THERE’S GOLD IN THEM THAR HILLS! I’m referring, of course, to the hills along California’s historic highway 49 often referred to as Gold Rush Country. I’ve always been fascinated by the history of the miners and their quests for gold. So I decided it was high time that I take a road trip through the eastern California countryside to explore the old historic gold towns that were left behind. On this adventure I planned to visit mines, learn some history and even trying my hand at panning for gold. Maybe I’d get really lucky and find gold just like the early prospectors had! You might say I was already coming down with a touch of “gold fever”.

I’m declaring it now…New Orleans is without a doubt my favorite city in all the US. This is a town with so much life, color and interesting history that it’s hard to pack it all into a four-day visit. But that’s all the time I had, so I made sure to experience as many facets of the city as I could.