eating animals that did not sound appetizing.
We went to Jazz Fest on Saturday where we saw many bands, including the Preservation Hall Jazz band and Cowboy Mouth (always entertaining). It was cool to see some of the parades passing by with people dressed up in colorful costumes. We also chowed down on all sorts of yummy cajun food.
Jazz Fest
On Sunday, we capped off the weekend with a walking tour of Uptown, where we saw the houses of Anne Rice, Nicholas Cage and the Mannings.
Restaurants and Bars: Emeril's NOLA - Charlie, Melissa and Keith ate dinner here on Wednesday evening. Typical cajun fare - pretty tasty.
Brennan's - Famous for its brunch, we had breakfast here on Thursday morning. You definitely will not need lunch after eating here. The food is good and plentiful and the decor is traditional for New Orleans.
Stella - We had dinner here on the Thursday night with Charlie and Melissa (John and JoAnna arrived later that night after dinner). The food was very tasty and the environment was nice and warm. We definitely would recommend this restaurant. While there, we had a brush with fame -- Lawrence (Larry to those us in the know) Fishburne was dining there with someone. While we stared several times, none of us had the nerve to interrupt his meal to ask for an autograph - if only JoAnna had been there!
Pat O'Briens - It would not be a visit to New Orleans without a stop at this famous bar. We went here with Charlie and Melissa and had a few Hurricanes while we sang along to the dueling pianos.
Sucking down Hurricanes at Pat O'Briens
Bayona - Another yummy and cute place! We dined here the Friday evening and enjoyed our meal on the patio outside.
The Gang at Bayona
Snug Harbor - We had drinks and chilled to some jazz at this famous jazz bar.
Cafe du Monde - Another must do in New Orleans! We had breakfast here, enjoying the delicious chicory coffee and beignets.
