With all the travel plans I have in 2020, I wanted to keep going with the “Kelz Takes Her Curlz To…” Theme. I plan to post one of these at least once a month to highlight a place I traveled to recently. So first, it was Thailand in a 2 part series! Check out Bangkok and Phuket. Now I want to share my 24 hour trip to New Orleans aka NOLA aka “The Big Easy.”
New Orleans is a 5 hour road trip from Houston or a 45 minute flight. It is known for its amazingly seasoned food, beignets, Bourbon street, and hand grenades. It is also one of the most frequently visited places for bachelorettes. When my line sister got married there back in 2018, I could not make it due to being 36 weeks pregnant. Travel restrictions are not to be played with that far along. So when she invited me to her baby shower, I knew I was not going to miss it.
One of my line sisters who also happens to be one of my best friends and I decided to road trip. We hopped in the car Friday afternoon around 2pm and set our sights on getting there in time for dinner. If you know Houston, you know that traffic was completely not on our side. We probably didnt get outside the city until after 2:30. The route to New Orleans from Houston is pretty straight forward and it is not a boring drive. We go through Lake Charles, Lafayette, Baton Rouge, and finally NOLA.
We got recommendations for dinner from one of our Neos, and chose to go to Neyow’s Creole Cafe. We were wanting some great oysters and they were less than 5 miles from our hotel. We stayed at the Courtyard New Orleans Westbank/Gretna. It was 10 minutes from the Baby Shower Venue. Rooms were very nice and the breakfast menu was pretty good.
At Neyow’s, we knew we wanted oysters more than anything. My friend and I both got a half dozen each and I got the Pasta on the Bayou for my main entree while she got the Red Beans and Rice. We started with our drinks of choice, and then we noticed everybody drinking the “Bow Wow Fruit Punch.” It came in a large to go cup (you can carry liquor outside the restaurant in New Orleans). I ended up ordering one and it reminded me of Tequila Sunrises from this place called the Gnome back in college. The food was great! Hands down I would go back! And I will say the drinks there are strong! If you are in the area, definitely go try them out! Seeing as they have a location in Houston as well, I see a date night there in the near future : )
After dinner, we went back to the hotel and chilled for the evening. I was in the bed by 11pm and to do that and have no kid around fighting sleep or kicking you in the back, it was pure bliss! I swear being a mother, you don’t look forward to going out, you look forward to alone time and a good night’s rest. The quality of sleep declines once you have children. I dare anyone to differ lol!
We woke up for breakfast (as I pictured above) and it was good! Vanilla infused oatmeal, bacon, eggs, and fruit with a White Chocolate Mocha. Check out was at noon and the shower was slated to start at noon so it was perfect for us! My Line sister is having a baby girl, Audre Lorraine, and we are so excited for the mother to be! Her friends planned an amazing baby shower full of intricate details that were sooooo India’s (my expecting line sister) taste. From the guestbook being books by the authors the baby is named after to the stations set up to personalize baby items (onesies and diapers), you could tell the support system they have is full of love and positive vibes. We played Black History Bingo (so India) and I realized I need to freshen up on my history! Who knows who Dr. Carter G. Woodson was? Don’t worry I’ll wait!
After the shower, we got back on the road headed back to Houston! It was a little less than 24 hours, but it was so much fun seeing India and catching up with my friend/line sister Bianca on that road trip! We played all 90’s and early 2000’s music and reminisced on the good ole days! Lots of laughs and lots of rain! No like really it rained 80% of the trip back to Houston lol. You don’t realize how much a quick little getaway can really improve your overall well being. This was definitely they trip I didn’t know I really needed.
Next trip…Memphis, TN!
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