Where we stayed:
When I first told Kourtney we were staying in a Hostel she was worried. I reassured her that the Nola Jazz House had a good rating on hostelworld.com and that at least from the pictures it looked pretty nice. I also arrived a day earlier than her so I sent her some pictures before she arrived. The Nola Jazz House was seriously top notch. It was in a decent location as long as you don't mind a short streetcar ride (which only costs $3 for a day pass). They had free parking out front of the hostel which was nice for Kourtney since she drove in from Mississippi. The most important part... HOT SHOWERS! This might seem odd but I have been in many hostels (mostly in other countries) that do not have hot water and shower is just miserable. Another exciting perk that they have is a free pancake breakfast. Now after a week of eating pancakes, I never want to see one again, but it is a great way to save money on at least one meal a day. They also had a kitchen fully equipped and since Kourtney and I were trying to make this trip as cheap as possible, we decided to cook (microwave) a few dinners throughout the week at the hostel. The staff was AMAZING, I seriously can't say enough great things about them. They were super friendly and always eager to help. We stayed in the 10 person mixed dorm room which was the cheapest option. I actually enjoyed staying in the room because we ended up becoming friends with a lot of the people staying in there. They also had lockers in the room and hallways so you could lock up valuables, and all the rooms were very clean. They had a cleaning staff come every day to make sure the bathrooms, rooms, and beds were refreshed. Finally, and for some the most important thing: free WiFi, and not just free WiFi but like a solid connection that didn't make you want to pull your hair out. Overall I would give the Nola Jazz House a 99% rating.
If you don't have a car, never fear the jazzy pass is here! The street cars are a great way to get around the city. You can buy day passes straight from the streetcar or you can buy a 3,5, or 31 day pass at the vending machines. Some of the vending machines are located at specific bus stops or you can find them in local Walgreen's stores.The "Jazzy Pass" is good for any RTA transportation so you can use it an unlimited number of times on the street cars or buses. Here is their website if you would like to look up a little more information on it. JAZZY PASS
Parking near the French Quater is outrageously expensive so your best bet is to take public transit. Obviously, a car isn't really necessary in New Orleans, but it is nice if you want to get out of the city for a day. Kourtney and I drove out to the Jean Lafitte National Historical Park and Preserve one day to check out the alligators and we drove ourselves to our swamp tour which was about 40 minutes away.
Even though there is more to New Orleans than the night life, it is still pretty fun to experience. All over the French Quarter you can find fun places to drink like down Frenchman street. They had amazing live bands and dueling pianos, also it doesn't hurt that the beers were a little cheaper than on Bourbon street. The great thing about New Orleans is that there is a ton of free stuff to do, you just have to look! We went to a free DJ competition (not really our scene) that was actually a lot of fun AND they were giving out free stuff. There were two different free open mic night/comedy club events, one was at the hi-ho lounge which had its good and horribly bad acts, the other we ended up not going to but it is still a regular thing that happens at the Howlin' Wolf on Thursdays. Now don't get me wrong Bourbon street is definitely something you have to do, if you are of legal drinking age, at least once while you are there. You feel like a real rebel walking down the street with your open container and just waiving at the police officers sitting on their horses. All kinds of music is pouring out of every bar. anything from jazz, blues, r&b, and even today's top pop charts. There are also plenty of strip clubs you can wander into if that is your thing... no judgement, I almost went into a male strip club just to say I did it... then I realized there was a cover AND a one drink minimum... who do I look like Oliver Warbucks?! I'm stingy and am not going to waste valuable drinking money to watch some dude swing his ding-a-ling around like a helicopter. thanks i'll pass. Where we ended up staying most of the night was this amazing karaoke bar called The Cats Meow. We stayed there dancing and singing along past 2am. Now I could go on and on about bourbon street, but I wont, at least not in this post. Next week when I post part 2 of my vlog video I think I will post some safety tips and tricks on here so you can have fun and last more than two hours down on Bourbon Street.
As I said before there is a ton of free (super cheap) stuff do do in New Orleans, even during the day. Some of the free stuff Kourtney and I hit up were the Louis Armstrong Park (Nice to walk through for a few minutes and get some quick pictures), the St. Louis Cemetery (Kinda creepy but also really awesome, I highly recommend), just walking around the French Quarter or through the Garden District (Highly recommend both), Jackson Square, and the St Louis Cathedral. Also in the French Quarter there is a market with booths set up for you graze through and on Wednesdays there is also a fresh food market. I would also recommend visiting Pepper Palace to taste some amazing hot sauces and BBQ sauces, but be careful I ended up walking with 3 bottles of sauces because its that good! Another must do is to share a beignet at Cafe Du Monde, they were delicious and you get more than enough to share between two people. There is also a $2 ferry (one way) to Algiers Pier where you can get a good view of the New Orleans skyline and visit a glass blowing shop to watch them create beautiful pieces.
One place you MUST visit while in New Orleans is the WWII museum. Seriously, do it. And plan to spend hours going through all the displays and buildings. There is a reason it is the 11th ranked museum in the world. It is worth the money (even though I semi talked our way into the exhibit for free). We only got to spend a short amount of time in the museum and didn't get to check out everything it had to offer, but I could have easily spent the whole day in there.
Food, Food Eat it ALL!!
You can't visit New Orleans without eating all of their amazing food. It doesn't matter were you get it but if you leave New Orleans without trying gumbo, jambalaya, and pralines I will personally come slap you. Kourtney and I decided to knock all three out at the New Orleans School of Cooking with I will talk about in a minute. One place you have to visit is Arabella's Casa di Pasta (I know, I know, it has nothing to do with Cajun or Creole food, but trust me) it is an amazing Italian cafe where you can essentially build your own pasta dish with fresh, made at location, pasta and sauces. Seriously, best. pasta. ever! And don't even get me started on their canolli's. You can try a Po boy if you wish but I didn't really see what the big deal was. It is essentially a sub sandwich on Italian bread. Unfortunately we were not there in the right season to get a good craw fish boil but I heard it is delicious... so do me a favor and go down in the warmer months, try it out and let me know if it is as good as they say.As I mentioned before Kourtney and I went to a cooking class at the New Orleans School of Cooking. We learned all about the secrets behind cooking gumbo, jambalaya and pralines. Both the gumbo and jambalaya was made with andouille sausage which was on point! mmhmm. Big Kevin was our chef and he was amazing, he gave us a lot of useful information and had a brilliant sense of humor (which I can always appreciate). It was only $25 for the class and becuase we got to eat the food after it was cooked, it doubled as our dinner for the night. (We are so thrifty that way)
Finally, the one and only tour Kourtney and I took. It was a swamp tour through Cajun Encounters. Unfortunately, it was cold all week because a cold front had come through the south so we didn't get to see any alligators... sigh. But we still saw wild pigs, raccoons, birds, and the vegetation was beautiful even though it hadn't bloomed yet. The tour guide was friendly, talkative, and willing to answer any and all questions. This tour was only $25 because we drove ourselves to their location but it was definitely worth the money! I would just suggest going in the warmer months so all the flowers and trees are in full bloom and you will have a better chance to see more wildlife like the massive alligators they claim to have. (They will pick you up if you don't have a car, it just costs more)
Also, here is part 1 of my vlog of the trip! Part 2 coming next Monday along with my tips and tricks to surviving Bourbon Street!
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