On Sunday we took a day off from unpacking and hanging out at the house and decided to catch the ferry (that happens to be only a few blocks from our neighborhood), to explore! I was really excited to be able to take the kids into the city without worrying about parking!
We started at the Algiers ferry stop, waited on a ramp that was for strollers/ bikes/ wheelchairs and cars. I believe the first boat that morning ran at 10:30. It was right on time which meant our wait was only about 5 minutes. Once it got there it was pretty quick loading. We bought an all day pass that was $7 and would include the trolly and buses. We weren't sure exactly how long or where we'd end up so it seemed like the right choice, but we honestly could've just used cash and paid the $2 each way to save a few bucks because we didn't use the other 2 transportation options in the end.
The boat ride itself took around 5 minutes, it was SO fast.
This specific post is REALLY long and has a lot of photos. To continue, please click on the "read more".
Once we arrived on the other side of the Mississippi River, we walked up another ramp and that led us right to the front of the Audubon Aquarium of the Americas. We checked out the prices of the memberships and then explored that little area a bit.
We walked for about 15 minutes and stopped once we got to St. Peter's and Decatur.
We researched a few beignet shops and decided on New Orleans Famous Beignets & Coffee.
Our Review:
Beignets
They were incredibly flaky, HOT and fresh. the center was so sweet and they were not stingy with the powdered sugar!Price
We definitely didn't mind the price. It was actually a lot lower than I thought it would be. They were 3 for $3.
Location
The location was awesome. Easy to find and outside there was a Jazz player playing for tips on the corner, so it was even more enjoyable.
Inside
The inside was really nice! Clean! They featured and sold local artist's work which were framed in wood salvaged from Katrina. I especially loved the ceiling!!!! The staff was super friendly and thoughtful. We ordered an apple juice for the kids and without asking, they gave us an extra cup so that the kids could each have their own. It was sweet.
In Opal's words
"I give this 2 thumbs up!!!"
What was kind of crazier was the line across the street at Cafe Du Monde!!!! I swear those people were going to be in line for an hour at least. Luckily, we only waited about 5 minutes.
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| This was diagonal from NOFB&C. Magical. Next, we found our way to The French Market.   |
Next up, we walked a lot because *beautiful architecture* duh.
On our walk we stumbled upon a really cute little shop!
They had this really cool art installation in the back, I loved it so much.
Another thing that seems to be really popular here, is stumbling upon movie and TV show filming! This is the third time I've been walking by a film crew in action!
On our way back to the ferry we stopped and treated the kids to some ice cream cones since they were literally SO good. We found ice cream at...
This place has a lot of really great reviews, but honestly the only thing I thought was a fair price was the ice cream. Originally the kids were wanting cake pops, but at a whopping $4 a piece I said HELL NO. We got 3 Blue Bell Ice Cream single scoop cones for $9. It was a lot of ice cream too. I always stop and buy candies when we go on trips like this, but I just couldn't this time. I will try other shops next time..
The kids had a lot of fun. We plan to try out the aquarium, zoo, and bug place over the next couple of weeks when his mom is in town. The family PLUS membership was only $225 I believe, which included 3 adults and 19 and under kids for free, and all 3 places for a year. REALLY good deal.
