Weekend in New Orleans

A couple of weeks ago, I was in New Orleans for a few days for work. Fact: New Orleans is one of my favorite places. I love the architecture, the history, and of course, the culture that revolves around food and drink and good times.

Our trip was much too short and I'm already planning my next trip back (Jazz Fest 2014 anyone?). Meanwhile, a few recommendations for other NOLA travelers:

On Bourbon: My Bar 365 had the best hurricanes and good live music. Great cover bands and atmosphere at The Swamp (and it's outside patio with a mechanical bull) and Razzoo. They are right across the street from each other. Pat O'Brien's is known for their hurricanes, too. I didn't make it there this time around. Don't be afraid of hurricanes - even if you're a beer drinker like me. They are pretty much like fruit punch. But be careful... consuming more than 1 or 2 might knock you on your feet. Trust me.

Somewhere off Bourbon Street is a weird little shop, Reverend Zombie's Voodoo Shop. You can't take pictures inside but it's a trip. Some stuff that isn't even for sale... like a stuffed cougar head.

Off the beaten path, or at least I think so....: Avenue Pub on St. Charles closer to the Garden District. Great beer menu, cool atmosphere, nice upstairs patio if the weather is nice. Frenchman's Street was recommended to us by a local as 'the locals' Bourbon Street.' We didn't make it there but he said there was great live music. The Chart Room is in the French Quarter, a little dive bar. Coop's Place. A little bar/restaurant in the French Quarter with amazing, traditional food! We did the sampler platter for a little bit of everything, also had the duck quesadilla which sounds weird but was delicious.

The classics, or at least I think so....: Cafe Maspero, Mother's and NOLA Good Eats for sandwiches. Cochon or Cochon Butchery. We didn't make it here (which I'm very sad about). I think the Butchery is more lunch-ish and Cochon is better for dinner (I think). Cafe Du Monde for cafe au lait and beignets, of course. Ruby Slipper for breakfast. The eggs cochon was like eggs benedict with pulled pork! The eggs blackstone was eggs benedict on a grilled tomato - really good and surprisingly light.

Was also recommended to me to explore Magazine St. And to have a picnic in Audubon Park.

For more NOLA inspiration, check out my New Orleans Pinterest board.

Side note, we stayed in a house about 5 miles from the French Quarter down St. Charles (in the Garden District maybe?) that we booked via VRBO and it was great! Click here to see where we stayed and click here to read about my other travel experiences using VRBO and airbnb. 

Kate Young for Target, April 14th

New Target line! Coming April 14th. Mark your calendars.

Headed to The Big Easy!

Headed to New Orleans this weekend for a little healthcare conference. 30,000 people. This is gonna be.... crowded.

I'll be busy with meetings, work and visiting with clients, but still hoping to have a little fun while we're there. I love the vibe of New Orleans, the people, the architecture. Looking forward to 60 degree weather, strolls through the French Quarter and lots of beignets.

images 1, 2, 3 + 4

See more NOLA inspiration on my Pinterest.

St Petersburg, Florida in November

Long overdue photos/recap from our November trip to St. Petersburg, Florida...

Our home for the weekend. Read more about the 'Full Moon' sailboat we stayed on. 

Got to spend some time with my BFF Karen, who lives in Orlando! 

No trip to Florida is complete without a day at the beach. 

Homemade steak dinner and red wine on our boat. #winning 

Stone crabs! I have never heard of/seen these before, but apparently they are really popular in this area of Florida and the season had just started when we were there in November. They are literally like stone. It was like trying to crack open a coffee mug. 

Ceviche turned out to be our favorite spot for tapas, sangria and late night drinks/music.  

We also went deep sea fishing at Hubbard's Marina at Johns Pass and you don't want to miss the pictures from that trip. Click here!

Deep Sea Fishing in St. Petersburg

When we were planning our trip to St. Petersburg, the one thing I knew we wanted to do was go deep sea fishing. But trying to find a place was tricky. It's hard to tell from websites which are overpriced, which are touristy, which are good for first timers, etc.

Hubbard's was recommended to us by our airbnb host and what a great recommendation! Reservations were easy (did it quickly over the phone) and they were happy to answer any questions we had. They do all kinds of tours - sunset cruises, dolphin sighting tours, 1/2 day fishing (5 hours), full day fishing (12 hours), even 39hr weekend trips.


