The infamous Cafe du Monde in New Orleans.

 

 

This past weekend my daughters and I drove over to the east side of Louisiana to tour New Orleans.  I’ve lived here my entire life and only last year went to NOLA and just saw a very tiny part of it.  I knew I had to return to this hotspot for tourists in our state sooner rather than later.   My 20 year old had requested last year for her only birthday present, to go to Cafe du Monde.  Unfortunately, a hurricane was heading toward our area, so we had to cancel those birthday plans.

 

Fast forward, we had an opportunity to spend 24 hours in New Orleans as tourists, checking out all the popular venues.  We started in Jackson Square, home of artists, street performers, tarot card readers, and the historic St. Louis  Cathedral and more.  Our ultimate goal that afternoon was to spend time at Cafe du Monde, made famous for their rich, dark coffee along with a tasty treat pictured below called beignets.  It’s a sweet batter, fried to a crispy golden brown, and after being removed from the oil, it is sprinkled with a healthy dose of confectioner’s sugar.  It melts in your mouth.  But before we stand in the notoriously LONG line at Cafe du Monde, we checked out Jackson Square and then onto the Aquarium of the Americas, St. Charles Avenue trolley tour of homes and then coffee and beignets for an afternoon snack.  For more information on visiting New Orleans, reach out to me at journeyswithelle@gmail.com.

Happy girl finally got her birthday wish.

Birthday wish, beignets, New Orleans,

Her birthday wish came true – 365 days late.

Those beignets are some kind of good!

 

 

 

 

A famous park in so many photographs and movies. Jackson Square in New Orleans.

When in New Orleans, take advantage of the carriage rides located near Jackson Square.

Dark, rich coffee along with delicious beignets.

 

With a smile and a happy heart,

 

Elle

 

 

Shopping in Gatlinburg

Shopping, Gatlinburg

Shopping in Gatlinburg

Potato salad, Back Alley Grill, Gatlinburg

Sloppy joes at Back Alley Grill in Gatlinburg

Rainy day drive through a beautiful park in Gatlinburg

Driving through park outside Gatlinburg, TN

TN Cabin view in Pigeon Forge

Room with a View

Cabin staircase to loft

TN Cabin with jetted tub

Pigeon Forge cabin first floor

Pigeon Forge TN Cabin loft

Livingroom in TN cabin

TN Cabin loft with pool table and balcony

Old Mill Restaurant with great homestyle meals

Old Mill Restaurant in Pigeon Forge, TN

Smoky Mountain Opry

Sitting area near Ferris wheel and restaurants in Pigeon Forge

Margaritaville, Dancing Light shows and plenty of restaurants

Family Style Eating at Paula Deen’s Restaurant

For our anniversary, the hubby and I decided to go back where it all began one evening in August 1981.  It was in the middle of the night, we had not made reservations and thought we could find a hotel pretty much anywhere.  We were sadly mistaken.  We not only came up empty-handed in Branson but had to drive further up to Springfield to even find a bed that night.  I remember the road was so windy and having never been to the mountains, I was scared every time he would press the pedal to climb the peak, with his “beamers” on high hoping to see the road, and then the road seemingly drops off into no-mans-land.  That, my friend, was not fun!  It did not feel like an adventure either.   Last year, we re-visited Branson and absolutely loved it.  Of course, it helps that we did most of our sight-seeing and excursions during the day.  It is beautiful.  It did not disappoint and we have new and special memories from this trip.  I’ll be sharing more details in a future post but for now here are some of my favorite spots.

 

 

 

Branson, waterfalls

 

Top of the Rock, Branson

Top of the Rock golf course, Branson

Covered bridge, Branson

An unexpected surprise after coming out of some stunning caves. A beautiful covered bridge which led right up to the waterfalls.

Top of the Rock in Branson, MO.  We were celebrating our anniversary and took a keepsake photo right here.  Water was rushing which produced a loud rumble and as we drove by in our golf cart we got wet which caused us to break out into spontaneous laughter.  Sweet memories.

Branson, waterfalls, bridge

Could it get any more idyllic? Waterfalls, lighting, windows, stonework. I absolutely loved this setting in Branson.

Branson

A beautiful drive in Branson heading towards Dogwood Canyon Nature Park.

Dogwood Canyon, Branson, MO

We highly recommend this property.  Beautiful waterfalls greet you and then you can take a tram or a nice stroll to visit the park.  My husband really enjoyed the gentleman that was teaching an impromptu class about Indian warheads.  We went up to the top of a treehouse too.  So much fun this afternoon mixed with beauty all wrapped into one.

Branson

Top of the Rock, Branson, Missouri.  Quaint chapel on the hillside complete with a young lady having bridal portraits taken.