Day started out with having to say goodbye to our hotel. It was time for brunch and heading back to Houston.

Don’t you just love the décor at this hotel? It’s called The Ambassador. Check it out. It has an old feel to it. Love.

Bubba Gump Shrimp Co.
429 Decatur Street
New Orleans, Louisiana
(504) 522-5800
www.bubbagump.com

Mama Blue’s Shrimp Gumbo [with select fish and sausage] | Cup $5.29 Bowl $7.29

Super watery. Liked the gumbo from Pompano Joe’s in Florida better.

Captain’s Fish & Chips [traditional beer battered] | $12.99

The fish was flaky but it was not anything special. The batter was actually very light and airy. The fries were normal … a little leaning to the side of getting hard.

Some of the girls wanted real food before Café du Monde so we went here unplanned. It wasn’t that great. I wouldn’t care to go to another Bubba Gump’s in the future. If I do, I’ll definitely get something else.

After our meal, we walked pass some horses. This is me feeding one a carrot. He’s actually part mule/donkey because they’re better for pulling a carload of people.

Anyway, he pretty much slobbered all over my hand. I walked like a speed of light to wash my hand at our next destination:

Café du Monde
800 Decatur Street
New Orleans, Louisiana
(504) 525-4544
www.cafedumonde.com

Jenny and I did those little penny machines. Instant souvenir.

Café au Lait (Coffee) | $3.87

Beignets [order of 3 French donuts] | $2.42

The coffee had no taste to it. It was an add-your-own-sugar type deal. After that, instant yum. I’m in no way a coffee drinker but it was so good. I wish I had more.

The beignets were so warm and gooey from the powered sugar. We had two orders and shared it with everyone else. Yum, yum. I only ate one and a quarter. I wish I had more!

The group before going into the car and heading home. Trip ends.

Those were the longest and shortest 4 days of trip ever.

I cannot wait when Hong Kong trip comes. All those wonderful eateries. Cannot wait! Eeep!

Our day begin at a local café:

Another Broken Egg Café
979 Hwy 98
Destin, Florida
(850) 650-0499
www.anotherbrokenegg.com

There was a wait outside the café for 20-40 minutes. Not bad. But it was a Wednesday. But then again it was summer in a touristy area. Wait was worth it.

The Farm Fresh [our garden fresh selection of broccoli, mushrooms, onions, tomatoes, & melted combo cheese; served with a side of country potatoes and English muffin] | $9.99

If you love potatoes … go here and try it! The outside is crispy but the inside is soft and mushy. Just how a country potato should be. Other places seem to dry it out or it becomes hard. Here, it’s perfect. Give me your secret!

The omelet was plain. Seems like a normal omelet. I could do without all the cheese though. And I definitely did not eat the English muffin.

Sausage (2 patties) | $3.49

I ordered a side of sausage because I wanted some meat. It was very normal like the omelet and super oily. It was costly but hey, I guess they changed their menu, 3 patties for $3.49. Still expensive but can’t complain.

Monster Cinnamon Roll [warm & gooey with a cream cheese icing] | $3.89

Jenny ordered this, took a few bites. It was soooooo gooooood. A to order again if I’m ever at a Broken Egg Café. It was just like they said, warm and gooey. It was so moist. So dang good. I’m drooling as I’m typing this.

Banana’s Foster [waffle, french toast, or jumbo pancake; covered with our very own warm banana’s foster sauce, whipped cream, pecans & fresh banana slices] | $10.99

Another one of Jenny’s order. She really loves sweets. I took a bite and geebus. Too sweet! I think this is a sharing type of deal. She was eating it all by herself and I’m sure she overloaded on all the sugar. Bleugh!

After brunch, we went on to New Orleans, Louisiana. And checked into the hotel and got ready.

See my darkness. Yuck!

Dinner was at:

Emeril’s Restaurant
800 Tchoupitoulas Street
New Orleans, Louisiana 70130
(504) 528-9393

Free Bread

I’m not sure of the real names of the bread but I know one is like a croissant (brown), one like cornbread (yellow), and one like a focaccia bread (square). The best one? The croissant one. Yum. So delicious.

Tammy’s choice:

Grilled Niman Ranch Double Cut Pork Chop [with caramelized sweet potatoes, tamarind glaze and green Chile mole sauce] | $32

The pork chop was very juicy … but very salty. Not a fan. The sweet potatoes were delicious though. Loved the texture but like the pork, a little salty.

My choice:

Andouille Crusted Drum [with grilled vegetables, shoestring potatoes, glazed pecans and creole meliniere sauce] | $29

Yum. The fish was very flaky and juicy but the outside was crunchy. Reason I picked this was the vegetables. Because I haven’t eaten enough. The shoestring potatoes were a little on the salty side but it was crunchy and so yummy.

I would get this again.

Jenny’s choice:

Sweet Barbecue Glazed Salmon [with Andouille-potato hash, crispy onions, and house made Worcestershire] | $27

I was going to pick this but I’m not a big fan of crispy onions and I really wanted those vegetables. Loved the salmon. Very flaky. The onions were meh. Glad I didn’t order this and suck with my drum though.

I would order this if the onions weren’t with it. I love onions, but these didn’t cut it.

After dinner, we went back to the hotel and got ready. The other girls pre-drank. Then we went to Bourbon Street.

Tropical Isle
721 Bourbon Street
New Orleans, Louisiana
(504) 529-1409
www.tropicalisle.com

I’m not quite sure if this is the right location. There were three on that street.

They are well known for their Hand Grenades | $8. I’m not sure what’s in it. But yum!

