My husband and I have dreamed of visiting The Big Easy for quite some time now. We are not exactly the partying type by any means, but we couldn’t resist the draw to the history, architecture, and mysterious qualities that define New Orleans.

When we were determining which route we wanted to take on our anniversary cruise, we both lit up when we saw New Orleans as a starting point. We only wish we had had more time there. A little mix up with our travel agent gave us only half a day instead of the day and a half we had hoped for exploration.

Topping my list of must-have NOLA experiences was visiting the historic and notorious Cafe du Monde. Since our hotel was only a block or two away from the French Market, it made for an easy walk. However, when we arrived, the line extended for at least 200 feet. Starving as we were, my husband begged me to turn around and find another place for breakfast. But after sacrificing my extra day in NOLA I was not about to sacrifice this opportunity as well.

Thankfully, my hubby had the common sense to stop a police officer and ask how long she thought the wait would be. She informed us that the line was for a table, and pointed us in the direction for to-go orders. Thank heavens! By all means, a table would have been wonderful. But with the limited time we had in New Orleans, I had no intention of sitting for even a moment of it.

With coffee and beignets in hand, we roamed the city streets, covering ourselves in powdered sugar. It was a carb-heavy breakfast indeed, but well worth it!

Time went way too fast! We stopped and found entertainment in a street magician, enjoyed some street daiquiris, and popped our heads into a few souvenir shops before rushing back to our hotel. We had to quickly gather out things and snag a taxi to make it to port in time.

Caribbean, here we come!