DUers! Who's been to New Orleans? Any memories?

[babylonsister]

I have been there about 4 times, the most memorable being on the way back from getting married 23 years ago. We stayed in a campground on the other side of Lake Ponchatrain (and stopped midway on the bridge for my esteemed hubby to pee); he also left me on a float while he fetched some hops. Ah, memories! :loveya:

[bliss_eternal]

1. Family is from there...

but unfortunately I haven't visited as yet. I'm sad to see the city of my ancestry treated this way.

On a brighter note, I regularly cook New Orleans cuisine for dh and his work! They love it! I've offered to make other items, all they ever seem to want is jambalaya--

:eyes:

[FightingIrish]

2. I remember there was this drunken asshole from Texas who

kept bragging that his dad was a big shot and that he was the hottest fighter pilot in the Texas National Guard. He was pretty wasted and seemed to be trying really hard to sound like a cowboy.

[babylonsister]

5. LOL! He resembles someone I've heard about! nt

[PatriotMom]

87. This is a GREAT thread .......NOMINATED n/t

[speedoo]

3. What a great city.

Went there for a long weekend a long time ago. Hurricanes at that bar with the little old ladies singing naughty songs. A fabulous dinner at a french restaurant in the quarter. Breakfast in the courtyard at Brennan's.

Preservation hall Jazz Band, and many, many bars.

[Radio_Lady]

35. We went there in the early '90s on a Labor Day weekend. It was

terribly hot, and I was grateful that we were staying at the Marriott and that the air conditioning was fantastic! We had an expression, "Shop -- or you'll drop..." That meant that if we were walking somewhere in the heat of the day, we had to stop into a shop or another place with air conditioning, or I would literally sag with heat exhaustion.

We took a tour of a bayou with alligators in it -- the alligators all were waiting for their food and they all had names!

We went to Pat O'Brien's pub and had their "Hurricane" -- and we still have one of the tall glasses.

We saw Anne Rice's home as well as other beautiful homes in the area.

I can't bear to look at the photograph album my husband put together, or I will just break up into tears.

[ElsewheresDaughter]

4. 5 times

[billbuckhead]

11. Lucky dogs, Dixie beer, Airline Highway, saxophones

[Dudley_DUright]

6. Four times also

The last time was just a few years ago. We stayed at the Maison DuPuy Hotel in the French quarter. They have a fabulous restaurant that I hope will be back in business someday soon. Here are some photos of the beautiful courtyard.

http://www.maisondupuy.com/guestrooms/courtyard.html

[me b zola]

7. A road trip

Once me and a friend decided one day to take a road trip from mid-Missouri to New Orleans just for the pastries from the Quarter. It was a great trip. I was looking through my pictures from that trip last night. :(

[bluedawg12]

8. It was a hypnotic mix of

sights, and smells, and cultures and always music in the air.

Fantastic food.

A little haunted, think- Vampire Lestat. LOL.

But something that reflected the rich culture of French, Spanish, Caribbean, African, European- imagine that blend of food, music, from zydeco to the blues, southern yet, somehow the sense that many of the folk were direct descendants of African slaves and the strange French Catholic Evangline influence ( ooo-weee) mixed with voo-doo shops in the French qaurter and maybe some Santaria in the shadows. wow.

I love the place. And I refuse to say loved, because it will be back-if the people can find their way home.

Tragic.

[babylonsister]

48. Amen, bluedawg12. I never knew I loved it so much

until I am now unable to go there! It needs to be rebuilt for all its eccentricities and return!

[electron_blue]

9. Twice - first to see King Tut

we stood in line for hours in the rain for that decades ago.

Second time was for a conference. Ironically, it's where I had my first mixed drink ever - a "Hurricane" at Pat O'Briens.

[3days]

10. Lived there for 7 years

Best memory being the time the band I was in at the time played at the Joy Theatre (An X-Rated Theatre) on Canal St. It was the Sat. night of Mardi Gras and Baccus was rolling down the street. We were standing on the marquis above the theatre and got pelted with beads.

[babylonsister]

21. 7 years! You must have many memories! I'm sure it's not

so great for people who worked there as it was for tourists, but right now it's better in memory than having no where to go back to.:-(

[nonconformist]

12. *sigh* I had a trip booked for this October.

My first. I've wanted to go all my life.

[dsc]

13. My favorite memory was of my 29th birthday

A friend of mine from the MS Teachers' Corps and I spent it in New Orleans. I had rented a room on line without having seen it and it was clearly designed as a romantic getaway type room. It was simply beautiful but small. He was so gracious about it and the weekend was a blast. I decided then and there that I wanted my real honeymoon to be in that room. It was in the heart of the French Quarter so it may well have survived.

[RoyGBiv]

14. Many memories ...

"I see the moon all bright and pretty ... just like the hind o' Conway Twitty." (Bonus points if you know where that came from.)

I was WASTED one evening while strolling along the streets in the Quarter. I saw the moon. It was lovely. There was a rather cool breeze blowing, but I was so numb I didn't care. I looked at the moon and that comment just burst out of me...repeatedly.

I think the guys walking in front of me thought I was hitting on them, and they got scared. I just kept making observations about how beautiful it was, just like the hind o' Conway Twitty. :-)

[ThoughtCriminal]

15. Train trip layover

Amtrak was seven hours late, and had long conversations with people I never met - something that hardly seems to happen anymore.

[Vox_Reason]

16. Been only once...

But it was one of the very best vacations of my life. Stayed in the fabulous Richelieu hotel in the quarter, which was staffed with people who'd been there forever, and whose bar was always filled with locals. The location could not have been much better, and we took full advantage during our five days there in 2000.

The night before we left, we attended a huge Al Gore rally right on the waterfront and thoroughly enjoyed Mr. Gore's speech. So much hope and good feelings that night--and such a nightmare since then.

Light a candle for the people of New Orleans.

[babylonsister]

24. I figured there were memories such as these.

Nice! Yes, light a candle or, better yet, if it comes to it, let's fight for them when it comes time to divvy up the land that will be lost.

[Lilsarah]

17. My husband and I lived there

for 4 years. We only moved back last summer. He is a jazz musician & was getting his masters down there. We lived Uptown, I miss the live oaks, seeing my husband play out at so many of the clubs down there. I miss the turtle soup and garlic bread from Commander's, late nights at the Praline Connection on Frenchman, Going to a friends wedding at the Columns hotel, watching the Endymion parade from a balcony on St. Charles, St. Patrick's day on magazine, how all our friends and both families found a reason to visit...

[babylonsister]

39. Ah, Lilsarah, welcome to DU, and I hope you are okay!

Wow, a jazz musician-I'm very impressed! We want it back the way it was! :hug:

[abluelady]

18. Jazzfest

in the spring was the best. People came from all over the country. Babies to grandparents. Thousands and thousands of people. Lots of beer; lots of pot and no arrests. Needless to say, the best music around.

