Summer days: New Orleans girls trip

My sisters and I have been plotting a girls trip for this past year. At first we had our sights set on 2 weeks in Italy, but stopped reading Eat Pray Love, came back down to earth a bit and decided on 4 days in New Orleans instead.   Everything was a go for the 2nd week in July and then a week before our trip little miss Annika came along and our girls trip trio became a duo. (A new baby excuse is pretty iron clad).
So Kristi came to Texas and we drove out to NOLA for a few days. It was my first time since Wheeler was born that I have spent a night away from him. I don't know if that is normal or not, but I figured I was due for a sleep-in or two.
Besides sleeping in, we did a lot of walking, eating, shopping and picture taking in the Big Easy. Some of the highlights include:
The Court of Two Sisters- The name was just a bonus, we went for their Jazz brunch; a buffet of everything "cajun, southern, and seafood". My favorite was the bread pudding, cheese grits and eggs benedict. If you go to NOLA this place is a complete must!
St. Charles Streetcar- The oldest operating streetcar in the world! We took an afternoon to ride up through the Garden district. Beautiful antebellum mansions and traditional architecture, saw Loyola and Tulane University.
French Market- pretty trashy, but some redeeming local artist booths
Jackson Square Card/Palm reading-  hilarious, but apparently good things are in the cards for me this fall.
French Quarter- We spent so much of our time just wandering around the F.Q. There are hundreds of antique shops and art galleries and old bookstores mixed in with with tacky mardis gras souvineer shops. Bourbon Street was gross and smelled even worse. But the rest was lovely, and it was heavenly to browse and wander sans an 18 month old.  We bought our fair share of pretty things, and ate more than our fair share of delicious treats.
St. Louis Cathedral- went on a Sunday and walked in on Mass. Going to Catholic Hell for taking pictures like ignorant tourists.
Riverwalk Mall- just a mall, but was attached to our Hotel and gave us lots to do when we got caught in a bad weather system that shut down half the city for 2 days with the first flooding since Hurricane Katrina.
Cafe Du Monde- obviously. And more than once obviously.

It was a great trip with great company. Now hurry up and send me a disc of all our pictures Kristi, or you aren't invited on our next girls trip!

The only picture I managed to get before my camera battery died. Kristi lugged her massive Canon around all week, but is apparently holding the pictures hostage up in Canada and I can't seem to get her to send me a disc... even though her life should obviously revolve around my need to update my blog right...? ;)