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Published: March 20th 2008
The Big Easy
We thought nothing could follow Habana but this place blew us away.It wasn’t going to be easy for any city to follow Habana and give us the same level of fabulous experiences and enjoyment we’d had there. New Orleans did though, and then some!!
As soon as we walked into the Arrivals Hall at Louis Armstrong Airport, we sensed we were in for something special. The task of getting there from Cancun had been a frustrating one as we’d had to change planes at Miami; security there, whilst understandably thorough, was painfully slow. Endless queues, finger print scans etc meant three hours of flying time took over eight hours travelling but we soon forgot this minor inconvenience. Music from Satchmo himself soothed us as we waited for our cases and left us in a much better mood.
The cab ride into the city proved interesting in itself as the driver proved to be an amnesiac Billy Liar. He must have been in his mid seventies and, although it was only a very short journey, he asked us to remind him where we were going four times. All the while, he prattled on about all the different places he lived (e.g. Norwich for forty five years) and, by my crude calculations,
So Much To See, So Little Time.......
We had three action packed days in the city and we'd loved to have stayed longer to see more. That said, this gives us good reasons to revisit in the future................... he would have needed to be around 200 for it all to be true. Angela was silently signalling to me that his nose must be growing like Pinocchio’s, but he was a nice guy and I chatted happily with him all the way. I even gave him the benefit of the doubt when he boasted that his two sons were decorated US Army helicopter pilots and that one of his cousins was a famous astronaut on the Apollo moon missions. It was only when he told us his last fare had been a Scotsman who left a $100 tip that I gave up on him - no way would that ever happen!! ;-)
New Orleans was founded in 1718 and proved to be an amazing city. It was claimed by the French before the USA was the USA if you see what I mean......... thus explaining the “Orleans” part and its resident state of Louisiana was named after the then King of France, Louis XIV. We stayed at the Omni Royal (it has a great pool on the roof terrace with views over the city and the Mississippi) right in the heart of the French Quarter. The buildings there
A Unique City
New Orleans blends it's 17th century heritage brilliantly with the contemporary, creating a fabulous place to visit. are wonderful with large porches and ornate balconies; the streets are quiet (except for its main one, Bourbon Street, which is chaotic!!) and have a very laid back, sleepy feel to them. The population of 1.3m is from an eclectic mix of races and contribute to the unique and exciting atmosphere - unnerving voodoo dolls are everywhere though!!
Looking at the downtown area, you’d hardly believe that 80% of the city was flooded just three years ago. Over half of NOLA (derived from New Orleans, LouisianA) lies at or below sea level and first Hurricane Katrina and then Rita caused massive devastation in 2005. The levees (flood walls built by the US Army in 1965) were breeched, leaving 15,000 dead and two million people had to be evacuated. Outside the downtown area there’s still clear evidence of the damage caused, but a strong community spirit and gritty determination mean things will get back to normal sooner rather than later.
That said, “normal” is not a word easily associated with The Big Easy (a nickname of unknown origin but believed to have been first coined by 1920’s musicians who found the relaxed attitude meant it was an easy place
St. Paddy
It appears everyone in New Orleans discovers their Irish roots for the weekend and contributes to an amazing atmosphere and spectacle.
Millions of strings of beads are thrown to the onlookers and, by the end of the parade, some could hardly carry all the booty they'd collected. to find work during prohibition). Jazz was founded here and, similar to Habana, it’s impossible to walk down a street without hearing music; if not from a bar or club, it’ll be from a band of blues buskers on the street or an impromptu capella singing duo.
New Orleans is world famous for its food and with good reason too - portions are massive and it’s as though anything vaguely healthy has been banned. French, Spanish, Italian, African, Native American, Cajun and Cuban traditions merge to produce a unique Louisiana flavour. For dinner one night, Angela (a big Carpenters fan) really did have a combination of Jambalaya, crawfish fish pie and file gumbo - I had the creole seafood which was less musical but still superb. Other specialities are po’boys (derived from “poor boys”) - hot sandwiches with French bread, and beignets, fried sweet pastries that leave a blanket of fine sugar over anything within the vicinity. The service in restaurants is superb and they even help by suggesting on the bill the tip you should leave them - a calculation based on 18%, 22% or 26%!!
We only had three full days here but boy, they were
Look Out..............
.......it's a flying cabbage!! We wouldn't have believed it if we hadn't seen it - if you stay more than five minutes you can collect all the ingredients for a good meal. great. Our timing was perfect and we arrived when there was lots going on and tons of things to do (it’s probably always like that in NOLA though, it’s just that kind of place). Our first night there was the Friday that signalled the start of St. Patrick’s Day celebrations - something they make a very big deal of here. Everyone dresses up as leprechauns etc and it appears that the Emerald Isle has somehow temporarily been transported to Louisiana. We went to one of the many St. Patrick’s Day parades on the Saturday and, if Mardi Gras is madder than this, it must be some spectacle.