[DoYouEverWonder]

19. 3 Jazz Fests and a bunch of other trips

There is so much. Tipatina's, Eddies, the Morning Call, rocking to the Neville Brothers on a Steamboat, Record Rons, eating crawfish out of the back of a pick up truck, holding hands with strangers in the Gospel Tent....

[tk2kewl]

'94 Mardi Gras

Lots of fun -- memories a little fuzzy :D

[tulsakatz]

20. I was there once...........

It was about 20 yrs ago. A friend of mine and I drove down from Tulsa. At first we were going to do it as cheaply as possible. We were thinking we would camp out instead of getting a motel room. Well, we got down there late at night and we were looking for a good place to camp out and, of course, we got lost. We drove down this road which must've been like near a swamp. There were great big trees with leaves and branches hanging over the road and it was a 2 lane road anyway. It looked so creepy......like any minute we might see an aligator walking across the road. It really freaked us out! Like something out of a Stephen King novel.

Anyway, we decided it was a better idea to spend some money and get a motel room after all.

Mostly we visited the french quarter but we did some other sight seeing too.....like the above ground graveyards, that was different.

Now, I'm glad I was there. Someday, after New Orleans is rebuilt, I hope to go back again........

[democrat in Tallahassee]

22. I used to live there and I am just sick. That bastard destroyed

New Orleans and for that I will never forgive him. Memories? My neighbor used to always give me stuffed mirlitons to eat. Mirlitons are sorta like a squash; anyway I hated the things and I ended up with a whole freezer full of them cause I didn't want to hurt her feelings.
The accents: they ain't southern--a lot of them sound like New Yorkers
the people-laissez bon ton roulle!
The restaurants, the music, the streetcars, the moonwalk--I used to love to go down to the river and watch the barges and big ships go down the river.
And then there's Mardi Gras and it ain't all what you think--it's families with little kids and elderly people going out to a neighborhood parade. The families lots of times have ladders so they can catch stuff for the kids. I've seen old ladies dive down into the crowds for beads. Of course, there is debauchery in the quarter but hey, it's New Orleans!
and I'd like to personally say FUCK YOU GEORGE BUSH for destroying it. I still can't believe it's gone.

[erinlough]

23. Went to the French Quarter in1990

I went with my son, my brother in law and my sister, who just died last January.

I've been thinking alot about our time together on that trip and how funny she was on Bourbon street.

We would go into all the tshirt shops and talk to the clerks. Nan had this innocent way about her and she would ask questions about the special stuff in the shops that made the clerks laugh and give her things.

For instance she saw these ties that she thought had fingers printed on them and she asks the clerk why they had fingers on them. He holds one up and the "fingers" were penises. She acted all embarrassed, but really, I think she knew all the time.

In another place she got a special book of matches with a naked woman on the front from the clerk because she was asking who would actually buy the 4 ft. dildo in the window.

We had the greatest time and I bought a book of poetry from a street vendor named Frank Smith, I wonder where he is now. We all talked about his life for a long time.

[oneighty]

25. In the seventies

on a business trip. The dome was still under construction as best I can remember. We were able to spend some time walking walk Bourbon street. There was some sort of Catholic convention in the city and the street was visited by Nuns in their Habits (?) and they were rubber-necking the strip bars just as curious as we were.

A few years ago we had a reunion NEODA (Navy outfit) there. We stayed at the Hyatt across from the dome. I cannot help thinking about what a terrible place that must have been for the Katrina victims. I have pictures of the Dome taken from the Hyatt. We found Bourbon street to be uninteresting. Might have been our age.

Hey babylonsister

180

[jobycom]

26. Many, many times

My parents grew up there, and I grew up on the Mississippi Coast, so we made frequent trips. I remember visiting cousins whose neighbor had a pet black bear. I remember funerals in very old cemetaries with tombs above ground. I remember seeing a broken-open tomb with bones insed--quite a rush for a ten year old. I remember the King Tut exhibit at the City Park museum. I remember peddle boats on the City Park lake. I remember ferry rides across the Mississippi, and my father telling me about his mother taking him across the river, too. I remember a wheeping willow tree, and oaks, and Spanish moss dripping like honey.

My last visit was to the French Quarters as a tourist. I showed my daughters the jazz bands. I remember a young singer with a voice like Louis Armstrong outside of St. Louis Cathedral. I rememeber th levy, and watching ships make the bend going downstream, carried by the current yet trying to turn against it.

It'll all be back. It'll be different, but it'll be back.

[pitohui]

27. lived there for decades

it's really sad

[FogerRox]

37. Lived there for 3 years early 1960s the

Texaco building was the biggest thing downtown--- all 20 stories of it

Audibon Zoo
JAZZ and JAZZ
My parents hired 2 members of the Preservation hall Jazz band to play at thier Anniversity

Mardi Gras--- I got a fake plastic Saltine cracker thrown to me.

Going to visit a friend in the Garden district-- sitting in a rocking chair on the front porch as people walked by and talked--

Shrimp for lunch-- nearly every day-- it was so cheap---

[democraticinsurgent]

28. 3 times, all wonderful

Most recent was over xmas last year. We left the port for a Caribbean cruise and came back to unseasonable frigid weather. We spent the day running from store to store in the freezing cold, on Xmas day there was an ice storm, which was mild by midwestern standards but roads were closed all over the city. We wandered around sideroads in the swamps for hours west of the city, trying to find a highway that was open, so we could head north. I'm sure a lot of the swamp roads we drove on that day are gone.

A couple of years ago, went for my cousin's wedding. They owned a cool house in town; the wedding party was highlighted by massive piles of shrimp and crawdads stacked on their picnic table. That I'll never forget.

Several years before that, for spring break. Took the kids (then small) all over and they loved it, proving that New Orleans isn't just for adults. Went out on swamp boats and fed the gators. Checked out the zoo. Took a long evening walk, slightly altered, in a fine misty evening that felt so much like Europe, especially in the older parts of the quarter, away from the craziness of the bars.

I will miss it. It will never be the same, especially with BFEE enterprises doing the rebuilding.

[kestrel91316]

29. 1980, Mardis Gras parade, raw oysters standing at the oyster bar at

Acme Oyster House, wandering the streets of the French Quarter with a drink in my hand, listening to jazz in the clubs, just enjoying what seemed like a giant party of old friends, though most were complete strangers. I am so sad. I hope they can recapture this.

[Missy Vixen]

30. I have

I love New Orleans. It's hard not to fall in love with the city, the people, the food and the amazing music everywhere. I was there for a religious convention, but spent a lot more time wandering around town. I hope I'll get to see it again.

