Just a little street dancing: French Quarter, New Orleans

For those who love to wander, coming home can sometimes be a “downer.”  But what perks us up after a good trip is looking through photos and reliving and re-evaluating what we saw.  Thus it was after a brief but fun visit to New Orleans, a place we’ve seen numerous times, but one that always shows us something new and delightful.

And this time was a nothing-special time — no festivals, no conventions we had to attend, no national holiday celebrations.  Just pure New Orleans . . . if there is such a thing.  Sort of reminds us of this Bob Dylan quote, “There are a lot of places I like, but I like New Orleans better.”

Maybe it’s the people . . .

A little cell phone pre-occupation!

Pedaling the tourists — New Orleans

Checking for messages — French Quarter, New Orleans

Or it could be the icons.  Like St. Louis Cathedral where you can duck in for a moment of quiet and a glimpse of Christian opulence.

Of course, New Orleans is food.  Like gumbo at Napoleon House.  Or muffulettas at Central Grocery.  Maybe beignets at Cafe duMonde.  But no trip is complete without stocking up on Aunt Sally’s pralines — a box for the folks back home and at least one apiece for us!

Ready for packaging: Pralines at Aunt Sally’s

And New Orleans is seeing remnants of Mardi Gras still hanging from the trees around Jackson Square . . .

Colorful beads drip from the trees near Jackson Square.

or colorful masks and feathered boas that remind us how dressing up is just part of being in NOLA, Mardi Gras or not.

To some, New Orleans is macabre.  A little bit funereal.  A little bit voodoo.  And a lot of obsessing over death and the hereafter.

Window scene in The Jazz Funeral on Decatur, New Orleans’ French Quarter

New Orleans can be the sadness of seeing the homeless with nowhere to go . . .

Person hanging out with Marilyn Monroe.

or the oddities of structures that probably have tales to tell.

Shards and remnants of glass bottles line the top of a wall around a home in the French Quarter.

Maybe it’s the art of the area — like oddly fascinating little put-togethers . . .

As seen in a window in French Quarter, artwork resembling a hearse with driver.

or fabric art that draws you in to enjoy the cleverness and the handiwork of someone who’s got a handle on life as she sees it.

It’s also the little things you never expected to see.

Whatever New Orleans is to you is what New Orleans is, for your experiences and your views will make up your tapestry of this city, the one Southern city that we could visit again and again.

Looking back can be so much fun!

We’d love to hear from you, our readers.  What have you seen that you loved about New Orleans?

For more posts in this Travel Series: New Orleans, click here.

And, as always, thanks for traveling with us,

–Bert and Rusha

Portrait of Marie Laveau. Credit: Wikimedia Commons

No history of New Orleans, I suppose, would be complete without at least mentioning Marie Laveau, the legendary Voodoo Queen of the city.  So, it only follows that many folks — locals and tourists alike — would want to find her grave and pay tribute to her.  As I mentioned in a previous post, I took a comprehensive, but rushed, tour of the French Quarter and St. Louis Cemetery #1 with a knowledgeable but garrulous guide from New Orleans Legendary Walking Tours who saved what he thought would be the best for last, meaning we almost didn’t have time see what is — and isn’t — Marie Laveau’s gravesite. (Bear with me.  There’s a story coming.)

I didn’t know much about Marie Laveau then, but I do now.  Had to look her up.  And what I’ve found is admittedly fuzzy — not only for me but for scholars who still seem a bit blurry on the details, too.  Here’s the short version.  Although some accounts list 1801 as Marie’s birth year, most agree that the Voodoo Queen was born free on September 10, 1794 but of slave lineage.  Marie was the product of an affair between her mother, Marguerite Darcantel, and a successful mulatto businessman, Charles Laveaux.  In 1819, Marie married Jacques Paris who disappeared around 1824, leaving Marie to be known as the Widow Paris.  But Marie entered into a domestic relationship with a man of French descent, Louis de Glapion and together they raised seven children in a house in the Vieux Carré or French Quarter.

