This past weekend was our big New Orleans trip. Kelly, Lance, Ryan and I left Thursday afternoon after Lance finished up his final and everyone got all packed. The drive down was pretty smooth and we didn't run into any problems. We arrived around 5:30 at the French Market Inn. We're all excited to be there and ready to get our night started, right? Right. So we're get all of our luggage together on the buggy and the bellhop Rodney who is a rather plump man escorts us to our room. We get to the elevator which is the size of a small bathroom. I didn't really think twice about getting on. I mean, every elevator has its flaw, right? Well. Apparently all of our bags, the cooler, plump Rodney, my three friends and I were a bit too much for this elevator. We start to go up to the 4th floor and it's taking what seems like forever. Before you know it, we're stalled in between the 2nd and 3rd floors. Then STUCK. Rodney clearly doesn't know what to do. He's just standing there pressing every button hoping it's no big deal. I got a little uneasy. Mainly because it was extra hot. I immediately talked myself out of losing my cool though because HELLOOOO, it's 2011. We wouldn't be stuck THAT long plus we weren't that high up. So I get patient. Sweaty, but patient. Well, as I managed to talk myself down Kelly and Ryan managed to give themselves a panic attack. Ryan first with heavy breathing and "ohhh no no no, you're kidding, right?" Kelly second, who at first was trying to talk Ryan down then lost control after a couple of minutes and started breathing heavy and shedding bags. I was standing right next to her and I thought she was going to be sick. But every time we tried to talk to her she shut us up so I didn't know what the heck to do! Lance was Lance. He was fine. Trying to keep everyone calm. Ok. So Rodney finally gets on his phone and calls the front desk so they can send maintenance over to get us out. After about 10-15 minutes of being stuck we go back down to the 2nd floor where Ryan and Kelly get off and hop on the stairs (which they used almost every time after that). Then the elevator wasn't working right still so we had to carry all of our bags up the 4 flights of stairs. At least Rodney helped. What a way to start the trip!
And no, I don't necessarily recommend the French Market Inn. Pay the extra money and stay at the Bourbon Orleans. It's way closer to Bourbon. And snazzier.
Anyway. We finally get to our little room and recover from our elevator drama and begin to get ready for whatever the night has in store for us. Just before we left we made a pact to stay in groups of two and watch out for each other. That pact really should have involved many more stipulations.
That night we met up with Tuc, Allan and Clay for dinner where Tuc so generously paid. So nice! Afterwards, went to The Spotted Cat for a little music listening which didn't last long since that is so not Lance's scene. Duh. Next stop: Bourbon Street!
Alright. So I haven't been to New Orleans since I've been of age until this trip. I hadn't even really been since I was about 13ish. And that was just for about a day because my high school football team was playing at the dome for the championship yada yada yada. Before that, I was probably 10 or so with my parents and brother. So this trip was sure to be done right.
First things first. Pat O'Brien's for Hurricanes. Which I later found out my body hates just like every other fruity drink. But hey! At least I tried it! The rest of the night involved several different bars on Bourbon. We danced a little and had us a good ole time! Jon-Eric, Josh, and Will eventually arrived but I couldn't tell you what time that was if my life depended on it. We hung out with them for a little while, though. Kelly and I got tired around 2 or 2:30 and decided to call it a night so we could last the next few days. Since it was the first night and neither of us really knew how to get around Lance and Ryan decided to walk us back to the hotel then meet back up with everyone after. Well, they were having their fair share of drama that night and that was another reason Kelly and I were tapped out. We make it back to the hotel where Kelly and I decide to throw a little lecture in their faces about getting their stuff together and acting right because we're all on vacay and we weren't going to deal with their drama all weekend while we're trying to have fun and relax. They both stormed away. Kelly and I then both messaged them continuing the lecture which is when Lance told us that we needed to take a Greyhound home. Ohhh precious. No sir! He kept trying to argue but by this point I could tell he was drunk and so I got him to stop so we could just deal with it in the morning. Around 5am I woke up to the two of them on the floor with their stubborn asses. The next morning Kelly and I woke up and talked to Jon-Erik who mentioned lunch. YES PLEASE! We start getting ready. I decided not to make a big deal of it all. Lance started waking up and we told him that we're going to eat with JE and the others if they want to join. After a few minutes of laying on the floor awake Lance says "I'm sorryyyy, guys. And I don't care how mad I get. I will never sleep on the floor over anything again." Haha! So we're pretty much all good after that. Then laugh about how we'd never made a pact before until that night then got in such a huge fight. Epic fail, guys.
Time for lunch! To Felix's Oyster House we go! Only since it took 4 people in a small room and bathroom forever to get ready we missed the rest of our group, but they eventually came back to sit with us after getting a drink down the street. I got oysters and a Caesar salad and picked off the appetizers we got. The oysters were great! And not too pricey, either, which was a definite plus. After lunch we did some walking and shopping at Urban Outfitters. I bought a really cute black, white and red dress which I ended up wearing that night. I also bought a jacket. Don't hate, I know it's hot out but it was on sale and I have a weakness for jackets!