DH has been there many, many times on behalf of his former employer. Unfortunately, it never worked out that I could go along. The last time he went, he got on the flight home with two huge bags of beignet mix, red beans and rice, Hurricane mix, pralines, you name it. He said that the flight attendants were chuckling over the huge bags and asked if his wife sent a list. :blush:

Laissez le bons temps roulet!
Julie

[getmeouttahere]

31. The VooDoo Museum!

That was so cool, so earthy, even in New Orleans, which is earthy to begin with, this was hip, bohemian fun.

I did a lot of walking (in daylight and dusk) and the whole French quarter had this funky mysticism to it. I have other favorite cities around the world, but NO always ranked up there with San Fran, NY, Boston, Seattle, Portland, L.A. as my fave U.S. cities. Any other city I've been to in the U.S. is way too Disney-like or too conservative.

[CrownPrinceBandar]

32. Lived there for a year..............

Between the summers of '93 and '94, I was doing archaeology all across the SE US, and I was based out of NO. It was my first time living out of WV(!). While there, I lived for 6 months out in Metairie and the remainder uptown on Pine St., a couple of blocks W of Claiborne. I believe both of my former residences are dry.

[juajen]

33. I have so many lovely memories of New Orleans

New Orleans has been my next door neighbor for the past twenty years, but prior to that, it was my favorite place to visit. My lst, 2nd, 3rd and 4th honeymoon (same hubbie) was spent in the Big Easy.

As a young bride, I stared in amazement at the biggest man made object I had ever seen. My more sophisticated hubbie told me all about the huge ships that docked in New Orleans. This one was several stories high, and on the top deck you could barely make out a figure who was looking down at my husband and me. He motioned to a sailor and we watched as the sailor made his way to us. He issued an invitation from the Captain of this mighty coffee transport from Brazil, and we went aboard.

The captain took us into his quarters and offered us coffee. After some niceties, he asked us what we were doing in New Orleans. We discussed our visit with him, of course, telling him we were on our honeymoon. He spoke very good English. I was enchanted, as he seemed to be, I suppose by the young American couple, or, maybe, just by me. We visited for about 45 minutes. He gave us a package of coffee from the ship and walked us out. This is a most treasured memory from my honeymoon; one I will never forget. I didn't use that coffee for the longest time, keeping it in the freezer for a couple of years. When we finally sipped it, it brought back wonderful memories of that lovely and very handsome Brazilian Captain.

We who love New Orleans, and there are millions of us, will not let it die....we will not let it die.......a promise, we will not let it die.

[unless]

34. My parents took us when I was 15

I remember the French Quarter vividly, and the French Market. I remember the scandalous strip clubs on ?Basin street?...and that I tried gumbo. We went on a tour and our tour guide was a devastatingly handsome cafe-au-lait man who had green eyes - so exotic looking.

I promised myself that I would go back when I was old enough to see all of the sights.

I didn't realize there was an expiration date to that promise.

[NNadir]

36. I've been there eight or nine times on business.

I probably spent three or four weeks there overall.

Great music, great food, and a wild place. I had a thing for oyster po' boys. It was de riguer to go down to Bourbon Street and watch the women lift their blouses for beads thrown from the balconies.

There was always a darker side though. The first thing that popped into my mind when I heard this was coming - because unlike the so called "President" I had been anticipating this a long time - was "what will happen to all those street people?"

Now we know. They simply were left to die.

[babylonsister]

43. "There was always a darker side..." Agree, but isn't there

that side in any big city?

[Lasher]

38. I went there once.

Went there on a business trip, and was able to take my Little Dove along. It was a few years back, right after that runaway ship smashed into that bunch of stores along the river.

We stayed at Le Meridien hotel

http://www.luxury-hotels-resorts.com/new-orleans/le-meridien-hotel.htm

which was right across the street from the French Quarter. Know how you can get in trouble for drinking in public? There, it is REQUIRED! I told my wife it seemed like they built New Orleans just for me. I took particular notice, however, of the scarcity of available rest rooms in the French Quarter. Wow, was I glad when I found one!

We took a ride on the Creole Queen and had a fantastic Sunday brunch at the Court of the Two Sisters. Never had cold crawdads for breakfast before that.

We really enjoyed the acquarium.

Wonder how many of those wonderful places survived?

[saged52]

40. two years ago nearly to the day -

and we were going back again this October. I loved every single second in that city - it climbed right into my heart and soul. It will never leave me.

[babylonsister]

45. "It climbed into my heart and soul" - what a sentiment! Yes!

[Nitrogenica]

41. It was January and I was walking near a park by downtown

and I saw a group of kids walking through the park, maybe 12 kids about 12 or 13 years old. The kid in the center of this pack, obviously older than the rest, was dressed like a vampire, cape and everything. His outfit was very dirty like he'd slept in it or something. They just walked by like it was no deal, just moseying along.

[idiosyncratic]

42. Twice. Grayline bus tour and Garden District tour plus oysters

on the half shell for only $1.39/dozen.

The hustle and bustle of the French Quarter, the music coming from the bars, and the artists with their paintings in Jackson square.

It was a long time ago, but the memories are still vivid because New Orleans was unique.

[enki23]

44. never lived there, but spent two and a half years in baton rouge

and visited plenty. i miss it already, more than i thought i would.

[KamaAina]

46. Lived there during early '90s. Became an activist there, actually.

How bizarre to hear the fundie minister against whom I used to defend women's health clinics spouting blige like, "New Orleans is now abortion-free". That's the Rev. Bill Shanks. But never mind him...

How's this? Somehow I got invited to a party in the Upper Pontalba building (as you're standing at the Decatur St. side of Jackson Sq., looking at the postcard shot with the cathedral in front of you, it's the block-long building on your left along St. Peter) hosted by this punk-rock guy named Skul. I had no idea who he was; it was a friend-of-a-friend kind of thing. I do remember a female asking where I was from, and when I replied "Carrollton", being quite miffed to discover she thought I meant Carrollton, Tex. (Metroplex) rather than Carrollton in Uptown N.O. (end of the streetcar line).

Next thing I remember, I am being awakened and politely excused from the Upper Pontalba, because it is sunrise the next day. I step outside, clear my head a bit, and realize I have about enough time to grab some breakfast and head on out to the Fair Grounds for Jazz Fest...

[Lindacooks]

47. When we first drove into New Orelans' French Quarter, I looked

out the window, rolled the window down and stuck my head out because I was so amazed at its beauty. It looked EXACTLY like I had pictured it. We stayed in a wonderful little hotel just a block from the Square that had the most gorgeous courtyard filled with fountains, trees, little tables and chairs, and lights in the trees; it just glowed.

