Matt & Caryn's Adventures in NOLA: Merry Christmas from NOLA!

Saturday, December 28, 2013

Merry Christmas from NOLA!

Hope everyone had a great Christmas! We are so grateful to everyone for all the love we received from friends and family this holiday. We had a great morning of Skype, gifts, and a delicious downtown breakfast. Caryn had to work the PM shift that day but Matt went and spent some holiday time with our friends Luis, Ashley, and their family that was in town.

After both agreeing we would skip a Christmas tree due to funds this year, Matt surprised Caryn with one! Fully decorated for America's team.

Our stocking stuffers - I'd say we're set on Chapstick for awhile.

Amos loved his new bed. He sat right next to us in it chewing his new bone while we opened up presents.

It was definitely a Cowboys holiday!

Goodies from Woody's Smokehouse in Centerville, TX - a few hot sauces, pickled green beans, and some jalapeno jerky. Yum!

What flavor ice cream should we make first??

Matt got Caryn an original painting from an artist down the street - Mina Zavala Lanzas. We had walked into her gallery a few days prior and had absolutely fallen in love with this painting. It's called "Dreaming of You" and includes the New Orleans Tree of Life.

Part of our gift from Caryn's sister Carla - "Other things may change us, but we start and end with family." A wonderful piece to remind us of home. We love and miss all of you!

Opening gifts made us hungry so we drove downtown and ate at Desire, a restaurant connected to the Royal Sonesta hotel in the French Quarter that we had visited in March.

Jambalaya Breakfast Skillet Scrambled eggs, Chicken, Smoked Sausage, Shrimp, Potatoes, Tomato, Onion, Peppers, Cheddar Cheese

Eggs Sardou
Poached Eggs, Artichoke, Creamed Spinach, Hollandaise Sauce, Asparagus, Roasted Tomato, Toast

Both meals were delicious, but the Eggs Sardou won the "Best Breakfast" award. We ate every last bite!

Thanks to everyone who helped make our Christmas a great one. It was hard to be away from family but from the cards to everything else we received, we felt like we were at home.

1 comment:

JaniceJanuary 16, 2014 at 9:04 PM
Enjoying your posts! And Happy New Year!
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About Us

OK kids, so here's the story. Over Easter weekend of 2013, we came to visit NOLA for a friend's wedding. We had a great time, and New Orleans quickly hit our radar for places to live. About 6 months later, we each applied for a position on a bit of a whim, and next thing you know, here we are!

While in NOLA, we want to submerge ourselves in the culture. This includes the food, music, festivals, and yes...Mardi Gras! In an effort to keep our friends and family in the loop, we put this together to showcase all that we've experienced.

Feel free to suggest activities, and places to visit, and we hope you enjoy!

M&C

Matt's Story

We mentioned applying on a whim, and it truly was. Matt found his position after Caryn, and it didn't really go as planned.

Before even applying, Matt sent an email to his would-be boss, and let her know a little about his current roles at the Renaissance Dallas Hotel. She suggested that he apply, and about three days later, he got a, "thanks, but no thanks" letter. Matt was pretty bummed, and a little confused.

A few days after that Matt received a message from the original lady he emailed, asking why he hadn't applied yet. Apparently, the application never even got to her. Matt interviewed over the phone with her and three other manager before he had a panel interview face to face. Matt was offered the job and started planning a move.

Matt's current position is Assistant Front Desk Manager at the New Orleans Marriott on Canal. This beast of a hotel has 1,274 rooms, 41 stories, and 80,000 sq. ft. of event space. Located two blocks from Bourbon St, you can bet that there is no shortage of action.

Caryn's Story

Things happened much faster for Caryn. She actually accepted a different position than what she applied for.

Originally, Caryn posted for a position called Rooms Controller. This position takes all your reservations, and assigns them a room number (now you know you know who to ask for if you have a special room request). It took a few weeks, but she eventually got an email wanting to set up a phone interview (this came on the heels of Matt's "thanks, but no thanks" letter).

After interviewing with a couple of people, she was told that the General Manager would contact her for a final interview. To her surprise, he asked her if she would be interested in applying for a Supervisor position. This would be a big step up, and allow her to get some great leadership experience, so of course, she said yes.

In case you couldn't figure it out on your own, they had already made up their mind to offer her the position. they wanted her ASAP, so three weeks later, she arrived in NOLA.

Caryn is a Front Office Supervisor at the New Orleans Downtown Marriott at the Convention Center. This hotel has 320 rooms, 15 stories, and over 24,000 sq. ft. of event space. Located directly across from the street from the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center, this hotel stays busy.