St. Louis Cemetery #1, French Quarter, New Orleans

Known as a clairvoyant, Marie consulted with many residents of the French Quarter and led annual celebrations at places such as Lake Pontchartrain where bonfires, feasting, dancing, and ritual bathing became the stuff of legends, evidently.  But here’s something I found interesting:  Marie was known as a voodoo priestess, but she was also a devout Roman Catholic performing acts of compassion like ministering to the sick.  And she lived a modest life despite her wealth.  At one time, she even purchased a slave herself.  Many saw her as a charitable woman while others only knew her as the Voodoo Queen.  City records prove that she is buried in St. Louis Cemetery #1, but there is some confusion over which tomb is hers.

Tomb assumed by many to be Marie Laveau’s

Most visitors, according to our guide, point to the tomb that is heavily marked with Xs. According to one source, visitors thought that to have a wish granted, they would mark an X on the tomb, turn around three times, knock on the tomb, and shout out their wish. People visiting the cemetery brought charcoal or paint with them; others, unprepared to make their mark, broke off bits of nearby tombs in order to scratch out an X.  (And this latter practice is probably one reason why authorities have closed St. Louis Cemetery #1 to visitors except with licensed guides.)

Our guide, however, says this is not the grave of  Marie Laveau.  This tomb, marked with Xs in rows of three may bear Christian, not Voodoo, symbolism as sets of three Xs could represent the trinity:  God the father, the son, and the Holy Spirit. The markings could have been made to counter the voodoo effect of Marie Laveau.  Or maybe someone Christian is buried here.  He said there’s still speculation.

Scholars agree that this is the tomb of Marie Glapion Laveau. Note the trinkets left by visitors. (Source: Wikipedia: Marie Laveau)

Our guide then led us to another tomb, a plainer one by far, but one that he says scholars agree is the true tomb of Marie Glapion Laveau.  And today it’s easily identified: it’s the one where tributes are left at the base– a few coins, a scattering of trinkets, faded flowers, even old cigarettes.  (Evidently,  being a Voodoo Queen isn’t as glamorous in death as it may have been in real life!)

Trinkets laid at base of Marie Laveau’s tomb, St. Louis Cemetery #1

And so my tour ended with the pièce de résistence — the tomb of Marie Laveau, spawning a desire to learn more about the culture and practice of voodoo.  I’m still amazed that Marie was both a practicing voodoo priestess and a devoted, even charitable, caring Roman Catholic.  But it is New Orleans, after all.  And who doesn’t love a blend of religions, cultures, backgrounds, legends and realities?  And a few exaggerations maybe?

A last glimpse of St. Louis Cemetery #1

For more information:

Haunted New Orleans Tours: Marie Laveau, New Orleans Voodoo Queen: http://www.hauntedneworleanstours.com/marielaveau/marielaveau/

Marie Laveau’s House of Voodoo: http://www.hauntedneworleanstours.com/marielaveau/marielaveau/

Wikipedia: Marie Laveau: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marie_Laveau

Webster, Richard A. “Tomb of Marie Laveau, Voodoo queen of New Orleans, refurbished in time for Halloween” (October 29, 2014). The Times-Picayune.  Retrieved from http://www.nola.com/crime/index.ssf/2014/10/tomb_of_marie_laveau_voodoo_qu.html

To read more posts on New Orleans, go to Travel Series: New Orleans at the top of the blog site or click here.  Thanks for traveling with us!  — Bert and Rusha

A modern yellow building and palm tree provide an interesting contrast to the tombs of St. Louis Cemetery 1.

As a child, my parents would drive my sisters and me from the little town of Hahnville, Louisiana, to the big city of New Orleans — to see the city, to take a mini-vacation, and even to buy groceries at Schwegmann’s.  But on every trip, every trip, we passed cemeteries where above-ground tombs fascinated me even at an early age.

It was not, however, until this year, 2016, that I joined a tour group that had obtained permission to take visitors inside.  Under new rules passed by the Archdiocese of New Orleans, ALL visitors to St. Louis Cemetery 1 may only be admitted with a licensed guide.  Families of loved ones buried there must obtain a pass for entry into the cemetery. Of course, I asked Why?  And I was given one response:  vandalism.  

St. Louis Cemetery 1 is frequently referred to as “City of the Dead,” a place, according to our guide, where rich and poor were entombed in its confines.  The wealthy had individual structures that could accommodate many family members one by one, as the time came for burial.  So, imagine layers, if you will, inside the tombs where one body would be moved over or pushed to the back to allow space for another person.

One tomb could accommodate several family members.

