When I think of fun places to go, New Orleans - aka Nawlins - is one of my favorites. And since I have three daughters with birthdays within three weeks of each other and my bonus daughter who is a couple weeks after, and my oldest was turning the big 40, I wanted to do something special with them. So what does a mother do? Ask them to pick a place to celebrate their birthdays and I will pick up the tab. And low and behold, they chose Nawlins.
Now if you have read some of my earlier blogs, you know that I love to do a little gambling and through Caesars' Player Club I had achieved Diamond status. Therefore, our first three nights in Nawlins was comped and we stayed at Harrah's Hotel.
In addition, because of my player status, we were upgraded to a room with a river view. Here are a few pics from the room.
Once everyone got to Harrah's and got settled, we had to eat at one of my favorite spots just down from Harrah's. I'm taking them to my favorite spots since all but one of them has never been to Nawlins.
Mother's Restaurant https://www.mothersrestaurant.net/
We were lucky to get there earlier enough that we didn't have to wait to get a seat. I have been there when the line has been out the door and around the corner, and yes to me, the food is just that good. I forgot to take pictures of our orders; however, you can click on the link and go to their site. These were the menus in effect during our visit (prices and items subject to change depending on when you are reading this blog).
After eating, I had to stop in the casino to try my luck. I love to see coins a flying. Started with just a little but by the time those 14 super games were over, I was flying too.
Happy 32nd Birthday Courtney
So today is all about Courtney, who turned 32 years of age. We are going to hang out in the French Quarter and spend some time on Bourbon Street.
In this short video, we are outside of Harrah's Casino headed toward the French Quarter. The hotel is across the street from the casino.
Here are some scenes as we are doing our stroll.
This video gives you a short view as we are going down Canal Street.
We are walking down Canal Street toward Decatur.
Venturing out for a lunch location.
The House of Blues, New Orleans.
Walking down Decatur Street headed to our lunch spot.
And here we are at Cafe Maspero. https://cafemaspero.com/
The food and the adult beverages were delicious and unfortunately I didn't get one picture of any of it. Too much fun just enjoying each other.
One of a few places you hear people say have the best beignets is Cafe Beignet - which happened to be located across from our lunch spot. Yes, we absolutely went over and made some purchases so that we could try them out for ourselves. https://www.cafebeignet.com/menus/
The birthday gal and her wife (my bonus daughter). I think they are having a good time. She is so ready to get rid of that birthday sash though.
Now it's time to head back to the hotel so everyone can rest and relax before the night time celebration begins. A few sights along the way.
Somebody has to do this job - just NOT ME!
Made a quick stop in the casino on the way back to the hotel and looky here. I won 312 free games. Let's see how good it will be to me when those coins stop flying.
After chillin a few hours, it was time to head out for dinner. Courtney chose this wonderful restaurant named Coterie NOLA Restaurant and Oyster Bar. http://coterienola.com/ It was also convenient as we were hitting up Bourbon Street after dinner.
Cheers to Courtney!
So much for the before picture. The after speaks for itself.
This video shows sights and sounds as we are walking down Bourbon Street enjoying the festivities.
The birthday girl was called to the stage to do a birthday dance. I didn't know she had moves like that!!!
The Band
Picture of the Band
New Orleans History - saw these statues in Musical Legends Park as we were headed back to the hotel.
Today we are taking it easy, recuperating from last night, and preparing for Edythe's birthday tomorrow.
We decided to check out the Riverwalk and the stores at The Outlet@The Riverwalk. https://www.riverwalkneworleans.com/
Can you guess the cruise line???
The Store Directory at the Riverwalk https://www.riverwalkneworleans.com/directory/
The Steakhouse at Harrah's Casino
This is where we had the all-birthdays celebration dinner. Another perk of being a Caesar's Diamond Member is that you receive a $100 Celebration Dinner voucher to be used at certain locations so I was able to use mine tonight. If you don't use it within the year you make Diamond, you lose it unless you make Diamond again in subsequent years.
The Menu at the Steakhouse
Gals in front of Harrah's goofing around.
These are my babies no matter how old they get. We're in this love together!
Happy 40th Birthday Edythe!
Today my oldest daughter, and namesake, is 40 years of age. We started out the day with lunch at another one of my favorite places to visit when I'm in Nawlins - Mulate's.
Mulate's https://mulates.com/
The menu (during our visit) up close and personal.
It was much easier to get this birthday gal to wear that sash.
I have no idea why I only took a picture of one order and there are five of us there. But I was told this grilled shrimp Caesar salad was on point.
Today we moved from Harrah's Hotel to the Embassy Suites at the Convention Center. Here is a short video of our executive suite.
Next we decided to ride the street car around town as a few in our crew had not done so. Here is a short video as we are waiting at the corner of St. Charles and Julia for our street car to arrive.
And here it comes.
Information about the St. Charles line.
These next few videos are taken from the St. Charles Line street car as we are heading back toward the French Quarter.
A random picture of some homes and a truck in between videos.
Tulane University
Well we are still on the Street Car and have made it to Canal Street.
To end the day, the gals decided to do The Ghost Tour - City of the Dead. While mostly for entertainment purposes (what tales they tell), we also thought it would be fun to see the city at night. We had the entire bus to ourselves and yes, we did cut up! Our two hosts were very knowledgeable and kept us well "entertained" with their tales.
