New Orleans – In Love with the French Quarter!

The taxi dropped us in the middle of the craziness of Bourbon Street in the French Quarter of New Orleans. Having been travelling for the last month we did not always do that much research before we arrived at a new destination, so we did not really know what Bourbon Street was about. We told the taxi driver to bring us to some nice bars in the French Quarter. And there we were – in the middle of Bourbon Street where people were drinking in the street (!) at 4.30pm (!) on a Thursday (!)!

There were so many Vodoo shops in the French Quarter, so we entered one to have a look around. In front of the shop were some people advertising ghost tours. Of course we had to join one tour

Our tour would start at 8pm so we still had some time to get a drink and some food. We went to a bar opposite of the Vodoo shop, called Pat O’Briens where I had a Bloody Mary.

After finishing our drinks we went next doors to get a some food. The bartender told us that this place was hunted too. There apparently is a little girl that people sometimes see. When walking up to the restrooms (where the girl was seen most)  I paid special attention to not miss out on the ghost but nothing, no ghost..

We still had some time before the tour would start, so we walked around through the pretty streets of the French quarter and got some coffee and pastry at Cafe Beignet (photos below) which was a really cute cafe in a more quiet street.

The ghost tour guide led us through the French Quarter stopping at many buildings which were supposed to be hunted. Most of the times, bad things had happened in such places in the past and the souls of the murdered people didn’t find peace – now scaring people as ghosts. The tour was actually quite interesting with lots of history of the French Quarter and New Orleans. Unfortunately, still no ghosts..

In the evening we headed over to Frenchman Street. There you can find more authentic bars and places that are not as touristy as Bourbon Street. Close by there was a little market that was open till late at night. They sold lots of handmade jewellery and lots of different art and souvenirs.

 

 

On the next day we went to the French Market and strolled through the streets and shops there. We had coffee and beignets at Cafe Du Monde – the most famous historic cafe in New Orleans. So make sure to pay a visit to Cafe Du Monde to get some yummy beignets – they are really super tasty!

 

After strolling through the French Market, we continued our little walking tour through the French Quarter. I am so fascinated by the architecture of the buildings. I especially love the balconies

As you can see in the photos, some buildings are hundreds of years old and a bit run down while others still look really pretty.

 

 

 

For dinner we went to Oceana, a restaurant in the French Quarter with yummy seafood.  I was not a big fan of the interior (way to much blue colour everywhere) but the food was great!

 

As you can see, the French Quarter is definitely worth a visit! The vibe of this district is just unique. There is also a great amount of live music in the bars and in the streets. We saw two parades in two days by randomly bumping into crowds of people