We walked down Bourbon Street, of course, but my best memories are a walking tour of the city looking at the architecture; I remember peeking into little gardens tucked behind lacy iron gates and admiring the colors of the houses and the beautiful landscaping and lacy ironwork everywhere. We browsed through some fabulous antique shops and saw an original pirate's treasure chest, fabulous, unbelievable furniture, silver. I remember the huge mirrors and gorgeous chandeliers. I bought a garnet necklace that has a drop lavalier on it - and still remember the proprietor's soft southern accent as she said 'yes, some of the best things still come from the South.'

I ate Crawfish Etouffee in a wonderful tiny restaurant with lacy ironwork on its balcony; the waitress set it down in front of me and said 'everything on this place is edible'. It was fabulous; spicy, creamy, crunchy, buttery. We ate Beignets for breakfast and Oyster Po' Boys for lunch. We went to the Courtyard of the Three Sisters for one lunch and had some fabulous salads and shrimp from the Gulf.

I'm so glad I saw the city before it was destroyed.

[WePurrsevere]

49. Last June ('04) ... for eBay Live

Went there on a shoestring budget, only for a few days and was busy most of the time helping with a booth there. A bunch of us from an auction board stayed at a hotel across from the Convention Center where eBay Live was held. One time we went to the Cafe de la monde for umm.. Benniets <sp!?)... a square and very tasty pastry and there was a Gala fundraiser at the Aquarium... a truly beautiful place where I spent quite a bit of my night talking with folks as an Otter played and broke the ice for us.

It was horribly hot and humid coming from the North Country but the people of NO that I met were wonderful, full of real smiles and so very kind. When I see pictures and hear about bodies.. I wonder if those I met are still alive... if they made it out okay... I pray they and theirs did.

When I saw the pictures of the people at the Convention Center waiting... hoping for help... when I think about the bodies being stored upstairs there... I was there... the contrast in my mind is so stark from when I saw there and what it must have been like for those who lived through the flooding only to die waiting there... and from what I know of the area there was NO darn excuse for it... the Convention Center is near the river.. the river is "high ground".. the flooding didn't reach high... there are roads and bridges... they could have been gotten to and helped so much sooner... no excuses.. none.

It was a beautiful place for a city (I'm a country person myself). My eldest daughter had wanted to go with me but couldn't.. we talked about how we'd go someday in the Winter and see all the sites and old cemetary's... maybe someday we still will... I have to believe that NO will not only survive but in the long run thrive. I only hope and pray that I'm right.

[KC21304]

50. Just once in 1978. My husband and I and another couple

flew down in terrible weather. The guys were there for a seminar and the gals got to site see during the day. Stayed at the Royal Orleans. We could not get into Brennan's to eat and I don't remember where we did eat but had drinks at O'Brien's. Still have the hurricane glass. Then we walked down Bourbon St. Saw Pete Fountain at his place.

I have one memory of this large, white building that said Tehran something across the top. I hadn't heard a lot about Tehran before then but soon after that trip Tehran started making the news regularly. Does anyone else know which building I'm talking about ?

[Behind the Aegis]

51. Fun times.

I went all over the city. I have been to NOLA twice. I went to the zoo twice! I love that zoo! I went to the Aquarium of the Americas. I went on multiple walking tours, incuding the midnight vampire tour and witchcraft tour! My partner and I were there for Southern Decadence in 2001. We got lots of pictures and movies. heehee :evilgrin: We went to various museums. I got a handcrafted rainbow-style Voodoo doll, that was signed by the artist who happen to be there as we walked in. Made pigs of ourselves at various local restaurants. The first time we went, we stayed in a gay B-n-B, so they told us all the local places to go...so much fun! And, we got to go on an awesome swamp tour with a hot Irish rugby team!!! :)

[gauguin57]

52. Went there for two Sugar Bowls (and two New Year's Eves!)

1978-79 and 1982-83. I was there when my alma mater, Penn State, won its first national championship. New Year's Eve on Bourbon Street was very cool, and pretty wild. I got veerrrryyy drunk on those sickeningly sweet hurricanes at Pat O'Brien's (and lugged that souvenir glass all over god's creation). Took a riverboat ride way too early the next day, with the mother of all hangovers -- all I remember was the rocking of the boat and the big chafing dishes of GRITS. I turned the loveliest shade of GREEN.

Beautiful jazz music pouring out of dozens of dark little clubs. The smelly trash in the streets. The garish yellow light pouring from several Chinese takeout places around the Quarter in the late '70s, politically incorrectly named "Takee-Outee."

Saw Pete Fountain perform on New Year's Eve at the Hilton. Saw Larry King interviewing Joe Paterno (PSU coach) in the lobby of the Marriott (for radio, back then).

The Superdome was amazing -- it was so big and filled with respiring people that there was actually WEATHER in there -- you'd look across the field, and it was foggy up near the roof!

I'll never forget eating at Antoine's, or the Bananas Foster at Brennan's brunch.

But my favorite spot is the Voodoo Museum. I could have stayed there all day. Oh, and the musicians performing in Jackson Square, with St. Louis Cathedral looming behind.

I couldn't live there (it would WEAR ME OUT), but I sure loved visiting. Noplace like New Orleans!

[Individualist]

53. I've been there twice,

once in '73 and again in '91. Last week a DUer (sorry I can't remember who) summed it up perfectly when he said "Once New Orleans gets into your soul, it never leaves". I fell in love the first time I was there.

So many fond memories, especially the people, the culture, the music, the mix of sacred and profane. I had Sunday brunch at the Court of Two Sisters, a hurricane at Pat O'Brien's, strolled the French Quarter and enjoyed the street performers, had some laughs at the Cat's Meow, rode the St. Charles streetcar through the Garden District, had beignets at the Cafe du Monde, saw Marie Laveau's tomb. I've been wanting to go back ever since the last time I was there and, from time to time, dream that I'm there again.

[elderly man]

54. Memories: Preservation Hall,Pete Fountain,Al Hirt, Antoines,etc.

[PsN2Wind]

55. Carnival 1965

Went a week early to stretch out the fun. Three AM the morning after we got there, walking down Royal Street and the cops arrested us for drunk and disorderly. I'm pretty sure we weren't the only drunk and disorderly guys out that morning but off we went to jail. Next day court, and the judge says; "Normally the sentence for your offense is ten days in jail, however, if you work you can be out in five". So we enjoyed the next five days locked up in "The House of D" and raked leaves in Audubon Park for that time. Still had two days to party at the height of Mardi Gras. Actually, as hard as it was to find place to flop, they did us a favor. An experience I look back on somewhat fondly and with humor now. We were just cheap labor but the park sure shined for the tourists.

[juliaj193]

56. very long time ago

only been once, a long time ago... I'd consider myself an introvert, not usually prone to meeting new people, I dont think i've ever met so many interesting people in as short a time as when i was in New Orleans...

