Living in New Orleans Has its Privileges

You might come down here for the Voo Doo Music Experience (unofficially the October version of Jazz Fest) this weekend, but maybe not for last weekend's Crescent City Blues & Barbecue Festival, possibly the best kept music secret in the city of New Orleans, and completely free. There were no football stadium headliners, the audience was loaded with locals, and the music sounded so good it was ridiculous.

I think on Saturday in New Orleans it's morning until 2PM because Marc Stone of The Marc Stone Band kept apologizing for making everybody say "Yeah!" so early, even though it was already 1:30. They began building with some less demanding blues for breakfast until it reached 2 o'clock, when you could palpably feel a crowd energy shift. Marc and the boys then initiated the afternoon and the block party by tearing the house down with beefy blues, ringing out across Lafayette Square Park. City pigeons winged in V formation against a cloudless sky from elegant CBD office buildings to the old City Hall and back. Couples spontaneously danced with each other's partners on the grass.

Whatever you wore to the festival, you were dressed right. Maybe you had on a shiny olive pinstripe suit and black cowboy boots. Maybe you had glitter adorned sneakers. Overalls? OK. Cargo shorts and tee shirt? Very popular. And hats from stingy brim fedora's to feather embellished velvet caps - not important, just for fun...

We sat in the grass behind some wizened festival veterans with their portable chair cup holders cradling brimming beers and waited. Then, a tuba, a drum, a saxophone and a genius appeared on stage. We had missed Anders Osborne at the Jazz Fest because he was opposite someone we had to see, but now we were seeing him for free. Passion is not a New Orleans monopoly, but we've got it in spades, and Anders & Co definitely came to represent. He could be the modern soundtrack to New Orleans - so outstanding he sounds good sober.

After that, we had to hit the Best of New Orleans 2008 po-boy #1's, so we did a tour. After finding Domilise's in the middle of an uptown neighborhood on Annunciation, we ordered and split the large shrimp po-boy. The authentic flavor of that joint can not be replicated. Then all the way across town to Parkway Bakery and Tavern for the dressed roast beef. As the sun set on Bayou St. John, we cruised back up Broad St. Just another ordinary weekend in New Orleans.

Hurricanes are Not the Bosses of Us

We fell in love with New Orleans 20 years ago, and were getting ready to come back here when Katrina nuked it. Rumors of post-apocalyptic gangs roving the streets under marshal law, and piles of burning garbage in the streets being gnawed by wild dogs like something out of Blade Runner, persisted in the media even three years afterward. We gritted our teeth on Leap Year Day 2008, and determined to visit the ravaged city no matter how heartbreaking a scene we would find.

At 60 miles out of the city, we saw snapped off trees still dotting the highway median. Coming in over Lake Pontchartrain, we paralleled the new bridge under construction. In New Orleans East, the abandoned Six Flags stood as a ready backdrop for some horror movie with evil clowns. As we approached through metro peripheral neighborhoods, greater remnants of destruction began to flash by - defunct grocery stores and boarded, shell-bombed apartment complexes went on for several miles. Then we crossed the I-10 bridge over the lower 9th ward.

We stayed in a newly renovated hotel on Canal St. – we could see the sunrise over the Mississippi River, and look down on a semi-gutted housing project. Under I-10 in the median bisecting Claiborne St. were multiple tent cities of homeless. Driving through Mid-City, municipal buildings and schools all appeared empty. In the City Park area little trailers stood outside several homes on every block, the spray painted X’s of the search and rescue teams faded but still visible on their clapboards. But everything seemed under construction.

As out-of-towners we were fascinated with the local Katrina experience, mostly out of desperation to uncover if it had destroyed the city’s special culture forever. But when we talked to the people of New Orleans, they would tend to mention it, if at all, as a point in a timeline where some stuff happened before and some after. If you pressed them, everyone had a terrible story about “the storm” as they called it, but they would eventually turn the conversation back to the present day with some affirmative statement borne out of the city’s indomitable spirit. It affected the city deeply, and there are some who still live like it was just yesterday, but most have taken it for what it was, come to grips with it, and are moving forward.

And that’s my point. We can report New Orleans is alive and well and welcomes you back anytime. We found that the people of New Orleans aren’t still crying – they’re still smiling and laughing with their traditional jazz funeral response to adversity. Their world-wise sense of humor has not only helped them survive, with it has survived what is, in fact, New Orleans itself.