We did a half day trip (5 hours). We had to be at Johns Pass at 7am, though we didn't board til after 8am. There were thirty or so on the boat with us. Some beginners, some that looked like pro's, some kids. a good variety. Once we boarded, they did a QUICK rundown of how to use the reels, but as a shy beginner, I was terrified to pick up that pole. We went an hour out, fished for three and then an hour back. We ended up catching ten or so I think. One of the guys came over and helped me catch a few fish, actually (kind of embarrassing). He would cast out and hand me the pole, and tell me when to reel and when to pause and EVERY time, I'd catch something. Like magic.

 The first fish I reeled in was a puffer fish! Everyone was catching these white/grey fish and I reel in this brown spotted one. I was like 'What is that?' and the guy grabs it, holds it up to his mouth and blows it up, 'It's a puffer fish!'.

When I threw it back in the water, it sort of blew in the wind before hitting the water and deflating and swimming back down. So funny!


 I reeled in a couple porgies and eventually caught one entirely on my own (ha!). We ended up with a good amount of fish. They filet them for you (cost us like $6) and you can take them next door to the Friendly Fisherman Restaurant, to have them cooked up right then and there for $6/person. Awesome.

 I would 100% do this again and recommend Hubbard's to others. We had a blast! The staff was awesome - you could tell they were having fun too.

Travel Tip: Use airbnb.com!

Joanna Goddard is in the midst of Travel Week on her blog, and you could probably say the same for me. This week, I've posted about my trip to DC in December and Colorado earlier this month, and am leaving for New Orleans this weekend! (Plus have some long overdue posts on my November trip to St. Petersburg, FL in the que.)

Anyway, today Joanna posted about renting houses on vacations (as opposed to hotels, timeshares, etc) and I felt compelled to get on my soapbox and preach about how much love I have for this concept (and airbnb in particular)!

airbnb is a vacation rental site with homes, apartments, individual rooms, even boats! The cool thing about it is that you're renting from a local. You're living like a local. You're not shut up in a Hampton somewhere. Booking is more personal, the trip is more authentic (in my opinion at least).

I first found out about airbnb from Joanna's blog actually. I had just bought an impromptu plane ticket to Tampa only to find out my parents had cancelled their timeshare in the area. I grew up going on timeshare vacations (through RCI mostly) staying in condos, cabins and townhomes. So when I found out our Florida timeshare had been cancelled, I was not about to book a cramped hotel room! [Call me high maintenence.]

I had remembered Joanna blogging about home sharing websites, found the post, and was immediately browsing VBRO and airbnb.com for places to stay.

We settled on a stay on the 'Full Moon' in St. Petersburg. Why stay in a hotel when you can stay on a sailboat?!

At 44 ft, the space wasn't huge, but... it's a boat. If you've ever stayed in an RV or camper, this is pretty much the same. Perfect for a couple or 2-6 friends. We were across the street from the Vinoy Hotel for pool, spa, larger bathrooms, restaurants + walking distance to restaurants, bars and shops in downtown St. Pete's.

Besides the convenience, we had amazing service from the renters. They answered tons of questions from me beforehand, showed us around when we got there and even left us a phone number if we needed anything. Would definitely do it again and recommend it to others. See the listing on airbnb.com.

I used airbnb again to help Atomicdust find a place to stay in Colorado, and we ended up in this gorgeous house up in the mountains (for way less than if we had tried to book hotels rooms probably).

It easily fit all 17 of us with beds, couches and a couple air mattresses. It had a big kitchen, two living rooms, lots of deck space and a hut tub. Plus, the views. Sigh.

And side note, I just used VBRO to book a trip to New Orleans, and while I have no problems with the site, I just don't think it's as easy to use / pretty to look at as airbnb. I'll let you know how to house in NOLA turned out next week when I get back!

Winter Park, Colorado 2013 with Atomicdust

Just got back from a five-day trip to Winter Park, Colorado with Atomicdust. It wasn't exactly a 'work trip' - although we did our fair share of talking about Apple products, Facebook, Instagram and what's 'next' in digital. We spent the time hanging out, playing in the snow, drinking adult beverages and taking many, many naps. It was a great way to reconnect as a team and get ready for the busy months ahead. 

We stayed at Skytop, a house in the mountains near Winter Park, that we booked via airbnb. It was awesome!

On Monday, a group of us went on a 2-hour guided snowmobile tour to the Continental Divide. It was seriously gorgeous. I felt like I was in an episode of Planet Earth or something. 

Nothing like a beautiful mountain sunset, a fire and a glass of wine! Perfect getaway. 

For more pictures from our trip, visit Atomicdust's Facebook Page. 

And check out pictures from my last trip to Colorado in March 2011.