I was pretty amazed by this tour.  Perhaps it was the awe of the place.  Or the ruinous condition.  Or the variety of materials, heights, shapes.  Whatever it was, I was spellbound. But not for long.  As I listened to the tour guide who mentioned that we had only a few minutes to see what he could show us accompanied by his warnings not to stray from the group, I grabbed hold of my camera and started snapping.  So much so, I might mention, that I missed much of what he was saying. But I could see one thing for sure:  The City of the Dead offers amazing sights from any and all angles.

A simple burial spot with a singular iron cross — St. Louis Cemetery 1

Looking down an alley at St. Louis Cemetery 1

Ravages of time and weather and vandals have certainly taken their toll on these treasured tombs.  And it’s the latter devastation that has now closed the cemetery to random wanderings.  The “peeling away,” if you can even call it that, reveals the building materials of many of these structures.

Exposed brick and plaster on this tomb with evidence of an arched cavity

Many tombs in St. Louis Cemetery 1 had their “skin” peeled away, revealing inner stacks of bricks covered in layers of plaster.

Others have maintained their dignity with stately impediments, intact plaster (although most were pretty moldy), and chiseled names of the original inhabitants.  According to our guide, tombs were opened and re-opened to allow more and more family members to be laid to rest when the time came.

Some tombs remain preserved with ironwork, carving, and architectural details.

Pretty detail on a tomb in the City of the Dead.

Nature, too, has had her way with the structures.  Hurricane Katrina made sure that not even the dead were exempt from high waters.  And the evidence of cracking and crazing from natural causes was everywhere.  Broken bricks and shards of stone, piled willy nilly by the whims of storms and blazing heat, formed random paths even among the “avenues” of the rich.

Nature finds a way to get into cracks and cause damage — while remaining pretty!

On the back side of the City of the Dead where the poor were buried, arched indentations reveal how bodies were stacked one atop the other in a condominium of sorts — multiple layers, multiple rows.

In the back of the cemetery, the poor were buried, stacked one on top of another rather than in individual tombs.

Destruction seemed less severe if iron fences guarded the tombs.  Perhaps these iron surrounds kept vandals at a distance while guarding the deceased with spikes and spires.

Decorative ironwork frames a family tomb in St. Louis Cemetery 1, New Orleans.

Fencing around a tomb in St. Louis Cemetery 1

Artful ironwork frames delicate carving on this tomb at St. Louis Cemetery 1

Row of fencing, St. Louis Cemetery 1

Atop some of the finest stood stone statuary — people thinking or angels praying or priests waving blessings over the deceased.  Some tombs were topped with crosses reaching toward heaven.

Some toppers remain on the “roof” of the tombs.

My tour of St. Louis Cemetery No. 1 ended all too soon.  As I realized when our time was up, many stories remained to be told.  And many photos are still waiting to be taken.  But one thing was clear:  In my opinion, City of the Dead needs to remain for generations to come.  And everyone must share in its protection.  Not just to honor those who are entombed.  But also to preserve the fascinating structures themselves.

An iron cross in St. Louis Cemetery 1

Note:  There are at least three ways to see City of the Dead.

• Tour the cemetery as part of a larger tour such as the one I took:  French Quarter & Cemetery Tour, 941 Decatur Street; New OrleansLegendaryWalkingTours.com
• Or you can go to the Visitor Center beside St. Louis Cemetery 1 and take a tour only of the cemetery.  Address:  Basin at St. Louis St., New Orleans, LA 70112; 504-482-5065; http://www.neworleansonline.com/directory/location.php?locationID=1945
• Another option:  Go to Save Our Cemeteries and take that tour that begins at Our Lady of Guadalupe Church – International St. Jude Shrine, 411 N Rampart St, New Orleans, LA 70112; http://www.saveourcemeteries.org/st-louis-cemetery-no-1-tour/

Hope you’ve enjoyed my tour of St. Louis Cemetery 1.  If you’d like to see more of the places we saw in New Orleans, Louisiana, click here.  And thanks for traveling with us!

–Rusha

Dimly lit entrance to Jacques-Imo’s — where everyone stands waiting for a table!

Sometimes there’s a side benefit to foraging for local cuisine, especially if you’re a tourist in New Orleans.  And who doesn’t want Real Nawlins Food?  We sure ’nuff do, so whenever we visit, we duck out of the French Quarter to a favorite place of ours — Jacques-Imo’s on Oak Street, at the far end of the Garden District.

