New Orleans…don’t think about it, just go!

by | Mar 4, 2009 | Travel

New Orleans: the city ravaged by Hurricane Katrina, the site of the famous Battle of New Orleans, home to the infamous Mardi Gras, the French Quarter (FQ), ghost sightings and voodoo lore, and where above-ground cemeteries and courtyard gardens evoke visions of splendid mystery. Whatever you associate it with; New Orleans is a treasure trove of aural, olfactory and visual stimuli. With five days off over the Christmas holidays, we headed south for a little stimulation, Big Easy style.

We arrived a few days before New Years and the city was hopping. Our first stop: Bourbon Street. Turning the corner from Canal Street, music flowed through open doors of countless bars where partiers, tourists, football fans and players in town for the upcoming Sugar Bowl crowded the street. Side-by-side gift shops overloaded with mardi gras beads and hot sauces competed for customers’ dollars. Girls on mile-high stilettos teetered in front of strip clubs beckoning to the willing and the curious. If we were feeling tired from our six hour flight, this definitely woke us up.

You can spend four days completely immersed in the French Quarter but you’d be doing yourself a disservice; New Orleans is made of much more than that. Yes, the French Quarter has it all: walking tours, ghost tours, cooking classes, carriage rides, and shopping galore. You can find charming restaurants and ribald drinking establishments and sit where presidents and pirates sat conspiring against the British. But venture beyond the FQ and you’ll see that New Orleans is worthy of more than just its reputation as a party town. Take in a NFL Saints game and witness true fan insanity. Stroll down Magazine Street and through the garden district, take in a performance at the House of Blues or sail down the Mississippi River on a steamboat.

Go on an airboat swamp tour. We were lucky to spot half a dozen young alligators sunning themselves on fallen trees. Spanish Moss hangs from gnarled branches of the cypress trees making the bayou both eerie and beautiful at the same time.

New Orleans is a world class food destination. At Emeril Lagasse’s flagship restaurant on Tchoupitoulas (pronounced Chop-it-too-us) Street, the food was magnificent. If you can, sit at the table right in front of the kitchen for some added entertainment.

Another iconic restaurant to visit is K-Paul’s. Although the experience was not as enjoyable as it was at Emeril’s, the fried green tomatoes are worth going back for.

For oysters, avoid the line-up at the Acme Oyster House and go across the street to Felix’s, grab a seat at the bar and get Henry (aka Shucka Kahn) to make you a real Hurricane drink. And don’t pass up on the turtle soup or soft shell crab po’boy.

If you have nothing planned, just start strolling and let the music and the streets lead you on. You may end up in some quaint bar sipping absinthe, snacking on alligator and listening to a Cajun band. You might even have to strap on a metal washboard like I did and do your best to keep up. You can always blame it on the absinthe.

One last note: Most areas that tourists visit have been repaired and you have to look hard to find evidence of the damage left by Hurricane Katrina. You can, if you want, go on a Hurricane Katrina Tour but for the most part, the city is ready, willing and able to recieve her guests.

My tips for New Orleans: 1) Go in the off season if you don’t like crowds 2) Do a Swamp/Bayou Tour 3) Try absinthe 4) Spend a few days just in the French Quarter 4) experience Bourbon Street on a Friday or Saturday night 5) Avoid the Grenades (drinks made with Everclear…unless you’re a college student with an iron stomach) 6) Seek out Felix’s Oyster House on Iberville Street 7) Have breakfast at Mother’s on Poydras Street. You won’t leave hungry or disappointed. 8) Put your feet up and ride the streetcar for a while; it’s a cheap and pleasant way to get around.