Thousands and thousands of people lined the route, all bedecked in Irish costumes, turning the streets into a sea of green. We stationed ourselves on a balcony to get the best view and we haven’t laughed so much in ages. It took nearly two hours for the myriad of elaborate floats to pass by and the atmosphere was just electric. Each float has music of all types blaring from it, often from a live band, and their brightly costumed passengers throw a whole manner of goods to the crowd at the road
There's No Escape
Jazz was founded in The Big Easy and, similar to Habana, music is a fundamental part of life. If you're outside, you're going to hear a tune from somewhere - it's as simple as that. It all makes for great entertainment and puts a spring in everyones step. side. Everyone decorates themselves with strings of the brightly coloured beads they’ve collected and, in this highly litigious society, I’m amazed each parade isn’t followed by law suits from those hit in the eye when not paying attention.
Beads are the least of your worries injury wise though. Potatoes, carrots, onions and cabbages (?!!) are hurled in their thousands to the revellers who often then secrete them in cool boxes or pile them up in doorways to take home later. Angela and I observed one guy who screamed out what he wanted to be thrown from every float and, once he got it, scurried into his house to drop it off. He appeared to be an old hand at this kind of thing and we watched him catch at least twenty cabbages, along with a plethora of other vegetables. It appeared he was going to make the world’s biggest Irish Stew that evening as, towards the end of the parade, he leapt up and down on the spot, waving his arms and yelling “corned beef!! corned beef!!” at the top of his voice.
Other highlights included a trip down the mighty Mississippi River on an old fashioned steam
Unusual Trees
Thousands of trees that line the parade routes are adorned with beads from ill aimed throws. boat, The Natchez. We got great views from the water of the downtown and the more outlying areas but two hours simply can’t do justice to a river that’s over 2,300 miles long and over a mile wide in places. We also managed to take in horse racing at the city’s pretty Fairgrounds racecourse (despite Pinocchio the taxi driver unequivocally stating that the season didn’t start for another month - thank goodness for the internet) and did the obligatory city tour. This proved superb as it gave an insight into what a rich tapestry The Big Easy is whilst reinforcing the awful, devastating effect Katrina had and, to a certain extent, is still having.
Our three day stay in NOLA was capped off in great style when we managed to get a couple of the hottest tickets in town - for the NBA basketball match between the New Orleans Hornets and the Chicago Bulls. When you search the Hornets web site for tickets, it defaults to “Best Available”. These came back at $1,500 a pop so we quickly lowered our sights and got the $30 ones up in the gods!! (As an aside, it’s interesting to observe that I
Bourbon Street
Most of The French Quarter is sedate and relaxed. Bourbon Street isn't - it's the party zone all day every day and is a chaotic but friendly place. don’t think many Americans think a world exists outside their fair shores. TV carries barely any foreign news and reading the national newspapers will bring you right up to date with women’s baseball etc, but will you find even one sentence about the world’s most famous football team......................? When Angela was booking a flight over the phone with South West Airlines, the Customer Service girl asked if England was in London!!).
Anyway, the basketball itself was amazing and we were really surprised at how the Americans treat sport compared to what we’re used to. Some of it would drive your average UK punter mad (big screen replays while the game is in play incessant adverts time outs etc) but most of it is from a different world. It’s much more family oriented with a friendly, fun environment - can you believe they even clap the opposing team on the court!! A local pastor says a prayer in perfectly observed silence before the whole crowd stands, hands on hearts and belt out The Star Spangled Banner with great gusto.
There’s tons of “other” free entertainment - face and hair painting, temporary tattoos, crowd dance offs etc and there’s even
The Natchez
The steam powered paddle boat that takes you on a cruise along the magnificaent Mississippi river. Xbox 360’s for public use inside the Arena; I can guarantee you if they tried that at Old Trafford they’d be somewhere in Salford before you could sing “viva Ronaldo”. The game is played to a constant backdrop of uplifting music and, after “tip off”, no-one is allowed to sit down until the home team scores their first points (they tried this at Anfield once but too many people collapsed of exhaustion - hahaha!!). All this contributes to a great atmosphere and, in a close run match, the Hornets pulled it out of the fire in the closing minutes to send the fans home happy.
The saying goes that time flies when you’re having fun and that was never truer than for our time in New Orleans. Usually, no matter how much we love a place, we wouldn’t necessarily go back as there are too many other places to see in the world. The atmosphere, fun, music, sport, food and beauty of the place (to name but a few) mean
The Big Easy will prove an exception to this - there’s just so much more to see and do there. The state of Louisiana will no doubt be delighted
A Whole Different Ball Game
Neither of us had the slightest interest in basketball, but what a time we had!! Say what you like about the American's, but they know how to entertain.
I was going to take part in the half time audience dance off but thought I'd give someone else a chance to win ........... when they hear they’ve qualified for the ACDCWORLDTOUR Highly Recommended Award.
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Ed
non-member comment
Basketball !!!!
Let me get this right. David Cotton voluntarily went to a basketball game which he found ‘amazing’, especially when the ‘Hornets pulled it out of the fire’?? David please return to Bolton Lancashire immediately - I’ll have a nice bottle of brown ale waiting for you on the bar in the Hen and Chickens .. it’s not too late.