(New Orleans is rapidly rebuilding - see A Walk to the French Quarter)

Counting the Nice People in 40 Minutes

A two mile stroll through the architectural wonderland of uptown New Orleans the other day took us past colorful paint schemes, rich gardens, architectural details (like a Shakespeare door knocker)...we saw an ancient live oak tree with a trunk 12 ft around and a canopy 125 ft across. A beautiful girl sitting on her porch with the door wide open to catch the cool breeze smiled and said, "How's it goin'?" A man on his steps with a Pekingese tied by a delicate chain to a Crape-myrtle at the curb confessed as we passed, "I'm walking the dog the lazy way!" We were nearly attacked by another dog named Harvey who was no bigger than a cat, little curly hair all over him...his owner came running from the steps of her stunning old home to apologize and scoop Harvey up into her arms. While we tried to snap a picture of a tree with the most beautiful flowers, a gardener pulling up in a truck at a stop sign nearby with his window down just leaned out and said, "It's a Japanese magnolia." People who haven't visited here maybe don't realize you can live like this every day. We have started to call these "New Orleans moments" - tell us yours!

Two Words...Frenchman Street!

Last night we cruised in the convertible to some live music on Frenchman St. in the Marigny. The famous street is densely packed with clubs, some doors wide open with jazz jumping out. At d.b.a. we caught Hot Club of New Orleans - a Django Reinhart style quintet with a stellar clarinet player. The bar has the high ceilings with pendant fans, wooden floors, and large angled mirrors reflecting the eclectic crowd. In New Orleans it's like everybody notices you and nobody pays any attention at the same time. Because of this, you can truly relax when you're out on the town. The music was so cool, we kept saying to each other, "If we were in New York, you couldn't get in here with a shoe horn." Instead, we had front row bar stools and shared a decent bottle of wine for an exceptional beer joint.

After the last set, we stepped across the street to check out the Spotted Cat, back across the street to peek in the window of Snug Harbor, and walking back to our car passed Blue Nile and Hookah Cafe all within two blocks.

Top down, balmy breeze coming in off the Mississippi, we drove down Decatur Street while fireworks exploded over the river for some unknown occasion. Through the beautiful evening we eased our way uptown on Magazine St. passing restaurants bustling at the sidewalk with al fresco patrons.

Tomorrow, free live music at the extra large one year anniversary Freret Market celebration - let you know who's worth catching again down on Frenchman St.

A Nothing Sunday Afternoon in NOLA

There's nothing going on, but it doesn't feel that way. An intangible hum of warmth and humility is easing along the space between. Maybe the concertina driven arrangement of "Whatever Lola Wants" lilting from the radio on the heels of three hours of raw Zydeco has helped build this almost imperceptible layer. Was that what inspired the simple, elegant lunch assembly paced like that romantic grocery store commercial where the couple, together in the kitchen, feed each other morsels giggling after a stressful day's work? Is that what now bolsters our plans for a late afternoon barbecue that is more about sitting on the patio drinking chilled wine and listening to the live oak leaves rustle in the new cooler breezes of the oncoming fall? It's this roux, this rich and savory sauce, this underlying sense of being in a special place that allows for a contextual flow...other places have it - Caribbean islands, hearts of metropolitan cities, remote wilderness areas...here for some reason little simple activities seem so brilliant, so chic, so satisfying that the thread of ideas is endless.

The Sweet Life...C'mon Down!

As the remnants of Gustav are collected by roving municipal trucks, the radio is plunking out the blues, the lusty tropical vegetation is bobbing in the breeze, and the city of New Orleans is going on right where it left off. That easygoing, island-like atmosphere is still leaking through our pores into our bloodstreams, getting up into our brains and causing a blissful sensation of relaxation and fun. Laissez les bon temps rouler (let the good times roll) is the city's enthusiastic cry, but really, how can they not? If Katrina can't stop the good times from rolling, Gustav certainly can't...and it looks like they never will stop rolling in New Orleans for any reason at all.

Which means you can come on down!! What are you waiting for (well maybe the end of hurricane season, although the news hype makes it out to be a little bit on the extreme side)? Wouldn't you love dancing, dining, relaxing on a virtual tropical island? Remember how local live music always cheers you up and makes you forget your troubles? There's really no way to describe the feeling you get when travel to a place so full of unique culture - you have to be here - in person! No video, picture or even blog post (ahem) can do it justice!

From anywhere in the USA, with the exception of Hawaii and Alaska (which by the way have their own very explorable, unique cultures) you're no more than a half day's flight or drive from this remarkable little city. So you have no excuse! Since it's a stop on the must see checklist of America, you have to come once in your lifetime, but be careful, of course, you might keep coming back...or like us, you might never leave.

Help! I'm a Prisoner in My Vacation House!

