Following breakfast, we took off for Mardi Gras World located at 1380 Port of New Orleans Place. Ti

Our first stop was Magazine Street , a shopping district to the south of the French Quarter from Canal Street to the Zoo/Audubon Park. It s accessible by street car with a short stroll from most any stop. The local transit bus runs along Magazine Street for easier access. We chose to drive and park since some of the street car line was under repair and the weather was threatening.  Parking 1956 los angeles angels was not a problem.
Roughly 6 miles long, this shopping experience includes thrift shops, furniture, jewelry, art galleries and shops of all kinds, restaurants/bars and clothing stores.  The variety of items available is a bit overwhelming, but there s plenty fun to view or pick through. 1956 los angeles angels It takes a whole day to explore from end to end, but we broke it up and spent a little time there one day, and finished up the next.
Because we are big music fans, one important stop was the Jim Russell s Record Store located at 1837 Magazine Street.  The selection of LPs was impressive. They had just suffered damage from a roof collapsing from a rain storm earlier in the month, so many of these would eventually be replaced by what they kept in storage.  Clean up is underway but it was a blast to sift through what they had on hand. We even found some rare New Orleans 45s from artists like Johnny Adams and Robert Parker.  Jim s daughter-in-law, Denise, was working the day we visited and we had a lot of fun talking with her. She told us some family stories and gave us a tour of the shop. We found out that she is an avid video game player.  As of our visit in June 2014, Denise ranks #15 in the world in the game Gears of War .  Her daughter 1956 los angeles angels ranks even higher.  Our time here was pretty enjoyable and we recommend music buffs stop here on your next NOLA visit.
Keeping the music theme for our trip, we later shopped the Louisiana Music Factory 1956 los angeles angels and visited the former location of the  J M Recording studios.  Artists like Little Richard, Fats Domino and Lloyd Price made this place famous. It s now a laundry facility but the historical marker along with the memories is there.
After our shopping spree, we stopped at District: Donuts. Sliders. Brew  at 2209 Magazine Street.  Their famous sliders looked great but we stuck to the delicious donuts, sharing a couple of flavors for a light afternoon snack (pictured is their Pineapple Upside Down Cake donut).  We ll have to return for a full lunch.
Before dinner, we went to a music event at the Ogden Museum of Southern Ar t, right around 1956 los angeles angels the corner from our hotel, The Modern . Part of the Ogden After Hours program, 1956 los angeles angels  Alvin Youngblood 1956 los angeles angels Hart was the entertainment and food drink were available. We viewed the art exhibits and listened to a entertaining blues concert.  My favorite art exhibit was on the main floor and consisted 1956 los angeles angels of mini puzzle pieces by artist Juan Logan .  We enjoyed a lot of art this weekend and the Ogden was a great place to start this adventure.
The Modern is a nice boutique hotel, clean, 1956 los angeles angels classy and affordable.  It is within walking 1956 los angeles angels distance of both the Ogden Museum of Southern Art, The WWII Museum, Louisiana s Civil War Museum and many fine restaurants, including Cochon and Cochon Butcher, which we did visit on this trip and a previous one. Located on Lee Circle  in the Central Business District near the Wearhouse District of New Orleans, The Modern is also convenient to the streetcar line .  Since the streetcar 1956 los angeles angels line was being repaired in sections around town, we ended up driving to most of what we wanted to do, but the direct line to the French Quarter was all clear.
For dinner, we enjoyed some old school Italian fare at Vincent s Italian at 7839 St Charles Street.  We ordered the Lasagna and the Italian Sausage with Angel hair pasta.  The boys each dined on Calamari and loved it. The whole meal was delicious. Vincent s has been voted Best Italian in many local polls and reviews including New Orleans Magazine and Zagat Survey. We think it s pretty sweet too.
Our second day in the Big Easy started at The Old Coffee Pot Restaurant , located 1956 los angeles angels at 714 St Peter Street in the French Quarter. We had some chicory laced coffee, the Soulfood Omlet, Eggs and Grits, and traditional calas. A cala is basically a rice beignet; kind of like a fried rice fritter. 1956 los angeles angels  There is a long history in New Orleans of the cala.  It was almost extinct because of food rationing during WWII but is finding a resurgence in the city. Click here for more information ; here for a recipe .
Following breakfast, we took off for Mardi Gras World located at 1380 Port of New Orleans Place.  Tickets are reasonably priced at $19.95 per person. We got the student rate for our boys, just $15.95.  The tour starts out with a viewing of several costumes worn in previous parades, followed by a brief movie, and a guided tour of the workshop 1956 los angeles angels area.  A huge warehouse facility 1956 los angeles angels includes artist 1956 los angeles angels space for designing, sculpting, and painting the massive float artwork. There is also a large area of previously used art sculptures and, in the back of the warehouse, there are actual floats from this past season being dismantled or reworked. After the guided tour, we were left to look around and could stay until closing if we wanted to.  Artists were available for questions.  On the way out, we passed through the gift shop filled with clothes, cups  mugs, posters, and other knick-knacks.  One thing I found lacking was a selection of floaty pens.  We have a collection and thought, of all places, we could find some here. Maybe next time.
