New Orleans

North America » United States » Louisiana » New Orleans
June 21st 2019

Published: June 22nd 2019

Edit Blog Post

NanaNinja

Our first glimpse of the Mighty Mississippi

We’ve hit New Orleans, or Nawlans as the locals say. That’s what the guide said on our tour of the city.

If Savannah was hot this is even hotter. We’re staying in the French Quarter right in the middle of all the action. Bourbon St, where all the music and real action happens at night is only two blocks away. Bars have their own bands playing recognisable (to us) songs ‘Me and Bobby McGee’, patrons, and music spilling out onto the narrow street. With coloured lights and signs flashing it’s a real party atmosphere. You can tell the tourists. They just look bewildered. Except ones much younger than us drinking out of flat sided large jars with straws, fishbowls they are called, $10 and a refill for $7.

Every morning the clean up brigade is out in force and by about 10 o’clock the whole street has been swept and hosed down ready to start again.

This afternoon a brass band of sorts marched along, lead by two NOPD blue-light flashing women on motorbikes. I felt sorry for the band musicians as the revellers were pseudo marching with them and being a general nuisance, but no one seemed

Beignets

Deep fried dough, crispy round the edges and smothered with icing sugar.

to mind and it was all in good fun.

The streets are narrow and you find yourself walking on the shaded side of the road to get out of the unrelenting heat. A couple of blocks away we found the Cafe Beignet - the best beignets in all of New Orleans so they say. With a pretty good approximation of a cappuccino too, we tried them. One order equals three beignets. They are deep fried dough rectangles similar to doughnuts, crispy around the edges and smothered in icing sugar. Very nice but you can’t eat too many of them which leaves you wondering why three? Pronounced bee nyay.

We’ve had Jambalaya, which is similar to paella, grits, a polenta-like porridge and of course gumbo. The dish that everyone queues for is grilled oysters. You can see them cooking in the windows of restaurants, the cheese topping sizzling away in their shells over a very flaming bbq. I have to admit we haven’t tried these yet.

Our tour of the city was good in that it gave us an idea of the layout, the disaster that was Hurricane Katrina, as well as the history. The City was founded

Cafe Beignet

Very popular. Queues are often out the door. I think haziness is caused by the humidity. My iPad gets a hammering going in and out of 35 degree heat and freezing of aircon.

in the early 1700s by the French, the original plan being 13 streets wide by 6 deep and what is now referred to as the French Quarter. During that century they were approximately 60 years owned by France, 40 by Spain followed by another brief spell with the French when, in 1803 it was sold to the United States by Napoleon as the Louisiana Purchase, in order to finance his war with the British.

Additional photos below

Photos: 22, Displayed: 22