As Gustav threatened our beautiful city, we were already up in Atlanta on business. On the eve of the Katrina anniversary, we and everybody else in America watched with horror as Gustav rolled up the gulf coast and our entire city was evacuated. Rather than return to New Orleans on Labor Day as planned, we retreated to our north Georgia vacation house and gripped our TV remote with white knuckles as the water in the Industrial Canal sloshed over the wall into the 9th Ward. We gasped with relief as we saw the levee hold.

Being practical, we made schedule adjustments that kept us productive for another week, and now here comes Ike, tracking into the gulf like a deja vu nightmare! Once the only news topic on 24 hour cable, Gustav is so last week you can't even find a 30 second update, although the city is still engaged in major aspects of recovery.

OK, we live in a hurricane zone. We admit it. A possible tipoff might be that they have a popular drink on Bourbon St. named for it. But the reality of being displaced for weeks on end, fearing for the lives and property of your neighbors, wondering if your roof blew off and your possessions are scattered or soaked or both, and basic stuff like knowing your refrigerator full of food lies in dubious condition after days and days without power, suddenly becomes intimate experience. Strangely though, now we know first hand why people came back after Katrina, why they suffer through all the Gustavs and Ikes - a love for this unique city so powerful that it pervades your bloodstream. As we eyeball the new storm track, our desire to return to New Orleans continues to increase in intensity, and we are tempted to compromise everything but safety - what's a little rain and wind?!

It's lovely this time of year up in north Georgia, don't get us wrong. The crisp morning air in the lush, vibrant green woods at the edge of the lake is refreshing perfection. Under other circumstances, we might even come here on purpose this time of year, but it has become a gilded cage. We have to go home...

The Fais Do-Do Loves Tipitina's

Zydeco music in New Orleans is practically patriotic, and boy did it sound FANTASTIC last Sunday night at Tipitina's. If you want to get the flavor, go out to the Cajun Fais Do-Do "most Sundays" featuring Bruce Daigrepont. It's so casual, you can wear your sweats if you want, no kidding, and dance for hours with the most easygoing people on the planet. We didn't know the two-step (and frankly we still don't after trying while doubled over laughing at our amazing left-footedness). Folks there will be happy to attempt to teach you anyway though. A few people brought their own washboards and just stood below the stage playing along with the music. They had a birthday announcement and cake for some of the regulars at the break, and everybody kept dancing to the intermission music (which was more good zydeco and Cajun music, of course). As always, presiding over the festivities in spirit was the legendary Professor Longhair, imortalized in the giant mural overlooking the stage. What we want to know is, do all the real people live in New Orleans?

Grocery Shopping in New Orleans...

...is fun - no really! This city's charming attitude unassumingly pervades even the dumb stuff you do every day until all of life is a pleasure. For instance, these things really happened to us:

• We were standing in a grocery store (Breaux Mart) aisle looking at some spicy Cajun mustard, and the guy shopping for croutons next to us said, "Have you ever tried that? It's fantastic." Then he went on with his shopping.
  
• We were in a restaurant (Pho Tau Bay) one day looking at the menu, and the guy at the table next to us leaned over and said, "Have you ever been here? Try the chicken salad," and then continued conversing with his tablemate.
  
• We were standing outside a wine shop (Swirl) contemplating going in, and a couple sitting al fresco told us not only about a wine tasting there in an hour, but about a great new restaurant across the street (Lola's) where we went over and had dinner.
  
• You're not going to believe this one, but it's absolutely true! We were parking our car to go into a coffee shop (Rue de la Course), and a guy came out on the balcony across the street and called to us to get our attention. He then told us they were giving out $150 parking tickets for parking in that direction on that side of the street. We moved our car, walked up one block and saw a meter maid!

It's like people are nice here on purpose. In fact, the unofficial city motto is, "Be nice or leave!" and in our opinion they're actually living it.

Sneaky Good Eats

Finding incredible food for cheap is sport in New Orleans - here's a list of our most recent finds in all their inexpensive deliciousness:

1. Lebanon's Cafe - This may be the best Middle Eastern food we've EVER had (and we've been from NYC to LA looking!) They have a succulent lamb shish kebab plate and exotic iced tea with rosemary and pine nuts.
   


2. Pho Tau Bay Restaurant - Super Vietnamese, all the classics plus lots of light choices. This is our favorite cuisine, so we're choosy.
   


3. Slim Goodies Diner - The atmosphere is ALL THE WAY THERE New Orleans style - everybody goes there for "breakfast all day" from the hoi polloi uptown to the average joe - huge lines on weekends, always packed.
   


4. La Divinia Gelateria - Coconut Thai Basil sorbetto? How about Grapefruit Campari? All made from scratch - you can get two flavors in one bowl so you don't have to choose! Plus you can eat it strolling up Magazine St.

Tell us your faves so we can try them!