This is The Columns Hotel on St. Charles Street. Once a mansion built in the 1880's, it is located in the Garden District. It is THE place to have a drink on the porch or in the Victorian Lounge. The atmosphere is quintessential cool and the bartender has been voted "Best Bartender In Town" repeatedly. Can you imagine how much competition he had in New Orleans?!?

Ye Olde College Inn is a great place to eat! Life really should not be lived without blue cheese fried oysters, fried green tomato and shrimp po boys and BBQ shrimp that will make your knees weak. Yes...I liked it!

The Rock 'N' Bowl is such a fun spot where you can go to bowl or just listen to the live band. The night I was there, they had a full horn section to back up
R & B artist, Deacon John Moore. The place is jumping with energy and of course I loved the giant disco ball in the middle of the place with colored Christmas lights stretched across of the dance floor.

Beignets and cafe au lait for breakfast of course! Cafe Du Monde is famous for this culinary delight but the line is always out the door. I went to a place a block away from the hotel, with much less hassle but the same taste.

The trolley runs by the hotel often. What better way to spend a day than to sip the hotel's signature Bloody Mary's on the porch, amongst the mossy trees and discuss whether the LSU Tigers will have a good football team this year!

You have to love southern hospitality! What a treat to see this city with people who are seventh generation New Orleans residents. I'm not sure there is any place on earth that has the vibe of NOLA! The city has it's problems but I love how the locals love where they live and relish every moment to have a good time. They seem to thrive on being individualists. Fashion swings from uptown trendy to pressed and preppy. The mix of art, culture, history and eclecticism is just the kind of place I like...not to mention the awesome food! Geaux there soon!