[On the Road]

57. In the Early 80s with My My Ex

We stood in line for Preservation Hall. I was a huge fan of the band.

When we finally got in, it was smaller than expected and completely packed -- just a few straight benches up front. After two sets, I agreed we could leave unless we could find a seat. We were almost out the door when we saw two seats in the corner next to the band. I asked someone who seemed to belong: "What are those seats?" "Oh, those are for the wives and girlfriends. But since no one's here, you can sit there if you like."

We were so close to the band for the third set that I could have reached out and touched the drummer. It was a transcendent experience.

[On the Road]

63. One More, and This is a Great Memory

(Boy, did you ask the right question as far as I'm concerned.)

I went back to New Orleans in November 2000 with my girlfriend -- she was attending a scientific conference at the same convention center where all those people were stranded.

On election night, I insisted on going to a local bar to watch election coverage. It was a very mixed crowd, but very cohesive -- mostly Democrats and very politically knowledgeable. The bartender was a European woman who knew enough about US politics to remark that only Maine and Nebraska proportionately allocated their electoral votes. Everyone was riveted to the screen. I remember at 7PM Florida was called for Gore, and I stood up at the bar and yelled to the room "YES! Gore's got the election! There's no way Bush can win now!" Of course the night wore on, Florida was reversed, and things got more somber. We went back to the room before it was called.

The next morning the Times-Picayune headline read "Too Close to Call." The automatic recount was in progress and I was trying to catch glimpses of TVs in bars and shop windows. Everyone was riveted. I remember asking total strangers how the recount was going and being told "it's under 300 now."

It was that strange recount period when time seemed to be suspended. We went out at night, found a poetry reading east of the Vieux Carre. I remember buying a pomegranate and sharing it with some strangers who had never seen one, and talked with the young organizers for an hour afterwards. Then dancing at some strange low-rent club in the area. We missed the last trolley of the night by a few seconds and had to walk two miles back to the hotel.

[bunny planet]

58. I was there with my husband when I was pregnant with my second child.

He wouldn't let me have any oyster shooters because it might be bad for the health of the growing baby. That just about drove me nuts, because there are very few things I like to eat quite so much as a dozen ice cold shucked oysters on the half. So I ate lots of fried oyster po'boys instead and listened to lots of great music. We shopped in the open market next to the Cafe du Monde, after beignets (sp.?) and coffee of course, and bought a bag of spicy cooked crawdaddies to eat back on the terrace of our B and B for lunch. We walked through the Garden district for miles and miles. Read the Times Picyune every morning at the artsy fartsy breakfast dive next to where we were staying. We were horrified at the time, ironic considering what's happening now, that David Duke was running for some political office in Lousiana and was being taken seriously by some. We hung out in some really old bar at the edge of Bourbon Street I think, that was the favorite haunt of Tennessee Williams, looked like it was about to fall down it was in such disrepair, but it was beautiful in all it's shabbiness, can't remember the name of the place. It was famous, maybe someone else knows the name. It was our first time away alone together on a romantic vacation in a beautiful, magically offbeat city, we had left my two year old home in NYC with her grandparents.

Tonight I watched the Shelter from a Storm fundraising concert with my son, the child I was pregnant with in the Big Easy 14 years ago. I started crying, turned to him, and told him he'd been to New Orleans and he'd loved it.

[Brother Buzz]

59. Once in 1964 as a child

We stayed at the Cornstalk Fence Hotel in the French Quarter. A very funky place, but a good kind of funky. Had the run of the neighborhood during the day, and wonderful group of local people looked after us little ones at night while the grownups played. I remember a very, very old black lady told us wonderful stories that beat anything that radio or television offered, she might even have been a slave, but I forget. Nevertheless, that wonderful old lady told stories about rural living in the south a gazillion years ago, and I remember those stories as vividly as if I heard them yesterday. That is my strongest memory of New Orleans.

Oh, memories of beignets at the French Market, too, mmmm.

[drdtroit]

60. Just recorded a CD 4 weeks ago at Ultrasonic,

don't really know how bad the studio was damaged or if it's totaled.
Only have been able to contact a few of my friends, lot's of MIA's.
Had a great dinner at Olivier's in the Quarter.
Been to the Big Easy many a time.

[Graf Orlok]

61. I've always wanted to visit the French Quarter.

I've read about it in novels (especaially Anne Rice novels--she's from there) and I've seen tv shows about it.

Man...if only I had money!

[XOKCowboy]

62. Lots of them....

My "High School Trip" was 22 of us in a chartered bus going to New Orleans a week after graduation in 1972. There were 77 people in my Senior Class in a small town about 30 miles north of Tulsa. 22 people had saved enough from summer jobs or got it from their parents. The Baptist kids wanted to go to South Padre Island in ugghhhhhhh TEXAS of all places! Luckily my more "enlightened" classmates and I outvoted them and we were off to New Orleans. The bus let us off right outside a French Quarter hotel and while our 4 chaperones checked us in and sorted our luggage out, most of us took off for Bourbon Streen to find a bar that'd serve 18 yr olds. We spent 4 days right out of high school hanging out for the last time with schoolmates, doing the tourist thing during the day and going nuts at night. Rubes in the big city having fun. Oh BTW - Those Baptist kids who wanted to go to Padre? They partied harder than anyone and we spent most of our time taking care of them!

I've been back a few times to work at their Convention Center. Except for the times I had to go in the heat of Summer and even then I always have a good time in Nawlins. It was one of the last bohemian cities in America.

In 2003 I was driving back from a job in Florida. It seems that two of my oldest friends were going to be vacationing in Nawlins the weekend I'd be driving by so I dropped down and spent a couple of nights with them. We had a great time. As we walked out of the hotel to cross Canal Street headed to the French Quarter, an all black high school band came marching up Canal Street and they were tearing it up! They'd been hired by a convention of marketing execs to lead them up to the French Quarter so we joined right in. My friend said that she'd never had such a warm welcome to a city. It kind of set the tone for the night! We ate a lot of good food, met a lot of good people, saw all the historic places and got to watch marketing geeks party! Who could ask for more?

Then there is my last trip to New Orleans. It was for a job in a very classy hotel right in the heart of the French Quarter. We were 4 blocks from Jackson Square one way and 2 blocks from Bourbon Street the other. The people at the hotel treated us like family. Service above and beyond what I've come to expect from other hotels. I came down with a bad cold half way through my stay there. I had to work and several of the staff took it upon themselves to send cough remedies to my room. Some damn good people.

I'm gonna miss the New Orleans of my memory. I'll be watching with great interest to how they rebuild it.

