Last week, I joined Rob on a work trip to New Orleans. It had been two years since we had traveled without the girls so it was an exciting adventure for us, for the girls and for my in-laws who graciously spent the week at our house.

Being that it was a work trip, we did not have a ton of control over where we stayed, what we ate or what we did. Because of this, I’m not sure I truly experienced the New Orleans that so many people claim to be one of their favorite places on earth. I left feeling a bit like I needed a ‘do-over.’

That said though, when I looked back through my pictures I realized I certainly saw a different and new part of the world and that is always exciting. Below are a few of the sites we saw…

Our trip started at Mardi Gras World, a museum of all things New Orleans. We entered a warehouse full of Mardi Gras floats. I  didn’t have my ‘big camera’ with me so it was hard to capture the scope of this place. We were also able to participate in the Dear World project the night that we arrived. More to come on this amazing experience soon.

I wondered why our Garden District tour began in a cemetery but soon learned that due to the water level in New Orleans, burial is quite a process that results in these massive tomb stones.

We were lucky enough to be toured around this mansion with one of it’s owners. We got lots of fun information that way.

The Garden District was definitely my favorite. Everything was green, green, green.

And then there was Bourbon Street. I have really never seen anything like it. We had dinner at a great restaurant on the third floor. Being able to watch the goings on below was a great way to experience the madness. And to escape the smell that we found when we were on street level.

And of course there were beads everywhere we turned. On tree branches, on electrical wires and on porches. Wherever you looked, there were beads…