NOLA 2011

 This last month has certainly been full of adventures--adventures that I need to update you, my nonexistent readers, on!  I expect that it is going to take a few posts to get all caught up, so make sure to check back regularly!

As expected my last week of school was emotional, but we all survived it.  I think I handled it better because I had Jamie’s bachelorette party to look forward to!  (Big ol’ sorry to everyone at school who thought I was going to the actual wedding…)  It was bachelorette weekend in New Orleans!!

Thursday night I headed to Norcross.  Jamie and I did some shopping and then taste tested some of the options for the signature cocktails for the wedding.  I still say that the Moscow Mule would have been a hit!  The next morning we were ready to GO!  We loaded up the car, picked up Laura Smith, and then…got rear ended by a transfer truck.  Everyone was okay but it definitely caused us to get a later start than expected.  After we got all that cleared up, we made it to Jill’s and got on the road. 

8 hours later…

We arrived in New Orleans, changed quickly, and made our dinner reservations at Jaques-Imo’s.  Yummy jambalaya and mashed sweet potatoe!!  Jill (MoH of the year!) also gave us presents!  She ordered t-shirts for the weekend and got us super cute buttons!  James also got a lovely veil to wear for the weekend (which I maintain got her more beads than if she had actually shown well.. you know what..)

After dinner we headed to Bourbon.  That first night we just walked through because we were going to a bar past Bourbon called DBA where a local swing band was playing.  The last (and first) time I went to New Orleans was on a mission trip freshmen year of high school.. very different kind of trip.  Bourbon St was ridiculous…like Amsterdam, but I wasn’t expecting it! 

The next day we went to ‘the fly,’ which is a grassy park kind of area by the Mississippi River, to lay out.  We had stopped at a gas station to get po boys and had ourselves a little picnic out there.  However, it was super hot, so we didn’t last too long!  We went back to the house to get cleaned up and ready for dinner.  That night we went to dinner at Domenica (the John Besh restaurant at the Roosevelt Hotel).  Very fancy and posh, but relaxed at the same time.  I got squid ink pasta with crab meat and a lemon butter sauce.  Out of this world!! 

After dinner we headed to Pat O’Breins Piano Bar.  What a good time!!!  Best part of the whole trip.  We requested the Georgia fight song (that got more than a few boos from the LSU fans in the room), Family Traditions, and Wagon Wheel.

In line for Pat O's.. Jamie, Laura, and Jill copying the picture behind them.

After Pat O’s we went to a few more places to dance and then we somehow ended up at a bar that had a bull.  Oh my.  That was when I knew that the night needed to start wrapping itself up. 

Jamie on the bull!

Ashley's turn on the bull.

While everyone slept it off the next morning, I met up with Britt to have some coffee and catch up.  For those of y’all that don’t know, Britt was my first boyfriend way back in high school.  We met through Y-Club and even though we lived 3 hours apart we dated for about a year or so.  It was a great first relationship, but we lost touch so it was great to get to catch up!  After that everyone was STILL asleep so I went to Café du Monde and got beignets for the sleepy heads!  What a great end to a great trip!