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Crawfish and Jambalaya


I am in the great city of New Orleans this weekend with Bruce who is attending a trade show in town.  I am so glad I was able to tag along since I have never been here and it certainly is a one-of-a-kind experience!  As usual, we got in fairly late last night, dumped our bags off at the hotel and made a bee-line to Bourbon Street.


It's not Mardi Gras yet but people sure were in the spirit for it!  It was crazy.  It was late for us but early for the folks on Bourbon Street. 


Alcohol is allowed on the streets here so everyone is walking around with the beverage of their choice - lots of daiquiris, hurricanes and other rum concoctions in fish bowls. It made Vegas seem tame.


 Music was playing so loudly in each venture you couldn't tell which music was coming from which place but they had solicitors outside each club enticing you to come to their place.  I liked the horse patrol.

Traffic is closed off on Bourbon Street every night, thank goodness, making a "block party" feel.  But all the streets are so narrow and tight in the French Quarter, I would not want to drive.  There is so much to look at and take in. 

Voodoo is popular here which is a religion from Africa that came from the French, Spanish, and Creole speaking Africian Americans.  There are so many mystical things about New Orleans like Voodoo and their above ground cemeteries (which I haven't seen yet) because of the water table being only a few feet below.  It was another southern port for slavery so lots of history about that, too.  And don't forget the birth place of jazz!

You can even have a jazz funeral.



You are constantly reminded of the birthplace of jazz where ever you go around town.




 or used in art deco in restaurants or shops.



There is so much to see and learn here. Two days isn't going to scratch the surface! I did see the statue of Joan of Arc today, though. (the first photo above) The people of France gave the golden bronze statue to the city of New Orleans in 1972. The inscription on the pedestal reads "JOAN OF ARC, MAID OF ORLEANS 1412-1431 GIFT OF THE PEOPLE OF FRANCE. The statue is a beacon not only for the people of New Orleans but for all those who are suffering and struggling to regain their lives.  I thought it was a really neat statue, in the heart of the French Market, which is my favorite area so far...


This is also near Jackson Square which is the center of the French Quarter and the most photographed spots.

Jackson Square is a beautiful park with a statue of Andrew Jackson and flanked by beautiful buildings all around it like the St. Louis Cathedral


the oldest active Catholic cathedral in the country.

I thought this was an interesting sign especially after last night...


Quiet?  Are they kidding?  There is a musician on every street corner playing in this town and nighttime is far from quiet.  The building to its right of the cathedral is part of the Louisiana State Museum where the Louisiana Purchase took place in 1803.


It looks like Disneyland, doesn't it?  It's all so gorgeous, its hard to believe this French Quarter is real life.

Until this weekend, all I'd ever experienced of New Orleans was the New Orleans Square in Disneyland.  Seriously.  We lived in Orange County when I was in junior high and high school and we would go to Disneyland all the time. My sister worked at the Blue Bayou so we always got free passes into Disneyland.  I admit that Disneyland did a good job copying the real thing.  The main difference is that it's actually miles and miles long and it just keeps going endlessly.

I had a full agenda today of sightseeing but I didn't get very far because the shopping was incredible.  I kept stopping to look inside all the quaint shops.  I love this cute French store front.

I mean, even the guy washing the windows looked French. Look how cute he looked.  Is this for real or am I still in Disneyland?


A shop just for chandeliers.  Gorgeous!


I want to stay here next time…


I love these rubber boots but only so much room in my luggage.  Everything Mardi Gras style in New Orleans.


 You can only eat so much in two days but we've already had our crawfish and jambalaya, two staples of New Orleans.  Last night we ordered a pasta version of jambalaya with shrimp, crawfish, chicken and tasso (spicy ham) sauteed together with sweet peppers and onions then tossed with linguini.  It was delicious and hit the spot for a late night dinner.

The crawfish dish was called Crawfish Etouffee made with crawfish tails stewed in seafood broth with dark roux with creole seasonings.  Again, it really hit the spot


along with a couple of local brews from the Crescent City Brewhouse which our sixth sense led us to last night.  


Always tastes good after a long day of traveling.





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