I’ve had New Orleans on the brain a lot lately…despite the fact that I’ve never been there. Good thing, then, that one of my dearest friends and colleagues, Jessica Spiegel, has fallen deeply in love with the city. Here, she offers some great tips to help you fall in love with it, too.
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I’d argue that when it comes to traveling, the biggest challenge for busy working couples (after finding the time to get away in the first place) is being able to physically and mentally relax.And because it’s so easy to bring work- and life-troubles with us wherever we go (thanks a lot, iPhone), it’s especially important to choose a vacation destination that encourages relaxation.

While it’s easy to think of relaxing in the same breath as beaches and resorts, I personally love finding urban settings brimming with great culture and food that still make me feel I’ve left my own version of the real world behind. In other words, I love New Orleans.

And to be perfectly frank, it’s almost impossible to not slow down in New Orleans. Not unless you want to give yourself a heart attack, that is.

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Since I haven’t yet made it to New Orleans, I’m happy that Tiffany Monaco has offered to share the itinerary of her recent trip.
Monaco — an elementary school teacher, blogger and aspiring novelist — lives in Louisiana.

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Tiffany Monaco and her husband in New Orleans

Sometimes, I think I look forward to summer even more than my third grade students. Since my husband and I rarely get the chance to get out of town during the school year, and he gets a little time off from his banking job between June and August, every summer break of our nearly six years together we’ve taken as many trips as we can possibly fit in the season.

For our first trip this summer, we decided to stay in our home state and simply travel south to New Orleans for a couple of days. Having both lived in Louisiana our entire lives, we’d been through New Orleans a couple of times before, but hadn’t yet done all the touristy things.

Happily, we can’t say that anymore.

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