NOTE: If you have fears or concerns about hearing about death, cemeteries, or superstitions, you may want to skip this section. But don't miss the section on the Katrina Memorial!
The Ghost Tour - Cities of the Dead
In this video, you will hear a little of the history of New Orleans, their burial practices and more.
We visited a few cemeteries, each of them with their own history and story to tell.
In this video, hear discussions about Marie Laveau, haunted places and Charity Hospital. The video is mostly dark as the lights are off in the bus; however, the narrative is what is important.
Hear more on Charity Hospital - a hospital with history in New Orleans.
Pictures of Charity Hospital Present Day
If you listened to the video above, they say it is haunted. Folks have sworn to have seen people standing in the windows as well as seeing lights (there is no electricity in the hospital). Update: there is new hope as Tulane is expected to move into Old Charity Hospital. However, it will only take up about 1/3 of the space. Old Charity will become the flagship building for Tulane’s School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine, as well as housing for biomedical research labs, Tulane’s Innovation Institute and their School of Professional Advancement.
Tulane University Hospital and Clinic is located across from the old Charity Hospital.
The Mortuary Haunted Mansion https://themortuary.net
At the very end of Canal Street is The Mortuary Haunted House. Built in 1872, it is an 150 year old Grand Victorian Mansion, former funeral parlor, and crematorium. It is surrounded by New Orleans’ famed “Cities of the Dead” and sits among more than a million graves in a one-square-mile radius. “Between 1930 and 2003, more than 20,000 funerals took place within its walls, the blood and bodily fluids of the dead swirling into a drain in the embalming room deep in the basement catacombs.” For many years, people from near and far journeyed to this building to pay their last respects to dear departed loved ones.
Since The Mortuary first opened its doors as a haunted attraction in 2007, it has been featured on the top ghost hunting shows including Discovery Channel’s Ghost Lab, Syfi Channel’s Ghost Hunters & Ghost Hunter’s International, the Travel Channel’s Ghost Adventures and featured as one of America’s Scariest Attractions!
More cemetery pictures.
In this video there is discussion about tombs, St. Patrick Cemetery #1 and the others, Charity Memorial Cemetery and you will see a cemetery with street signs within.
Street sign in the cemetery.
Short video with history on the cemetery with the street signs.
Another short video with a little history given.
Made a short stop at the Morning Call. https://morningcallnola.com
After the Morning Call, we stopped at Charity Hospital Cemetery.
This video is a must watch as you will see us walking through Charity Hospital Cemetery and hear a description about the Hurricane Katrina aftermath from someone who has lived in New Orleans all of his life. There is also an explanation regarding the Katrina Memorial as the video captures the essence of the Memorial.
The Katrina Memorial
A diagram of the Katrina Memorial if you were to see it in the daytime. Each of the small squares highlighted in the six large encasements represents an unidentified/unclaimed body following the aftermath of Katrina. The Memorial design also evokes the shape of the hurricane and creates a meditation labyrinth - a healing space for reflection.
As we were leaving the cemetery we stopped at a location where people have taken pictures at night when it is pitch black with no flash on their cameras and the pictures look like they were taken in daylight. Of course I had to see for myself and voila. These pictures were taken at 9:24 p.m. with no flash. Wonder how they do that?
Well, it's a wrap for today. It is almost 9:30 p.m. and we have been out and about all day. Edythe said she has enjoyed her 40th birthday and that makes us all very happy. Our hosts were extremely entertaining and were kind enough to drop us back off at the Embassy Suites instead of our pick up spot. Of course we added in an extra tip for that convenience!
Dooky Chase's Restaurant https://www.dookychaserestaurants.com/
Dooky Chase’s Restaurant opened its doors for business in 1941. What was initially a sandwich shop and lottery ticket outlet in 1939 blossomed into a thriving bar and later a respected family restaurant in Treme. Founded by Emily and Dooky Chase, Sr., Dooky Chase’s Restaurant soon become the meeting place for music and entertainment, civil rights, and culture in New Orleans. You can read more about this popular restaurant that has been visited by Presidents, Vice Presidents and celebrities alike, along with us common everyday folk, on their website.
We were excited about being able to eat at this restaurant with so much history. And the added surprise was to meet our cousins, Dworski and Holly, in person for the very first time. We had such a great time getting to know one another.
Our waitress was very nice with a smile that lit up the room.
This was the menu available to us when we visited.
This was what we ordered. I remembered the pictures this time.
Saw these pictures as we were headed out the door.
We hated for this wonderful evening to come to an end but were so thankful to have the opportunity to break bread and meet family. And we are now keeping up with one another on Facebook. I'm framing this picture.
Had to stop outside and admire the nostalgia and the names of the folks who have eaten at Dooky Chase's.
Time sure flies when you're having fun. Back at Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport waiting on our respective flights. Thanks Nawlins. We had a blast!
Up Up Up and away we go!
Thanks for coming along to New Orleans with us. I hope you found this blog both informative and entertaining. Be sure to go to https://www.edeeonthego.com/link-tree
and view other blogs you may have missed.
Upcoming blogs will include travel to Egypt and South Africa. Consider subscribing to the site so that you will be notified when they are posted.
Until the next time......
I’m ready to go eat at Dooky Chase!😋 enjoyEd the videos. Haven’t been to Nawlins in years!! 💜