The Food of New Orleans

On January 9, 2019January 9, 2019 By Isobar ExpeditionsIn Louisiana, Recipes27 Comments

New Orleans is definitely a destination for food lovers with all of the quality restaurants offering authentic regional food at various prices. Whether you are on a budget or want to go out for an elegant dinner, there are many choices that will provide an incredible eating experience. Seafood is at the heart of the meals that you will find in New Orleans, but there are plenty of other dishes that are uniquely Cajun. You will likely find Po-Boys, Gumbo, Jambalaya, and beignets on most menus as well as fresh snapper, oysters, and Crawfish Etouffee. There are other interesting items such as turtle soup, fried aligator, shrimp and grits, as well as local takes on eggs benedict.

The very first restaurant that we ate at was Oceana’s, which is just off of Bourbon Street and turned out to be a place that we visited several times because their food was so good. Like many restaurants, if you don’t go during non-traditional meal times, you can expect to wait in long lines that stretch down the street. Fortunately we like sitting at the bar as well as eating at different times, so we didn’t have any trouble getting served. We ate Oysters Rockefeller, Oceana’s Famous Oysters, Aligator Bites, Seafood Crepe, and a wonderful Bloody Mary during our different visits. The Crawfish Etouffee at the Royal House was one of the best meals that we ate during our entire stay. For a filling breakfast or brunch, going to the Stanley at Jackson Square can’t be beat and we had their Seafood Breakfast, which had fried oysters and shrimp, fried soft shell crab, and eggs benedict. It was delicious.

We went out for a couple of more upscale dinners including The Briquette where we were introduced to the chef by the owner and got to see our own fish on the grill. The food there is always fresh and we had the whole Red Fish filet as well as tournedos of beef and scallops. We also ate at Muriel’s on Jackson Square where we ate Turtle Soup, Cauliflower Soup, Duck Breast Jambalaya, and Pan Seared Scallops. There were also stops at Tableau and the Chartres House for Gumbo, Crawfish Bread, and Spicy Pecan Popcorn.

We were in New Orleans for a week, so if the list of places that we visited seems long, it is simply because we were eating out several times every day. Obviously we had to have an Oyster Po-Boy, which we did at Desire as well as getting fresh oysters. We went to Curios for brunch where we had traditional Beignets as well as Shrimp and Grits. We made our way to the Carousel Bar for a Caesar Salad and Le Bayou for fresh oysters as well.

Needless to say, when in New Orleans, especially in the French Quarter, there is more than just food. For drinks we went to many different locations, but one of the most interesting was Pirate’s Alley Café, which truly is in an alley. The 21st Amendment where we were treated to live jazz and a few glasses of wine. Finnegan’s was one of our favorite Irish dive bars, but we also enjoyed The Erin Rose where they serve an excellent po-boy. We enjoyed live music at The Drinkery as well as a few other places, including street performers on Bourbon Street.

You won’t go hungry when visiting New Orleans. With so many options and friendly staff wherever you go, there really aren’t too many bad choices. We’d recommend doing what we do, which is to ask the bartenders and wait staff at the places that you visit where they would recommend that you eat, usually requesting that they tell where the locals go, not necessarily the tourists. We were given great recommendations as well as just finding places as walked throughout the French Quarter. As we mentioned before, it is busy, so be sure to either make reservations in advance where you can and expect lines in the places that don’t accept reservations.

2018 – A Year in Review

On January 3, 2019January 3, 2019 By Isobar ExpeditionsIn Blogging11 Comments

As we start a brand new year, we thought we would look back at the previous year and take a moment to reflect on where we have been. First of all, this was the first year in a couple of years where we were living in the United States for the full year. What is obvious to anyone who has lived in Europe as well as in the States is that international travel is not as easy and much more expensive from the US compared to being in Europe where a different country is often as close as a few hour train ride away. That being said, we did have a couple of big trips outside of the country that will be some of our favorite memories for years. It did force us to spend a little bit more time traveling domestically, which is certainly just as worthwhile as going to different states within the country can be as unique as going to a completely different country. If our trips didn’t keep us busy enough on their own, it was a hectic year from a work perspective and we moved into a new home in September. We had a total of ten trips throughout the year and enjoyed meeting new people, eating a variety of food, and having some very unique experiences. Here is a brief recap of our year:

Sunset Flying Home from Our Final Trip of 2018

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania – We had driven through Pittsburgh in the past, but never actually spent time there. We were able to spend a few days in this city that is definitely in the process of growing quite dramatically. It is the type of city that we would consider to be a mid-sized city with very friendly people and a unique food scene.
One of the Many Bridges in Pittsburgh
Austin, Texas – We actually had a couple of opportunities to visit Austin during the year and it is a city with a reputation for music as well as barbeque. It is certainly a place where you will find yourself slowing down to relax and find the people who live there to be very laid back and easy going.
Capital Building in Austin
Northern Virginia – Work sent us to the area and we didn’t get to spend too much time exploring, but it is still a place that has special memories for us as we lived in the area many years ago.
Walking the Side Streets of Old Town Alexandria
Egypt – Probably the highlight of the year as we spent time in Cairo as well as taking a river cruise on the Nile from Luxor down to Aswan. The memories of this trip will certainly last a lifetime as it was not only a favorite of the year, but one of the best trips that we’ve ever taken. We would highly recommend that people put their fears aside and take time to visit this historic country with a fascinating culture.
Pyramid in Giza
Alamosa, Colorado – We decided to revisit the Great Sand Dunes in southwest Colorado and it was truly a wonderful experiences. Travel doesn’t always have to be to the far corners of the planet to be interesting and provide an interesting view of the world we live in.
Great Sand Dunes in Colorado
Sante Fe, New Mexico – With a reputation for art, food, and a healthy lifestyle, visiting Sante Fe was a perfect getaway destination for us. It is also a city with a very rich history including some of the oldest buildings in the United States.
Statue in Front of the Cathedral in Sante Fe
Carlsbad, California – As the weather started turning colder here in Colorado, we decided to head to the beach. Just north of San Diego, this resort town is a perfect place to go and do some surfing, fishing, or just relax on the beach. We enjoyed watching sunsets over the ocean while enjoying wonderful seafood.
One of the Sunsets in Carlsbad
Panama – The second of our “big” trips this year was to go to Central America and get into the jungle once again. We are certain that this country will be on a lot of people’s destination list this year, but we are glad that we took the time to visit at the birth of their embrace of ecotourism. It was certainly a wonderful experience.
We Made a Furry Friend in Panama
New Orleans, Louisiana – For our final trip of the year, we visited the “Crescent City” on the Gulf of Mexico. With its historic French Quarter that has survived hundreds of years, fires, and even catastrophic flooding, it is certainly an American classic. It was certainly a wonderful place for us to spend our holidays.
Jackson Square in New Orleans

With so many wonderful memories, 2018 was certainly a very good year. We haven’t begun to plan our trips for 2019, but hopefully it will be as full of adventures as the previous year. We wish all of you a Happy New Year and hope it that provides you with all of the happiness that you are hoping for.

Metropolitan National Park in Panama City

On December 20, 2018 By Isobar ExpeditionsIn Central America2 Comments

If you are planning a trip to Panama City, one of the sites that you should consider visiting is the Metropolitan National Park. Since Panama City is surrounded by a rainforest that is protected by law, the city is literally surrounded by jungles and wildlife. You don’t have to leave the city in order to escape into nature and see some of the exotic wildlife that the country has to offer. It is about a fifteen minute drive from downtown Panama City to reach the park and the cost to enter is only $4 per person for non-Nationals ($1 for Nationals).

Although it is located on the edge of the city and temperatures are often hot and humid, the Metropolitan National Park is still a rainforest, so you should definitely wear closed-toed shoes or hiking shoes. After stopping at the visitors center to purchase your tickets and get information on the park and the animals that live there, you will walk a short distance to the actual start of the trail system within the park. The trail in the park is basically a giant loop and if you are willing to follow it to its furthermost point, you will be rewarded with wonderful views of the city as the summit is the second highest point within the city. There are some steep sections on the trail, but overall it is considered to be moderate, but be sure to have plenty of water with you.

One of the first things that you see along the trail is a pond that has many turtles swimming, lazing on the shore, or propped up on twigs and sticks. They were fairly active while we were there, but obviously not the most unique of animals to see during your time in a rainforest. Another of the first animals that we saw during our time in the park was a tree sloth, although this particular sloth was just curled up and sleeping. We saw several agoutis, which are rodents that are almost a cross between a rabbit and guinea pig. It is possible to see other animals such as monkeys, deer, toucans, and parrots, but due to the number of people that visit the park, those sightings can be rare.

The views of the Panama City are definitely a highlight of visiting the Metropolitan National Park. As you reach the final plateau above the trail, you have 180 degree views of the city and the surrounding suburbs. It is a perfect place to sit and relax before continuing along the trail back to the start. Another common sight along the trail are the leaf-cutter ants, which traverse the trails at many different points as they carry the leaves back to their nests. You will also see many different termite mounds on the trunks of trees as well as variety of flowers, trees, and plants. If you hear some leaves rustling next to the trail, a closer inspection will likely uncover a lizard, but beware of snakes as there are many varieties in the park.

The Metropolitan National Park is a wonderful way to see a rainforest without having to leave Panama City. For a variety of reasons, we would certainly recommend having a more immersive experience in a rainforest, but visiting the park is perfect for young children or those that don’t have time to spend doing a tour or staying at an ecolodge. As Panama continues to embrace ecotourism, experiences such as these will only continue to become more accessible. We were told by one of our guides that 36% of the country of Panama is actually protected, making plenty of opportunities to enjoy nature. Although many people visit Costa Rica, a trip to Panama might just provide a more authentic and less touristic experience.