NEW ORLEANS - "THE BIG EASY"

New Orleans is a city of cultural and architectural diversity all smashed into a small geographical area known as "the Crescent".  It is surrounded on three sides by the Mississippi and one side by Lake Ponchetrain.  Whereas the city is quite diverse, it is not by any means a melting pot.  Rather, it is a mosaic; each neighborhood, or ward, appearing quite different. 



You have the French Quarter, the business district, the warehouse/arts district,  the garden district, Audubon Park, and then you have the outlying wards.  However, there are certain aspects of a visit to New Orleans that the powers that be want to make sure get drilled into your head. 



While Jazz music, great cooking, the Saints, and generally, "laisez les bon temps roule" get all the headlines, another aspect of the city folks love to push here is Hurricane Katrina. 



There are bars, entrees, drinks, souveniers, barbeque sauce, and all other things where folks here are engaging the tourist trade to capitalize on a disaster of epic proportions.  I wonder what will happen in another 10 years when the effects of Katrina have all evaporated.


It was also coincidental that in 2009, the Saints won the Superbowl.  The tourist bureau loves the fact that the Saints' rebuilding coincided with their own rebuilding after the storm.  In fact, even quarterback Drew Breeze is getting in on it with his book, "Coming Back Stronger", yet another effort to capitalize on the storm's effects.

On the other hand, New Orleans is a lovely little city.  It has all the big city flare of, say, New York's Manhattan, or downtown San Francisco.  It also has all the small town feel you could want because it is so segmented.  What I enjoyed most about New Orleans, however, was the diversity in archetecture prevelant throughout the various sections of the city.




The French Quarter, of course, resembles many smaller European cities I have visited.  The only thing missing is the cobble stone streets.  The city is an interesting mix of everything from "shotgun houses" to palatial mansions.  There are also very modern glass office towers and fancy hotel casinos.  And, the people who live here are as diverse as the archetecture.

This is a city that loves to celebrate its dead.  There are cemetaries throughout the city that contain both very old tombs and very new ones. 

In that regard, it's important to remember that, as far as "civilization" is concerned, New Orleans is not that old.  Louisiana is known as "America's Wetlands".  Much of the city lies below sea level.  Were it not for a series of levies, locks, dams, and other water barriers, not to mention a long history of dredging, and draining, I suspect New Orleans would resemble many of the swamps and bayous we have seen along the way.  It is the confluence of the Mississippi River with the Gulf of Mexico that those who came here long ago saw as an inspiration to dry this swamp out and, thus, it became the mini-metropolis that it is.  Back to the dead.


Death is celebrated here.  We learned about the "Jazz Funerals."  There is a parade (say: procession) lead by the ministers and the family, followed by all the mourners and, yes, a jazz band.  They usually begin by playing somewhat of a solemn dirge, but then the second line and those that follow become more rambunctuous and there is dancing and celebrating.  This is a good thing.  Folks are probably not so afraid of death knowing that it will begin with a party.  Then there is the burial rituals.

Because Louisiana is mostly below sea level, the dead are not buried underground as they are in so many other places.  Coffins buried underground have a tendancy to float back to the surface within about 6 months. Rather, they are buried in above-ground tombs or crypts constructed early on from brick and morter, and later, from marble and other fancy stone. 



What is most interesting is that whole families are buried in these crypts.  You may see 10-12 names engraved in the door. According to ritual, when someone dies, they are placed in a coffin and then placed in the above-ground crypt.  Science tells us that the body will take just about a year to decompose (especially above ground).  Then, one year and one day later, the crypt is opened, and the remains shoveled into a bag and left in the back of the crypt.  The next family member who dies gets to use the same coffin in the crypt.  Then, one year and a day later, the same thing happens.  All of you will end up in the same bag!  So, if you didn't get along in life, I guess you're screwed because your going to spend eternity in the same bag.  So be nice to your parents, brothers, sisters, cousins, etc.  It's going to be a long, long, long chill.


If you love Jazz music, then this is definitely the place to come.  The sounds of jazz and other jass inspired tunes seem to come from everywhere.  Many folks believe that Bourbon Street is the place to go for great Jazz music.  Well, according to the locals, the real heart of Jazz music is Frenchmans Street.  We spent a delightful evening in a club called DBA listening to a 6 piece jazz band play all the great tunes while a handsome set of young folks danced swing and other steps from a long bygone era.  Dark lighting and deep stained wood paneling, a little smoke and you have a great environment for listening to really cool music. 



Given the age of some of the musicians, it was apparent that they have loved their craft, in some cases, for more than 60 years.  They play with such feeling and texture on instruments that are, in many cases, as old as they are.  One guy really struggled with his clarinet.  It was old and chipped, but it emmanated such a rich sound that, given his style of play, one could never suggest a newer one.  And I have never seen such a variety of saxaphone.  Big ones, small ones, shiny ones, dull ones.  It never ends. 


There is music played in the street as well.  Walking down Royal Street (the artist and art gallery street between Canal and Esplinade, we stopped and listened to many groups playing in the street.  They were all good.  With all the talent everywhere, it is no wonder folks play in the street.  There simply are not enough venues to feature them all.


One of the highlights of our time in New Orleans was having a visit from our friend, and champion sailor, Randy Alcorn.  He sent me an email telling me he was "in the neighborhood" and then called to say he was only a couple hours away and did we mind a visit.  Well, I had no idea that "in the neighborhood" meant Fort Walton Beach, FLORIDA!  So, Randy had the afternoon off work, and he hopped in his rental car and drove across the Florida panhandle, across Alabama, across Mississippi, and then across a good part of Louisiana just to come by and have a bottle of wine and some conversation.  We had a great time.  We just hung out on the boat and caught up.  What a great friend Randy is and what a pleasant and enjoyable suprise.  I can only suggest that those things that make up a person's mind to do what he did, are the same things that make him a champion sailor, one of the best in the world, no doubt.  Thanks Randy.  We look forward to seeing you again soon.

We also got the Christmas gifts done and mailed out and got to hang with some new friends from Galveston who caught up with us here.  Bill and Carol are really nice folks and have a big dog - a 100+ pounder named Monty that they travel with on their beautiful Grand Banks called "Trident."  I was privileged to be able to help Bill out with a generator glitch.  We have had so many wonderful gifts of friendship and charity bestowed upon us by total strangers that it was really nice to get a chance to pay it forward.



I may write more about New Orleans later after it has had more of a chance to settle and as it will float to the surface (pardon the pun).  But for now, we will be leaving this wonderful city and continuing eastbound.  Our destination today is a place called Rabbit Island at the intersection of the Rigolets and Lakes Borne and Ponchetrain.  From there we will leave Louisiana and enter Mississippi, first stopping at Pass Christian, then Gulfport, and then Biloxi, and maybe even Pascagoula. 

Be well, y'all, and laisez les bon temps roule!

HEY DAVE LOCKRIDGE! THIS ONE'S FOR YOU, BUDDY!

Runway is all ready for Mardi Gras

No trip to New Orleans would be complete without coffee and beignet from Cafe Du Monde.

Those of you who watch the Food Channel know who this guy is.  BAM!

Andrew Jackson