See New Orleans Through Ryan O’Bryan’s Eyes [PHOTOS]

With Moore Music teaming up with us to give you a shot at seeing Katy Perry live in New Orleans on October 8th, it seems like the perfect time to reminisce about the trip my wife and I took to the Big Easy a little over two years ago. Come with me on this trip down memory lane littered with the world famous Hurricane mixed drinks and crawfish etouffee, won't you?

While we saw a good amount of the main attractions New Orleans had to offer, we only had about two and a half days to see the sights, so we stuck to the downtown area along the riverfront because it was all within walking distance of our hotel. I'd love to go back sometime and check out things like the swamp and cemetery tours, or a few of the many museum and plantation tours they offer. Here are a few of things that caught our eyes.

Food

We are self-proclaimed "foodies" and both enjoy spicy foods which is mainly what New Orleans cuisine is known for. This is a crawfish platter I enjoyed at a place called Mulate's. It was half fried-half etouffee, and despite the fact part of it looks like it came from a toddler's diaper or a fraternity's floor during Rush Week, it was all delicious!

This shrimp creole we had at an open air cafe in the French Quarter also filled me up pretty well.

Architecture

Most of the buildings in New Orleans have kept the same French-style decor they were built with when the city was founded by the French back in the 1700's. While I'm sure some remodeling and restoration has taken place over the years (especially after Katrina), they've made sure to keep the style that gives the city its character the same.

Murals that take up the entire side of a building and depict a part of the city's past or present culture are also common place throughout the downtown area.

The French Quarter

At the heart of downtown New Orleans sits the famed French Quarter. This is where you'll find a majority of the aforementioned architecture and Cajun culture that makes the Big Easy famous. This church, complete with the Andrew Jackson riding a horse statue (every church should have one), sits right in the center, and serves as a place for "starving artists" to sell the paintings they spend their time creating.

Bourbon Street

Quite possibly one of the most famous streets on the entire planet, Bourbon Street is exactly like how you see it depicted on TV. People packed in tight as far as the eye can see, jumping from bar to bar drinking everything from "Huge Ass Beer" to those world-famous Pat O'Brien Hurricanes. If someone wants to sell alcohol on Bourbon Street, they'll find a place for them as a few bars are open air and tucked in the gaps between buildings.

While drinking and partying are certainly the central theme of Bourbon Street, it also offers it's fair share of, well let's say, "pleasures of the flesh", no matter what it is you're into. It's not uncommon to walk past a building with woman standing outside in a leather bikini, fishnet stockings, and six-inch stilettos offering to show you a "good time".

This just a small sample of the things we saw in the Big Easy, and a few of the things you could see if you win the trip to see Katy Perry on October 8th. Hit up the big red button below now and sign up for your chance to win!