After spending way too many hours at UO we went swimming at Tuc's hotel's pool. Then walked forever to Mother's for dinner. That's a restaurant, in case you aren't familiar with NOLA. It was good, but I'm not big on Po-Boys and that's their thing there. I'd recommend it if you like Po-Boys though. I had a bite of Kelly's and it was pretty delish.
After Mother's we went to our hotels to get ready for whatever that night brought us... which first was COURTNEY! Courtney B. is the oldest friend I have. We've been friends since we were 5 which I can't really say about anyone else who isn't related to me. She lives in Baton Rouge and comes up here every now and then for family time. And me time. She knew we were going to be in New Orleans so she decided to come down that night since BR is so close. We had a really good time. We all hit up a couple of bars with the whole crew then Lance, Ryan, Courtney and I wandered off to a strip club which I can't go into too much detail about. I can say that Courtney was a complete hit with a lot of the guys there. And the drinks were much cheaper than other bars we had been going to so we stayed for a while and got nice and vodka'd up. Yeah, that's right. I drank vodka. And a lot of it. And yes, the next day was a beast.
Around 2 she decided to head back to BR since she had stuff to do the next day and we went to meet up with everyone at Oz. Don't worry, we didn't let her walk alone. We planned to get her in a taxi until we ran into Tuc who was going that way and volunteered to walk her to her car.
I didn't remember this until a couple of days later, but at Oz Ben and CJ were there! Monroe took over that bar that night. So fun. I somehow ended up talking to this guy named Sky at the bar. Which turned into an all out conversation. He was nice and fairly cute. 29. And smart. But I'm so iffy about meeting people in bars I had trouble, as always, buying into the things he was saying about me. I'm bad about that. When we finally decided to go back to the hotel he asked for my number and I hesitated which he then came back with "Let me just give you my info and then you can contact me. That better?" Classy man. Props. Although I didn't ever contact him even though he was nice and had class. I've got issues. Shut up.
Back at the hotel around 5am. Alarm set for 9:30. Oy!
And boy oh boy did 9:30 come quick! Pretty positive we were all still drunk while waking up and getting ready. I pretty much had to make everyone stop talking to me for a while until the coffee and pedialyte started working some magic. It took me much longer than usual to get ready. Then I painted my toe nails which was the most complicated thing ever. I haven't concentrated that much ever, either. Jesus Christ. By the way, this was the Red Dress Run Day. The day we basically made the trip for. And the day that ended up being the least fun/drink filled for us. Don't get me wrong, it was a blast. It's just that after the days we already had we were pretty exhausted. All of the red dresses were so awesome though. Every where you looked on Bourbon was red! We started everything off at Pat O's for lunch and bloody marys in hopes of curing our hangovers. Problem solved for the most part aside from Lance getting a little sick and having to leave for a couple of hours. The rest of us walked up and down Bourbon a little then went to Jon-Eric, Josh, and Will's hotel to make some drinks and relax a little where Tina and Katie met up with us. Lance and Ryan met back up with us there after a while then we all hit Bourbon up again then Good Friends where Jon-Eric and I started to feel like we were dying and decided to talk everyone into calling it a day in the dresses and go back to our hotels to relax a little, eat, and get ready for the night. Arby's for dinner. There wasn't time for much else plus we didn't feel like have a big meal. Just something quick and easy. Then we went to meet up with everyone at Bourbon Pub and Parade. That place and Oz saw a lot of the Monroe crew this weekend.
So a lot of you may know this and some of you may not, but I'm a pretty quick drinker. I'm not bragging. I'm just saying. I'm a thirsty girl and I don't like my drinks to get the least bit room temperature so I down everything I drink. I do this with everything. I also constantly have to have something to drink, whether it be water or a drinky drink. Anyway, I'm fairly well known amongst my friends to drink beer quickly. Well, I knew there was a problem in the night or in me when it took me around an hour to finish one can of miller lite. WHAAA? Yes, ladies and gentlemen. I let a beer get hot. Barf. It was getting late at that point and I just didn't see the drinking process getting any easier so I decided I was done. Luckily, Kelly was basically in the same boat as me so after walking with the guys to get pizza we decided to just call it a night. We had lived it up plenty over past few days anyway. Complete exhaustion!
We got back to the hotel room and passed out only to be woken up around 5am by the guys coming in. And since we responded to conversation Lance thought it was ok to be chatty and keep talking to us. Boyyyy, no! We're sleepy and WERE asleep. "Shhhhhh! We'll talk to you guys tomorrow." "I love y'all." "Ok Lance. We love you too. Go to sleep." Haha. Waking them up the next morning was a pain.