[dbt]

64. The gumbo in New Orleans just KICKED my ass!

Been there twice. Scared shitless the first time when the gangboys pulled the old "I betcha twenny dollas I can tellya where ya got dem shoes" scam on me.

The second time, I fell hopelessly in love. My first meal then was a bigass bowl of gumbo that tried its best to burn me to death in a small courtyard restaurant while a four-piece group WITH A BASS SAXOPHONE fuckin' THROWED DOWN about four feet away from my head, yum YUM!

Of all the antiquated, utterly RETARDED musical instruments on this sad old planet, is there anything more anachronistic than the bass saxophone? It usually shows up in Mighty Mouse cartoons and nowhere else. But in New Orleans it will lead you willingly astray--because them Colored Folks can PLAY that thang like nobody's business!

I promised myself on that Friday afternoon that the NEXT TIME I was blessed enough to go to New Orleans, I would eat NOTHING but gumbo, drink Abita beer, smoke two pounds of weed and see if the old men would let a fiddle player sit in for a few notes.

Thanks to that WORTHLESS MOTHERFUCKER IN THE WHITE HOUSE, I will never get another trip to New Orleans. The entire Bush family DNA needs to burn in hell for letting this beautiful place drown.

:grr:

Remember New Orleans.

[SheilaT]

65. Once, about six or seven

years ago. It was a spring break trip with husband and two sons, who would have been about 8 and 12 at the time. We stayed at a hotel (Holiday Inn maybe) a block or two outside the French Quarter. It was great. We did a lot of standard tourist things: the Aquarium, Jackson Square, a riverboat tour. We were actually only in New Orleans itself for three days and then drove off to other parts of Louisiana. And we were only there from Sunday to Saturday, so it was a short week. But memorable.

[AgadorSparticus]

66. Been there about 4 times (during and post college). I have good

memories sitting on one of those fan boats (i can't remember the official name for them. but that's what i call them) and gliding around the beautiful swamps. I even have memories of me karaoke-ing on Bourbon street (which is so NOT me) and I wasn't even drunk. I have no excuses. I don't know what or how that happened there.

Oh, and the food!! Good lord! I will never forget that tremendous half shrimp half oyster poboy from this little mom and pop diner. WOW!! And of course, the music, the soul, the gumbo, the etoufee...<sigh> I'm going to really miss that place.

[barb162]

67. I was there in March and have been there about 20 times

Love the creole food, the antique shops, the aquarium, the zoo, the atmosphere, the architecture, the garden district, french quarter, the accents, the shopping and everything else.

[GodHelpUsAll2]

68. Been there about 6 times

I love the place. Fell in love with it the first time I stepped foot in it and it instantly became my very favorite place. I have stayed at the Inn on Burbon Street, the Hotel St. Pierre, the Dauphine Orleans, the Place DeArmes and the Astor Hotel. Every one of them wonderful. One of the most memorable times there was at Halloween. I flew down on Halloween, earling evening. The plane ride was a blast, lots of people dressed up for halloween. I went to attend Ann Rice's Halloween party at St Elizabeth's. It was completely awesome. There is nothing quite like the French Quarter. I absolutely love it in the fall but have also visited in the summer. It's quite hot and sticky there in the summer but sitting in one of the many cort yard bars in the evening listening to great music is wonderful at any time of the year. I am just sick about what has happened there. My SO has never been there and it depresses me to think he may never get to experience the same great city that I did. It will be rebuilt I think, but will it ever be the same?

[barb162]

71. I don't see how it will be the same

Even if they rebuild, I think a lot of rich and middle class will leave and it will just slowly decline and fall apart. The suburban people can handle the port and river traffic and refineries. But think of places like Tulane...who will send their kids from out-of-state anymore? Who will go from out-of-state to Mardi Gras? Who in the world will want to have a convention there with what we all saw at the convention center. The tourists won't come...after seeing what we have seen on the TV. Who would want to go to the dome to watch a football game again? The rich and middle class , if they have to stay there in that area, would maybe move out of the city and go to higher ground? Upgrading the levees to handle a cat 5 hurricane would be so expensive I can't imagine Bush allowing it (even tho not upgrading caused the problem).

Me too, about falling in love with the place the first time. Just looking at the iron grilled balconies is wonderful, just walking by the restaurants and bars and hearing everyone laughing....

[kath]

69. The food, oh the food!

Went there with hubby (before we were married) in March '84 and May '88 ('88 trip was after going to the Crawfish Festival in Breaux Bridge).
Gumbo at The Gumbo Shop
Best fried chicken in the universe at Chez Helene, great catfish too.
Red beans and rice, some delicious sausage and other fabulous stuff at Buster Holmes'
Amazing brisket at an old Nawlins institution that had been there forever (blanking on the name)
Pecan pie at the Camellia Grill (another institution)- warmed on the griddle then topped with a huge scoop of ice cream. Oh. My. God.
Muffulettas from Central Grocery
Dinner at Galatoire's - Trout Amandine, other great stuff, Cafe Brulot to finish the meal
Shrimp po-boys. Crawfish etoufee.
A great little soul food restaurant around the corner from the little guest house we stayed at in the Quarter.
And of course beignets and cafe au lait at Cafe Du Monde.

<drooling on the keyboard>

hubby and I had talked about taking a trip there with our girls in the next year or two. Now that may never happen...

[GodHelpUsAll2]

70. Ahhhhhhh

the food. How I love the food. And heading to Cafe Du Monde for chicory coffee after drinking all night. Chicory coffee can wake the dead.

[barb162]

73. oh yeah? I just liked getting powdered sugar all over my face

[barb162]

72. breakfast at Brennan's/ champagne at 10am

[Liberal Veteran]

74. Sadly, my first memory of NOLA will start next week.

I am going to be helping with the relief effort. I always wanted to visit NOLA, but not like this.

[PatriotMom]

88. Good Luck to you and my thoughts will be with you n/t

[Freedomfried]

75. I was a Lykes Brothers Steamship Company seaman

Sailed with them from the mid 70's till till 2000.
I rode their ships out of Houston all over the world. Our home port for cargo, maintenance and payoff was always "NOLA".
We used to dock down on the Nashville Ave. Wharf, all the local stevedores would take over the unloading.
We'd stay out of their way till lunch, than we would duck and dodge our way across the warehouse, over the train tracks, climb the levee and go down and up a couple of blocks for a Po' Boy at Frankie and Johnny's.

Headed down to the French Quarter every night.

[AgadorSparticus]

76. oh, I have to add: I got the best damn bloody mary in the world

to chase my hangover away in NO. The ONLY place I'd chase away a hangover with more alcohol. blessed craziness :evilgrin:

[Elwood P Dowd]

81. You're right

I woke up one morning on the floor of my room in the Royal Sonesta. The shower didn't help. Breakfast didn't help. One of those "special" bloody mary mixes recommended by the desk clerk there did the trick.