After Mardi Gras World, we stayed in the neighborhood and had lunch at Domilese s . More PoBoy s for our diet this weekend.  The oysters were fresh awesome (best we ve had in New Orleans to date). Located nearby,  Hansen s Sno Bliz  on Tchoupitoulas Street was our dessert stop. There s always a line; the Sno Balls are always refreshing. 1956 los angeles angels We ve been here before and looked forward to another visit.  Never disappointed, we always recommend Hansen s.
Our next adventure took us to Mid-City Lanes/Rock n Bow l.  Bowling is one of our favorite family activities so we weren t going to miss this place.  The bowling alley houses a bar, restaurant, and concert stage.  Music in New Orleans is played everywhere 1956 los angeles angels so it makes sense to have live music entertain bowlers every night.  This tradition started with Zydeco night and morphed into a regular event. It was too early for dinner and a concert so we hung out and bowled a couple games.
The lanes are modern, but there was, on display, an old-school bowling ball return 1956 los angeles angels hood and rack. Bubble gum-pink with chrome, it brought back memories of the lanes I used to bowl as a kid. The boys enjoyed it.  Rock n Bowl has quite an interesting history both pre- and post-Katrina.  It s worth reading about and there is a History tab on their website. Enjoy reading, then make plans to visit.  We have heard the Po Boys are wonderful.
1956 los angeles angels Dinner 1956 los angeles angels was served at Pascal s Manale , who is famous for their Original Barbecue Shrimp. We couldn t wait to try it.  The waitress came to us with bibs before serving us dinner.  Hmmm. How messy could barbecue shrimp be?  Well, they were not only messy but incredibly delectable, swimming in a buttery, peppery sauce. The dish came with plenty of Leidenheimer bread to soak up that wonderful sauce; it shouldn t be wasted. The two of us split a plate which was a great decision since there was so much to eat.  The boys ate a plate each of Calamari and proclaimed that it tasted fantastic. Pascal s Manale is located 1956 los angeles angels 1838 Napoleon Ave.  The street car line is under reconstruction in this neighborhood at the time of this writing (Summer 2014), so plan to drive.  We had no trouble finding parking.  Reservations are suggested.
We often spend our Saturday mornings at the local farm market, so we found the Crescent City Farmer s Market  Saturday Market in the Warehouse District.  It was worth a stop. Located at Magazine and Girod Streets this market runs year-round from 8am to noon. The place was stocked with local, farm fresh foods, canned items made from some of the same farmer s produce, and Gulf seafood.  And where there is a gathering of people in New Orleans, there is always music.  Having lived on the Gulf Coast in  previous years, we are really missing our local seafood and, had we had a way to keep some of this fresh until we got home the next day, we would have bought some.  The prices, closer to the coast, are a lot lower than even just a few hours north.  Passing on the seafood, we did purchase 1956 los angeles angels some peppers, homemade Blackberry Sage Syrup , and some Back Yard Creole Tomato Pepper Jelly .  It s easier to travel with canned items than with fresh.  We recommend adding this Farmer s Market 1956 los angeles angels to your next NOLA to-do list.
Lunchtime found us back on Magazine 1956 los angeles angels Street for a meal at Dat Dog .  A fun little place for a variety of sausage sandwiches, it offers large patio dining area and an indoor section for dining and drinking.  We caught the FIFA World Cup Soccer game on one of their many televisions while we waited for our order.  The menu is awesome: a selection of traditional German sausages, Vegan selections, a fish dog, Crawfish, Italian and Duck, to name a few.  Sticking with a Louisiana theme, we dined on the Hot Sausage and Gator Dog. Dat Dog has three locations: 1956 los angeles angels we chose 3336 Magazine Street but you can also find them at 5030 Rue Freret Street and 601 Frenchmen Street.
There are many walking tours available in New Orleans and there are plenty of brochures with maps in them, so you can take a self-guided walking tour.  We returned to the French 1956 los angeles angels Quarter, gathered up these maps and looked around. 1956 los angeles angels  Our stops included 1956 los angeles angels Jackson Square, the Voodoo Museum, a few shops and art galleries.  We enjoyed The Art of Dr. Seuss, the outdoor sculpture art of famous New Orleans Jazz musicians across 1956 los angeles angels from Cafe Beignet, a street corner band concert in front of Rouses Market (Royal and St Peter Streets), and other street performers (the metallic painted people who stand still as statues).
We thoroughly enjoyed