Florida and Louisiana

Apalachicola and Mobile - April 15 & 16

After spending more than a year stuck inside and unable to travel because of Covid we were more than ready for an adventure. After we were vaccinated in January, we finally felt confident that we could get out and about. International travel was still not really an option, so we decided to take a road trip across the South of the US, to revisit some places we had been to before and to see a few places that were new for Kristine. Originally, we were going to include California in our trip, but because so many places were still closed, we decided to visit California another time.

We left Orlando and headed north to Apalachicola in the Florida panhandle. Although we had been there before, many years ago, we didn't remember much about it. We drove through some rain, but fortunately it stopped in the late afternoon. We took a walk around the quaint downtown area of interesting shops, restaurants and bars. Unfortunately, because of Covid, many places were closed and the town was very quiet.

Apalachicola downtown - The Gibson Inn is the most prominent building

We ate dinner in a small restaurant downtown and then headed back to our hotel on the edge of town.

Our next stop was Daphne, a small town just before Mobile. We took the scenic route along the coast instead of the I-10. It was interesting and a little sad to see the damage caused by Hurricane Michael in 2018 - still a lot of blue tarps and boarded up hotels.

Leaving Daphne, we headed for New Orleans. Once we had crossed the river, we turned South and drove along the coast, through Gulfport and Biloxi, places we had never been before. Unfortunately, we hit really bad weather and had to navigate through driving rain with local flooding in some places. We made it OK, but it was pretty uncomfortable at times and we were glad to be off the road when we arrived.

New Orleans April 17 & 18

We stayed in the French Quarter, so that once we had parked our car, we didn't need to drive again. The hotel was older, but still had some charm.

The Best Western Hotel courtyard

New Orleans was surprisingly busy, despite Covid. Of course, it was a weekend, so perhaps that made a difference.

Bourbon Street at night

Next morning, we set out to explore the city. We thought we would start at The Café du Monde for our morning coffee, but there was a VERY long line so we moved on.

The Café du Monde - now a major tourist destination

Jackson Square and the Cathedral, just across from the Café du Monde, were more relaxed, although still quite busy.

Jackson Square and the Cathedral

Although very touristy, the horse drawn carriages are quite picturesque.

After a late breakfast / early lunch, we took a walk down to the Mississippi river.

Most of the Riverboats were still not operating, but they looked the part even when tied up to the wharf.

Later in the day, we took the St Charles Street trolley to the end of the line and back again. Not a bad deal at $1 each way.

Kris was mostly interested in the old houses along the route, but it was hard to take pictures from a moving vehicle.

However, walking around town, we did see several older buildings, although not as grand.

We finished our day at an old stomping ground of mine, Pat O'Brien's

Inside the bar

Outside in the courtyard

After dinner that night, early to bed and on the road again next morning, heading for Houston