[lpbk2713]

77. Went to the Mardi Gras once.

Didn't see much of NO outside of Bourbon St. That was OK.

[Occulus]

78. I was twelve and a prostitute tried to get my business.

My mom and dad were like, "no."

"But.."

"No. Let's go."

Never will I forget that. :D

[babylonsister]

80. I can't even fathom that. Say it ain't so!

[Occulus]

96. Nothing else really happened to me.

We did get seperated for a while on Bourbon St. and I wandered around for about ten minutes or so. Nobody paid me any mind...

I remember lots and lots of color and motion everywhere I looked. It was a feast for the eyes.

[Corgigal]

79. Been there

I loved the food and the music was great. I did make a mistake and go with a girlfriend who lets say, was overly endowed. All these old drunk white guys were grabbing her and then me. I went back to the hotel and told this friend if she can't down play those damn things I'm not going back out there. I'm a NY'er and I'm not fond of anyone grabbing me. Girlfriend agreed and we went out again after that.

It was the first time I was barked at and was told that means he "likes" you. Again, being from NY I had no idea. Wild place.

[babylonsister]

82. Being from NY? I love the fact that I'm from NY!

But NO rocked! And I hope will rock again. :-)

[Corgigal]

83. I'm not grabbed on the streets of NYC

In NO, drunk old white men were grabbing us. No, I'm not use to that.

[kskiska]

84. I lived there for over a year back in ’87

Hung with the Preservation Hall Band, accompanied several members playing an office party on a paddle-wheel boat on the Mississippi complete with fireworks. Did the zoo, the old Pitt Theater way up on Elysian Fields, the St. Charles Avenue streetcars before A/C (you can rent those streetcars for parties), the swamp tours in Houma, and Mardi Gras. I first lived Uptown on Nashville Avenue, then on Dauphine just the other side of Esplanade near Washington Sq. I met a guy, a songwriter, who'd been born on Bourbon Street and ended up living with him for 13 years or so in NOLA, Los Angeles, and South Carolina.

[PatriotMom]

85. OK it was 1970 and I was a Hippie......

I had just gotten married, I married young, and my husband, myself and my brother went on a car trip around the US of A. We left AZ and went thru 14 states LA being one of them. Went to a three day concert in Baton Rouge, then on to New Orleans. We were broke and hungry. So being the good Hippies that we were, and a sight for sore eyes, there were many tourists that wanted to take our pictures, so we spare changed for enough money to eat. We went to that famous cafe on the river with the great French donuts and chicory coffee. We were Hippies with good taste!! Later on we went to a Buddhist church with some other Hippies we met and were invited to a wedding there. This was not your usual Buddhist church everyone was on LSD but us, I hate to mention this but we were drug free Hippies, except my brother who got some quaalude's along the way and a hit of acid at the concert and got lost in a J-John for about an hour, but I digress. We ended up in a park in N O somewhere near the beach, and there was this hot dog stand, this really nice man named Tibideaux (sp) gave us all the food we could eat for free and told us that we could spend the night in the park, he said "just let anyone that asks know that Tibidoux said it was ok for you to stay here".The cops came with flashlights in our eyes as we slept in our 61 Ford Falcon, and we told them what Tibideaux had said, they laughed and told us we had to leave. I will never forget that wonderful Black man Tibideaux that was so nice to these really White naive kids that night. Any way it was amazing and I will never forget my experience in New Orleans. It was great.
I have thought so much about that since this has happened. I am so sad.

[babylonsister]

102. You jarred another memory for me, PM!

I like your line, "I was a hippie'!
I was somewhat of a hippy also; I hitchhiked from CO to FL, through LA & TX, back to CO. I remember staying in Slidell:( and eating rabbit one night, after the truck ran over it. True story!

[VolcanoJen]

86. Hottest city ever.

What I remember the most about New Orleans is the heat. I was there over a raucous fourth of July weekend a few years back, and had an amazing time, but for some reason I most recall the merciliess heat.

Even though I've lived in the Ohio Valley most of my life, where the temperatures and humidity can take the fun out of summers, I've never been hotter in my life than in New Orleans.

Weird, what you remember.

That, and how beautiful Jackson Square is by day, and how mysterious it becomes at night.

Memory Eternal, New Orleans.

[barb162]

106. I have been ther in summer too; yeah you can pass out from

that level of heat. Makes me wonder how those people at the dome and convention center....

[OneBlueSky]

89. went to Mardi Gras in the early 70s . . .

a couple of memories . . .

- seeing Dr. John (in full regalia) at some municipal auditorium, I think in Metarie . . .

- visiting Preservation Hall and hearing some great music

- sleeping under the stands at the Sugar Bowl (Tulane Stadium) . . . being given an introductory flyer that said, in BIG letters, "Do NOT mess with New Orleans cops!" . . .

- a New Orleans cop stepping in front of my friend on a packed Bourbon Street, taking his beer cup and pouring the beer onto his shoes . . . and looking him right in the eye as if to say "Go ahead . . . say something" . . .

- being served big helping of red beans and rice by a wonderful lady (mother of a friend) who allowed all six of us to use her shower . . .

- stopping at a little street corner place for breakfast . . . just a counter an a couple of small booths, and one elderly black woman behind the counter . . . we all sat at the counter, and she began taking orders . . . but she did it one at a time, went back and prepared the food, served it, and then moved on to the next person . . . we were in there for over an hour before the last person got served, and the first was on his third cup of coffee! . . . wonderful, friendly lady, but we all laughed our asses off after we left the place . . . :)

[PatriotMom]

90. Sky that was wonderful,

yes the cops were real hard asses then, the night we were there we were stopped and searched three times in one night, made us take everything out of our car each and every time. That car was packed to the roof too just right for all three of us to travel and live in it for 6 weeks. LOL

[RiDuvessa]

91. I've been there once.

I just remember being amazed at the openess of the city. I loved it. I remember thinking that I would love to live there (except for the heat and humidity.

[Skittles]

92. I was stationed at Biloxi for tech training in the Air Force

went to New Orleans on a weekend - I loved it, I just loved it. I can't believe I was just 18 years old.

[Alamom]

93. Many times when we lived in Mobile

Beautiful, historic, unique....a wonderful city. You leave with the feeling you want to go back again and see more.

I hope so much it is built back as it was, with only one difference, as much protection against flooding as possible.

My heart breaks for anyone who wants to go back and may not be able to.
I can "hope" housing would be provided for people who can not build back.

I can hope for a lot of things.......

[6000eliot]

94. Vegetarian gumbo at The Gumbo Shop

The best food I've ever tasted.