So, what’s the side benefit?  A slow trip via the St. Charles Streetcar past stately homes and graceful, long-armed trees that have survived hurricanes, Louisiana dampness, and Mardi Gras parades.  (Disclaimer:  These photos were taken from a seat on the trolley, so they’re not the best.  But you’ll get the picture.) And if you love Old South architecture and lovely homes, this just may be a passage through heaven.

Stately columns, wide front porch, and graceful ironwork — typical home in the Garden District. See those beads in the trees? Left over from Mardi Gras, we suppose.

Some homes seem framed by far-reaching branches.  Like this lovely home with tall, to-the-floor windows, ionic columns, and leaded glass door.

Massive ionic columns frame the doorway in this typical home in the Garden District.

Others seem skinnier (relatively speaking) but quaint.  This one with tall shutters, a sweet sitting area on the front porch and pretty landscaping offers a more casual Garden District look.  And oh, that balcony — all the better to watch the parades, my dear!

Three-story home with tall windows, comfortable front porch and second story balcony.

By now, you’re seeing a trend as more and more of the homes follow a pattern:  columns, balconies, wicker chairs on front porch.  We can’t get enough of it.

Wicker chairs flank a double door at this home with a gracious Southern entryway.

You can almost see inside some of the homes if you pass by at twilight, and the interiors are lit.  Those leaded glass doors just sparkle.

Leaded glass door and transom are aglow in this Garden District beauty.

We almost felt that we were in the French Quarter peeping through gates to see the courtyards when we passed this home.  And the clay tile roof just adds to the ambiance.

Lush greenery sets up a courtyard feel in this entryway.

It seemed that a few homes were so dignified they should be on Embassy Row in some international city.  Wouldn’t you want to stay here if you were ambassador to the U. S.?

A portico with two-story columns dignifies the entrance to this formal home in the Garden District.

The route through the Garden District parallels S. Carrollton Street, and you’ll have to let the driver know you want to get off at Oak Street, home of Jacques-Imo’s.  Believe us, he’ll know where you’re going.  It’s been a book-your-reservations-early place since Jacques Leonardi and his wife Amelia opened the restaurant in 1996 in the Riverbend/Carrollton area.  And, if you’re really lucky, Jacques himself may come cavorting through the restaurant, slapping you on the back or singing for all to hear.

Jacques-Imo’s decor defies description.  At least our description.  It’s a little bit swampy, little bit Duck Dynasty, little bit VooDoo, and a whole lotta garage sale meets Southern style.

Framed art and who-knows-what-else fill the ceiling and walls at Jacques-Imo’s.

And that’s the fun of it.  The food is the joy of it.  If we hadn’t filled up on muffalettas and gumbo at Napoleon House for lunch, we would have stuffed ourselves with any one of their signature entrees: Blackened Redfish with crab-chili hollandaise or Eggplant Pirogue with sautéed shrimp and oysters in a lemon cream sauce or Grilled Grouper with Crabmeat Imperial.  Oh, be still my heart.

Yes, that’s a critter on the wall above the bar at Jacques-Imo’s. Don’t know what. Don’t want to ask!

Instead, we opted for three appetizers and drinks (You’re in New Orleans.  You have to.) and were full as ticks when we left.  Our choices?  Numero uno for sure:  Shrimp and Alligator Cheesecake which the Times-Picayune (August 27, 2014) described beautifully. “This is essentially a quiche with biceps: rich and custardy, in a pool of mustard-tart sauce. A few bites and you’ll feel strong enough to wade into the swamp.”

But that’s not all.  We downed two more:  Fried Boudin Balls stuffed with jalapenos and pepper jack cheese in a Creole mustard sauce and Deep-fried Roast Beef Po-Boy.  You won’t leave hungry.

Touting Warm Beer, Lousy Food and Poor Service, Jacques-Imo’s has been winning over foodies since 1996.

Of course, the down side is that you have to walk back to the trolley when you can barely waddle.  But the exercise and warm Southern breezes will help you find the route back to your hotel.

Jacques’ car sitting idle on the street in front of the restaurant. It’s a beaut!

It’s just another memorable evening in New Orleans — through the Garden District to Jacques-Imo’s!

