Travel photos and trip write-ups: Las Vegas, Seattle, New Orleans, Orlando and Disney, London, Croatia, the Dominican Republic and more, with tips from each visit.
The Culver Studios in Culver City, Los Angeles, is one of Hollywood’s historic film lots, founded by silent-film producer Thomas Ince in 1918.
The studio’s colonial-style main building is one of the most recognisable studio facades in Los Angeles, and the lot has been used for productions over more than a century, including scenes from Gone with the Wind. The photo shows the building and front lawn.
Culver City is a good base for exploring the Westside of LA, with plenty of restaurants in its walkable downtown area nearby.
The Steamboat Natchez is an authentic steam-powered sternwheeler that cruises the Mississippi River from the French Quarter in New Orleans.
The boat is known for its steam calliope, which plays tunes that can be heard all along the riverfront before departures. These videos were taken during an April 2024 trip to New Orleans.
Daytime harbour cruises and evening jazz dinner cruises leave from the Toulouse Street Wharf, behind the Jax Brewery building.
Dinner at Deanie’s Seafood in New Orleans, a family-run seafood restaurant with locations in the French Quarter and in Bucktown in Metairie.
Deanie’s is known for generous Louisiana seafood platters, barbecue shrimp and oysters. The photos show chargrilled oysters and other dishes from this meal.
The French Quarter location is on Iberville Street, just off Bourbon Street, which makes it easy to fit into an evening in the Quarter.
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Five days in New Orleans in April 2024, staying on Canal Street at the edge of the French Quarter. We ate chargrilled oysters three different ways, had gumbo at a legendary Tremé restaurant, drank frozen daiquiris on Bourbon Street and learned the history of the Sazerac. Here is the whole trip, day by day.
Day 1: Acme Oyster House
We arrived on a Sunday evening and went straight to Acme Oyster House on Iberville Street, a block from our hotel. A bag of boiled crawfish, chargrilled oysters, a gumbo and jambalaya platter and boudin balls made a classic first night. More photos are in our Acme Oyster House post, plus a video of the chargrilled oysters.
Day 2: Beignets, Jackson Square and Deanie’s
Breakfast was beignets and coffee at Café Beignet on Bourbon Street. Then we walked to Jackson Square and St. Louis Cathedral, down to the Moonwalk on the Mississippi and back through the French Quarter’s iron-lace balconies.
Dinner was at Deanie’s Seafood in the French Quarter: a frozen cocktail, two rounds of chargrilled oysters, a huge fried seafood platter and New Orleans barbecue shrimp.
Day 3: Dooky Chase’s, Royal House and Bourbon Street
Lunch was at Dooky Chase’s Restaurant on Orleans Avenue in Tremé, the Creole restaurant made famous by Chef Leah Chase. We had gumbo with rice and a shrimp dish with potatoes and peas, plus mac and cheese on the side.
After a Steamboat Natchez cruise we had more chargrilled oysters at Royal House Oyster Bar, then steak and seasoned fries at a French Quarter dinner. We finished with frozen Purple Drank daiquiris on Bourbon Street.
Day 4: Mother’s and the Sazerac House
Mother’s Restaurant on Poydras Street has been serving po’ boys and jambalaya for decades, and its walls are covered with framed press clippings. Afterwards we went to the Sazerac House on Canal Street, a free museum about the Sazerac cocktail and New Orleans cocktail history.
Day 5: One more Acme
We couldn’t leave without one more trip to Acme, this time for a fried seafood po’ boy.
Where to stay
We stayed at the Holiday Inn French Quarter, a few blocks from Bourbon Street and Acme Oyster House. Almost everything on this trip was within walking distance.
Beignets at Café Beignet on Bourbon Street in the New Orleans French Quarter.
Beignets, squares of fried dough buried under powdered sugar, are one of the essential New Orleans treats. Café Beignet’s Bourbon Street location sits next to Musical Legends Park, where live jazz is often playing.
It’s a great alternative when the line at Café du Monde is long, and a good place to sit and take a break from walking the Quarter.
Chargrilled oysters at Acme Oyster House in the New Orleans French Quarter.
Chargrilled oysters are a New Orleans speciality: oysters on the half shell topped with garlic butter and cheese and cooked over an open flame until they sizzle. The video shows them coming off the grill.
Acme’s original location on Iberville Street has been serving oysters since 1910 and often has a line out the door, so arriving early or late in the afternoon helps.
Back at Acme Oyster House in the French Quarter during an April 2024 trip to New Orleans.
Acme has been a New Orleans institution since 1910 and is best known for raw and chargrilled oysters, along with po’ boys, gumbo and fried seafood. The photos show some of the dishes from this visit.
The original restaurant is on Iberville Street, just off Bourbon Street. Lines can be long at peak times, but they usually move quickly.
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A week in London in March 2024, from a Delta One flight out of Seattle to a flight home over the ice of Greenland. In between we had pizza near Petticoat Lane, a full English, steak in Spitalfields, seafood at Smith’s in Wapping, a day around Borough Market and the Thames, and a Scotch egg at Fortnum & Mason.
Flying in: Delta One to Heathrow
The trip started with an overnight Delta One flight from Seattle: drinks and warm nuts, then a dinner tray and an ice cream sundae. There’s more in our Heading to LHR post.
East London: pizza, a full English and steak
Our first full day ended with a wood-fired pizza near Petticoat Lane. The next morning was a proper full English breakfast, and that evening we had steak and a brownie sundae in Spitalfields.
Smith’s in Wapping
Dinner at Smith’s, the “Famous for Fish” restaurant on Wapping High Street by the river: a prawn cocktail, a grilled lobster gratin and a chocolate dessert.
Tower Bridge, Borough Market and the Imperial War Museum
On a grey Friday we walked across London Bridge for the classic view of Tower Bridge, HMS Belfast and the Shard, then went into Borough Market for oysters and a salt beef sandwich. Afterwards we walked south to the Imperial War Museum.
Piccadilly and Fortnum & Mason
We finished the day at Piccadilly Circus and Fortnum & Mason, which claims to have invented the Scotch egg.
Heathrow and the Virgin Clubhouse
Our last night was at the hotel next to Heathrow, and we spent time in the Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse in Terminal 3 before flying home: a burger, a latte, a giant cookie, a green juice and some pastries, with a big view of the apron.
Flying home over Greenland
The flight home followed the polar route. We had sparkling wine after takeoff, and a few hours later the ice and snow of Greenland stretched out under a deep blue sky.
Where to stay
We stayed at The Hoxton in Shoreditch, a short walk from Spitalfields and Petticoat Lane, then spent the last night at the Hilton London Heathrow Airport before the flight home.
Waiting for a flight at the Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse in Heathrow Terminal 3, London.
The Heathrow Clubhouse is Virgin Atlantic’s flagship lounge, known for its full à la carte dining menu, cocktail bar and runway views. The photos show some of the food from this visit, including a pizza.
It’s a great way to start a long-haul flight, so it’s worth arriving at the airport with time to spare if you have access.
The Clubhouse has a big view of the Terminal 3 apron. See the flight home over Greenland in A Week in London.
A Scotch egg at Fortnum & Mason on Piccadilly, London.
Fortnum & Mason, which has been trading since 1707, claims to have invented the Scotch egg in 1738 as a portable snack for travellers. The photo shows the version served in its restaurant.
The Piccadilly store is a short walk from Green Park and Piccadilly Circus stations and is worth a visit for its food halls and famous tea and hampers.
We stopped at Piccadilly Circus on the way. See the rest of the trip in A Week in London.
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