[brettdale]

95. Been there once

Myself and my brother did a wee road trip of the states in 1993. Thought it was a beautiful city, but looked very poor, the people seemed to be very happy though.

Took in a NFL game the saints were playing the Oilers, it was amazing, I never forget the chant of the crowd "Who Dat say, Who Dat say, Who Dat say, gonna beat them Saints"

[ForrestGump]

97. Oyster po' boys at Mother's

Making me hungry now. My favorite of the kind -- I have to get one very time I'm in Louisiana.

Never liked Nawlins that much, or southern Louisiana, but have some memories that are a bit bittersweet now. Loved the Aquarium of the Americas. Really liked a lot of the architecture of the French Quarter and environs but the drunken debauchery (lots of stupid tourists intoxicated into even greater stupidity) and so on thereabouts was more annoying than it was anything else. Not my kind of scene (and here I am, wouldn't ya know, now living in Las Vegas).

I wonder what will become of New Orleans now.

[demzilla]

98. The food, and our stay at the French Quarter Maisonettes

which was a small inn run by a patrician old white lady whose cats drank out of Wedgewood china on her dining room table. She had two black employees, very neatly dressed in white uniforms. It was an odd experience, not being from the south, like out of some movie.

We ate our way through the town -- lunch at Paul Prudhomme's restaurant, and Prudhomme himself passing us on the sidewalk in a chef's outfit, riding one of those Rascal-type scooters you see advertised for old people on TV. He was pretty fat, probably didn't like walking.

And the muffaletta sandwiches from the Central Grocery. Don't get me started on those!

We were thinking of going back there in December, as there was going to be a convention there that we might have attended, but not now, I guess.

[babylonsister]

99. a.m. kick!

[TayTay]

100. I was there in '91, loved the city

my husband had a conference and I tagged along. I don't drink but we knew we weren't in Boston anymore when we met friends at the bar and suggested that we go explore the city. The friends wanted to wait until they finished their beers. The bartenders said she could put the drink into a paper cup and we were good to go. Shocked Yankees! In a lot of ways, NO was the opposite of my hometown and I loved it. (I love regional differences. Long may they live!)

I had the sedate tour of NO. Bookstores, Grey Lines tours, musuems and gift shops. I broguht home books, artwork and music, sigh ! (Hey, NOLA had geeky tourists as well. I loved the history of the place and the awesome art and music.)

[blackcatpgh]

101. i'm usually a threadkiller, but here goes...

i've been there three times. always went in the hottest part of summer (july & august) which, even though it's hellishly hot, it at least keeps the bulk of the tourists away.

we always stayed at the st.peter guest house, on the corner of st. peter & burgundy. if you know who johnny thunders is, well, then you know that he died at the st.peter guest house.

drank hundreds of beers & bloody marys at molly's on toulouse, coop's & molly's on decatur, lafitte's blacksmith shop over on bourbon -- totally candlelit, and the oldest building in the quarter. ate boiled crawfish (out of season) and boiled shrimp (in season, i believe) at the french market. went thru the voodoo museum, listened to street musicians, and sometimes just walked around looking at the amazing historic houses and buildings. the list goes on...

damn, so many memories. i don't think i ever made it past 2 or 3am because we'd start drinking at breakfast, then roam around the quarter in the heat, ducking into bars and shops for the air conditioning as needed.

i'll definitely go back when i can.

[DoYouEverWonder]

103. I love those old guest houses

You feel like you've gone back 200 years in time almost.

[livetohike]

104. Twenty-five years ago - camping with our dog

We took him to a kennel called "The Red House". It was really hot and the kennel had indoor runs with air conditioning.

My husband and I had a great time down in the French Quarter and returned to our camp site late at night. We picked up our dog Smokey the next morning. He didn't want to leave! He pulled us back to the Red House.

We all had a great time :-).

[shrike]

105. That sweet, putrid city

And I mean that in the most positive manner.

Been there twice. For Mardi Gras. Met people from all over the world. France, England, Africa. Saw a low-key John Goodman on a float; he wasn't an announced celebrity. Rode the St. Charles trolley constantly. Had some old character next to us burst into a spontaneous travelogue about the St. Charles mansions. Remember the Wedding Cake house the best -- damned if it didn't look just like a wedding cake. Saw a few men drop their drawers for beads. Knew I'd been married a while when I saw them do that. Met four lovely NO ladies while we ate Mexican in the Garden District. They gave us all sorts of suggestions for places to eat. Spent the entire lunch talking about food. Met an African-American man, one of the most intelligent people I've ever spoken with, down by the Harbor. He was delighted to meet a few folks who were so knowledgeable about the trangressions of the Bush administration. Remember all the street performers. Remember the guy who accompanied himself on drums, making up a rap as he went along.
So glad I went to Mardi Gras. So glad I got to experience it.

Went to French Quarter Fest the second time. Had the most bodacious hurricane and went shopping drunk. In a bookstore. Owners didn't seem to mind. Found a first edition of "A Bright Shining Lie." I should shop drunk more often. Went into the galleries of the French Quarter; got hustled almost every time. The guy that didn't hustle us I bought a painting from. He apologized for ignoring us, and I told him not to worry about it. He still shipped the painting home free of charge. Stayed in the Garden District that time. Took a Voodoo tour, met a Voodoo priestess. Went to mass at Our Lady of Guadalupe, an African-American parish. Took a "Haunted New Orleans" tour, learned so much great, crazy history. Stood on a street corner and watched the Black Crowes go by. The band.
Rented some bikes from two guys who had a Bushism day calendar. Laughed my ass off, along with them, as Hubby read quotes from the calendar aloud. Two other customers left in a huff. Owners didn't seem to mind.
Rode the bikes toward what we thought was Lake Ponchartrain. Ended up in a neighborhood that went under water. Recognized it on the news. Locals gave us curious looks, but mostly said, 'good day.' Extremely poor neighborhood. Remember wondering, when the Hurricane hit, "My God, did those people make it out of there?" Knew, even then, that they didn't.

[kristndem]

107. Rode The City Of New Orleans

Down many times, from Memphis. Been going since my college days. I have many friends from there. I worked 12 years for Bell South, and we had a division there. Lots of good people...
We went to the jazz fest, ran around the Quarter, rode the rail through the Garden District, took a few Ghost tours, love the art galleries, shopped the French Market, drank coffee and ate beniets at Cafe Du Monde, ate way too many Aunt Sally pralines on many occasions, always spent more than I should have. I love New Orleans. I'm sorry to say I never saw some of the most damaged neighborhoods. That's not where you go when you visit for the getaway fun times. I pray for the homeless and the displaced, and grieve for the loss of life and community, and for the a beautiful, diverse city. One of our National Treasures.

[babylonsister]

108. Thank you all for sharing your memories! May NO

return better than ever!