Sunday morning Kelly and I, of course, wake up before them, grab showers, then go to get coffee and come back and wake them up. After cleaning up our disastrous unpacked mess in the room we finally get a move on our day. Lunch at Hard Rock Cafe. Pretty good. Standard place, nothing too exciting. We all agree it would be a good idea to go walk a little before getting in the car with stuffed bellies. We end up at Shops on Canal which had a Coach store in it. Yep, automatic drooling over the purses and wallets. Damn, why do I torture myself? I had no intention of getting anything at all until I found a little wallet like thing that was $48. Alright, Kristin. You have money left over and your paycheck hit yesterday. You can drop 50 bucks and it not be a huge deal. Hmmm. I need help deciding. I'll come back after a few. Kelly and I go find the guys and walk around a little more. I made them go back to Coach with me. They all talked me into it. "Kristin, you should see your face right now. If you really think you have the money then just get it. You won't regret it. Blah blah blah." Ok, I'm convinced. Salesgirl comes over. Watch out for her. Jesus. She's good. Talked me out of the $48 one and into the $98 slightly bigger clutch. I still had the money for that also, but I just hadn't planned on doing that. I'm so weak. And seriously, she was good. And really nice, too. We had fun talking to her. After dropping $106 (after tax) on the little thing Lance dragged us into Banana Republic so we could basically talk him into the 90somethingdollar pair of sunglasses he bought. Haha. I hope whatever jobs we get when we graduate pay well. We have such high class taste. I have a love/hate relationship with my taste. I mean, at least I'm not trashy?
On the road around 3. But first we had to drive around all the fancy houses in New Orleans and see the Real World house since Lance and I were obsessed with that season and I wasn't with them when they saw it last year. That whole ride was a bumpy one, though, which only seemed to result in Ryan and I getting nauseated and then a slight traffic jam getting on the interstate. Once we were finally on the move for real we had an ETA of 8:30.
The first half of the ride was relatively smooth. I tried to nap, but I don't have the whole sleeping in cars skill so I just listening to music with my eyes closed. Ryan napped a little here and there and Kelly kept Lance company, aka listened to a million stories without getting a word in edge wise. (haha, love you Lance!!)
We get to Jackson and all decide we're a little hungry and need to use the bathrooms. We find a McDonald's because who doesn't love a cheeseburger and french fries after 4 days of drinking? Exactly. So we eat inside to make it easier on Lance since he's driving. FYI, this McDonald's is NICE. Probably the nicest one I've ever been too. So we're all laughing and chatting and having a really good time. We go to leave and before getting in the car the guys smoke so not to bother Kelly. We're standing by the car chatting, they're smoking, sun's going down. Here comes this bright red Chevy Cobalt with two black guys in it. The one on the passenger side rolls down his window and starts asking if we're from there and if he could use one of our phones to meet up with a lady friend cause his phone is dead and he'll give us some money. SKETCHY but at the same time is it really safe to say no either? Who knows because Ryan said yes. Ryan dials the number for him and the guy is all "We're just gonna pull up next to y'all." And the car starts inching forward to the space next to ours and so Ryan lets him hold the phone and then BAM! Byyyyye Ryan's iPhone4. See ya later. We've never looked whiter.
Sucks, right? Well yeah except if they were going to take any phone, good thing it was Ryan's because he was the only one who had his registered with the Find My iPhone app (which we are all now registered with). We call the cops and after what seemed like way too long Officer Hull shows up and we tell him that we already have the phone tracked and so then he gets one of our numbers and we're on the phone with him the whole way he's trying to get the people. Oh, by the way, these dumb asses that took the phone were not only in a bright, noticeable car but also had a very simple, 4 digit license plate that we easily looked at as they drove off. Needless to say Hull caught up with them and they got arrested and charges were pressed. The whole situation set us back 3 hours. I could go into the longer details but honestly it's kind of a blur now because I was SO tired from our weekend I just needed to sleep. So tired that once we finally did get back on the road I ended up getting a splitting migraine which I haven't gotten in years.
We finally got home around midnight. After dropping Kelly and I off Lance went to take Ryan home. They were walking up to his apartment when Ryan noticed there were lights on and he knew he didn't leave them on and his roommate had left the day before we left for her own trip. As soon as they walked into the apartment the first thing they found was that the blinds from the kitchen were on the floor in the living room. Well, shit. A brick had been thrown into the kitchen window. So hard that it left a huge dent in the fridge. Two TVs, his iPad, his watch and a couple of other things were stolen. Not his day, poor thing. Lance called to tell me what had happened and I seriously thought they were joking. Unfortunately not. What the hell is wrong with people?
So there it is in a nutshell. I even left things out and check out how long that is! If you actually took the time to read it... HIGH FIVE! Thanks for listening. Hope you enjoyed. And hope you learned some things. Like don't stay at French Market Inn, don't let strangers borrow your phone, and don't stay in New Orleans too long because more than a couple of days will burn you out and exhaust the hell out of you.