Heard this stuff makes you drunk fast so we bought two and shared it between all of us. One on ice and one as a slush. Get it on ice. Ice melts and makes the alcohol not as strong and it tastes better at the end. (Maybe we got use to the alcohol though …)

I don’t know where this place is. I looked it up online but I cannot find it. I’ll just call it:

Big Easy Pizza By the Slice
Bourbon Street
New Orleans, Louisiana

Meat Lover’s | $4.50

So cheesy. So greasy. So yummy. Get it. It tastes good from walking around everywhere.

Crossed another thing off my bucket list.

Going to a Gentlemen’s Club. Seriously. Nothing special. I’m sorry if this offends anyone but I just wanted to see why some guys like to go. It was actually funny being there. I really liked one of them. She’s from California and only come and do this for a few months for fun.

I also crossed off another thing from my bucket list.

Go to a Casino and gamble.

Check.

I played the machine Blackjack at Hurrah’s and won $10. Win. I cashed out before I lost anything. Smart cookie right here.

We went home and showered and went to bed.

Day 4. Final day. Coming up soon.

Ready for the beach! We had our free breakfast at the hotel. Yay to saving money!

Look at that wonderful view!

The water was so white and blue and super clear! So pretty!

Jennifer and Karen T. went to scooter so Jenny, Tammy, and I did our own thing. We had to get a quick lunch so we went to:

Pompano Joe’s
2237 Scenic Gulf Drive
Destin, Florida 32550
(850) 837-2224
www.pompano-joes.com

Since we didn’t want to get sick from eating too much food, we split an appetizer and a soup.

Seafood Gumbo [2012 Winner of the People’s choice award & best overall gumbo at the Sandestin Gumbo Festival] | Cup $4.49 Bowl $5.99

We got the bowl since we were sharing and it was deliciously yummy. It was thick but at the same time, thin. There was a lot of meat and veggies in there as well. So filling.

Fried Calamari [served with marinara and tiki sauces] | $8.99

Yum. The little legs on this squid was so tender. It kind of crackles in your mouth when you chewed it up and it’s not because it was fried. I didn’t need any of the sauces for this baby. It was great just by itself!

We waited half an hour or so to cross something off my bucket list!

Surfing!

There’s a surf school there called Ride On Surf School.

It took me a little bit to finally get it down and when I did it felt like I was soaring on water.

We did a group lesson (2 or more) with 1 hour instruction time and 1 hour free surf time for $55 per person.

The instructors were so nice and helpful and never gave up once! I would love to come here again and Ride On! It’s only about $20 to reserve a board for an hour without the lessons, so why not?

Us with our instructors, Austin and Dylan.

We all met up, showered, and got ready for:

Rick’s Crab Trap
1096 Scenic Gulf Drive
Miramar Beach, Florida 32550
(850) 269-1252
www.rickscrabtrap.com

Just some of the food we got. It was happy hour so a lot of things were half off. I wasn’t that happy with my foods though. Very simple and a little bland.

I don’t think I would come here again.

Looking out into the water after dinner.

We went shopping and souviner shopping after.

It was a long day but it was worth it.

Oh did I also mention I’m sunburned like crazy? I was red as a tomato and now I’m peeling like a snake. Bleugh!

Day 3 coming soon!

During finals time, Tammy, Jenny, and I procrastinated with studying and started planning a trip. We ended up with plans to Destin, Florida and New Orleans, Louisiana. They invited a friend, Jennifer, who brought along a friend, Karen T.

Monday, May 28th, we woke and left at 5am to pick up Jennifer and Karen. Then headed to Destin, Florida.

It was a long car ride but faster than we thought. When we got there we ate a light meal of McDonald’s. We got to the hotel and Tammy, Jennifer, and Karen went shopping while Jenny and I stayed at the hotel.

Jenny and I all ready for the beach! Sadly, we didn’t get to go. We kept waiting for the others to come and get ready and go with us but hours later when they got back, it was already getting dark out.

Instead, we went out for dinner at:

McGuire’s Irish Pub
33 East Highway 98
Destin, Florida
(850) 650-0000
www.mcguiresirishpub.com

One of the owners signed her first dollar tip when it first opened in May of 1977 and tacked it to the Bar for good luck. Ever since then, people started adding their own. There are now over one million dollar bills all over the pub.

Free Bread – I’m not sure what kind of bread this was but it was pretty delicious. The sauce on the top was sticky and made it a little bit on the sweet side.

Irish Wake | $7.99

I’m not sure what’s in it but it was STRONG. They limit each person to 3 of these drinks … I did not feel it but one was enough for me. Especially with the wonderful meal that I was about to have.

Oh, a plus? We get to keep the jar. A souvenir? Check!

Senate Bean Soup [same recipe as was served in the U.S. Senate] | $0.18

It’s $0.18 because that was the price in 1977. The Senate cafeteria raised their price to $2.97 but they still kept their same price. If you were to order the soup only, it would cost $18.00.

The soup was actually delicious. Especially with the crackers. I wish I ordered more! Definitely a to-try. I know it’s simple, but sometimes, the simplest of things are the best!

Irish Steak and Mushroom Pie [choice tenderloin tips baked with wild mushrooms in a strong-flavored Irish Stout Demi-Glaze and topped with a homemade puff pastry crust.] | $17.99

Look at that puff. The crust was so delicious. It was flaky and tasted so good dipped into that stew. I’m not a lover for cooked carrots, but I’m beginning to love them. Especially with the ones here. So soft and juicy. There was a lot of meat though so I guess it’s good for the price.

After dinner, we headed to the beach. Though it was dark, we thought it’d be great to get out there since the beach was our destination the whole drive there.

Day 2 recap will be coming up!