April 2007: 24 Hours @ New Orleans, Louisiana
| Let's say that you have only one free day at New Orleans and you want to get the best of your visit: the tips in this page are my best suggestions for a 24 hours tour. The pictures were taken in April 2007, during my 2nd trip to N.O. The first trip had been in 1995, long before Katrina | |
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destroyed a big part of the city. The only good thing about Katrina was that it didn't made too much damage to the old area of the city (the French Quarter, a.k.a. "le Vieux Carré"). Breakfast @ Cafè du MondeThe best way to start your tour (TIP #1) is having a good breakfast in this traditional place . |
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The "Cafè du Monde" is a coffee shop on Decatur Street well known for its café au lait and its French-style doughnuts, called "beignets". It is open 24 hours, 7 days a week, except for Christmas Day "and days when the occasional hurricane passes too close to New Orleans," according to the shop's web site. I was having my second coffee cup when the picture on the wall called my attention, because of the strong colors and the text reading "It was an ordinary day until... I had coffee with Jesus at the Cafè du Monde". | |
A walk around the French Quarter
"La Nouvelle-Orléans (New Orleans) was founded in 1718 by French settlers but it was ceded to the Spanish Empire in the Treaty of Paris (1763) and remained under Spanish control until 1801, when it reverted to French control. Most of the surviving architecture of the Vieux Carré (French Quarter) dates from this Spanish period. Napoleon sold the territory to the United States in the Louisiana Purchase in 1803. The city grew rapidly with influxes of Americans, French, and Creole French. During the War of 1812, the British sent a force to conquer the city. The Americans decisively defeated the British troops, led by Sir Edward Pakenham, in the Battle of New Orleans on January 8, 1815. As a principal port, New Orleans had a leading role in the slave trade, while at the same time having the most prosperous community of free persons of colour in the South" The French Quarter includes all the land stretching along the Mississippi River from Canal Street to Esplanade Avenue and inland to Rampart Street" (see map at the left).
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After breakfast, take your time to walk around the French Quarter and appreciate the traces of the different cultures that gave this city its special flavor. Don't limit your walk to the well known Bourbon Street: be sure to wander around the residential areas of the Carré (TIP #2), where you will find old beautiful houses well preserved by proud owners, like the one at the right, located in Chartres Street. Fortunately, the historic buildings are protected by law and cannot be demolished. (Texts adapted from Wikipedia). Gospel @ Preservation HallIf you are lucky and you arrive at the right day and time, you can enjoy a gospel concert at the "Preservation Hall" (TIP #3), a noted jazz performance hall located at 726 Peter Street. It hosts nightly concerts featuring a rotating roster of bands, tipically performing jazz in the New Orleans style. Despite the fame of the institution, admittance is affordable. Because of limited seating, crowds typically begin lining up well in advance of a performance (no reservations are accepted), and the line is typically quite long, although sometimes musicians will play for those waiting in line". "The building housing Preservation Hall, which survived the Great New Orleans Fire (1788)and also 1794, is one of the oldest surviving buildings in the Quarter. During the War of 1812, the building housed a tavern. AUDIO: Click HERE to listen traditional New Orleans music as played by the Preservation Hall Jazz Band ("In The Sweet Bye and Bye"). |
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Jazz @ Bourbon Street
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Photo #4: Bourbon St. Blues (© ClixYou) |
Bourbon Street (French: Rue Bourbon) is a famous and historic street that runs the length of the French Quarter in New Orleans, Louisiana. When founded in 1718, the city was originally centered around the French Quarter. New Orleans has since expanded, but "The Quarter" remains the cultural hub, and Bourbon Street is the street best known by visitors (TIP #4). Bourbon Street was named in honor of the House of Bourbon, the ruling French Royal Family, at the time of the city's founding. Though largely quiet during the day, Bourbon Street comes alive at night, particularly during the French Quarter's many festivals. Most popular among these are the annual Mardi Gras celebration, when Bourbon Street teems with hundreds of thousands of tourists, and the French Quarter Festival, the largest free music event of Louisiana, a three-day local music showcase scattered throughout the French Quarter in New Orleans. | |
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There are music performances on 15 stages. The community festival also features festival food booths operated by nearly 60 local chefs and restaurants throughout the festival weekend (text from www.fqfi.org). I was lucky to arrive just for the 2007 festival weekend. The climate was sunny and warm during the weekend, and the streets were full of people celebrating the French Quarter Festival. You only had to look around to find excellent subjects for your camera. |
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Rock @ the House of Blues
| Finally, nothing better to close your day with a concert at the New Orleans HOB venue (TIP #5). "House of Blues is a home for live music and southern-inspired cuisine in an environment celebrating the African American cultural contributions of blues music and folk art", with the | |
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mission of celebrating "the diversity and brotherhood of world culture" and promoting "racial and spiritual harmony through love, peace, truth, |
People From New Orleans
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Photo #8: Make Music, not War! |
Photo #9: The Drummer's Girl Friend |
Music is a way of life in New Orleans, as seen in Photo #8, taken in Royal Street, known for its scores of opulent antique shops and art galleries, but only one block south of the party atmosphere of Bourbon Street. I was crossing from the Cathedral to Jackson Square when I saw a girl, sitting in a bench, with a drums case on her knees. I love the way Photo #9 shows a certain sadness in her beautiful eyes. Hundreds of musicians participate in the FQF or play in the bars and venues of the French Quarter, and you see them walking all around the place (Photo #10). I wonder if there is some other way to carry a tuba! I was attending a parade organized to celebrate a corporate meeting when I saw the models in Photo #11: I didn't have to say a word, they automatically reacted when they saw my lens! |
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Photo #10: The Tuba Man #2 |
Photo #11: New Orleans Beauty |