Waiting for the St. Charles Avenue Line to take us back to the French Quarter.

For more information:

Jacques-Imo’s, 8324 Oak Street, New Orleans, LA; 504-861-o886; jacques-imos.com

New Orleans Streetcar Schedules: http://www.norta.com/Maps-Schedules/Streetcar-Schedules-Maps.aspx

If you’d like to see more of where we ate and what we saw in New Orleans, click here or go to Travel Series: New Orleans at the top of this post.  Thanks for traveling with us!

–Bert and Rusha

The heartbeat of Cafe Du Monde — waitresses who serve what you came for!

As iconic as the Café Du Monde in New Orleans is for us and other tourists, it presented something new this trip: a trip to the back of the restaurant to see “how it’s done”!   No visit to NOLA is complete for us without a stop at 800 Decatur Street. It’s where the Original Café Du Monde Coffee Stand has stood since 1862, and where patient waiters and waitresses continue to please a steady stream of folks ordering cafe au lait and beignets.

Morning shift — Cafe Du Monde, New Orleans French Quarter.

Open 24 hours a day (except for Christmas Day and the occasional hurricane), Café Du Monde is a well-oiled institution dishing up white ceramic mugs of their famous coffee and chicory blend mixed half-and-half with hot milk — rich, creamy coffee au lait!

But don’t wear black at Café Du Monde — you’re gonna want to indulge in a three-stack of beignets, those square French doughnuts liberally coated in white powdered sugar.

Rich, milk-infused cafe au lait and sugary beignets at Cafe Du Monde.

The experience begins with a patient, very patient, waiter or waitress taking your order.

Listening carefully to what you want at Cafe Du Monde.

And then they kick it into gear, waiting in line for trays, mugs, and saucers of beignets.

Lining up for trays and mugs at Cafe Du Monde.

And wait some more.  Until fresh ones come from the back served up on tiny saucers.

Will the beignets ever get done?

(Note:  You can even watch ’em being made if you go outside, out back of the restaurant where a window on the world of beignet creation is open for all to observe.  See what you learn when you take a tour of the Quarter?)

Peeking in through the back window at Cafe du Monde.

Feverishly, almost sportingly, the wait staff move in.  Hey, that’s mine.  Wait a minute!  Hold up!  I’ve got that one!  

Last stop:  big urns for straight-up black coffee or cafe au lait. 

Pouring coffee at Cafe Du Monde

Calmly, as if scurrying would be beneath the dignity of a Café Du Monde server, waiters return to their tables without spilling any of their now-famous Acadian blend of coffee and chicory and sure-to-please beignets.

Order up!

It’s what you don’t want to miss in New Orleans.  Whether you’re right out front — or behind the scenes!

Signature mugs from Cafe Du Monde

Cafe Du Monde, 800 Decatur Street, New Orleans, LA; cafedumonde.com; Mail Order: 1-800-772-2927.

Check out all our posts on Travel Series: New Orleans here.

Entry tiles: Napoleon House, New Orleans French Quarter

You might as well not even think about traveling to the New Orleans French Quarter if you’re not going to eat what locals do. And so we heed our own advice: plan your next meal; then tour what’s nearby! Although we’re frequent travelers to the Big Easy (Spent honeymoon there and many other trips in our 48 years together), we’d never been to Napoleon House. Recommended to us by Oscar and Sharon Southall (longtime Denham Springs, Louisiana, residents who’ve made hundreds of trips to New Orleans) Napoleon House was everything they said it was:  a well-preserved historic place with a short but perfected menu of foods of the Quarter.  (Think gumbo, muffulettas, boudin, jambalaya, and grilled alligator sausage!)

The 200-year-old building that is Napoleon House.

Napoleon House, a New Orleans fixture for 200 years, was once the residence of Nicholas Girod who served as mayor of New Orleans from 1812- 1815.  Girod offered the place to Napoleon as a refuge during his exile, and, even though Napoleon didn’t take him up on the offer, the name Napoleon House stuck anyway.

Small tables with white tablecloths await guests in a side room of Napoleon House.

Known as a gathering place for artists and writers, Napoleon House was operated by the Impastato family from 1914 until Ralph Brennan (known for Red Fish Grill, Brennan’s New Orleans, Ralph’s on the Park and other great dining establishments) purchased it in 2015 with plans to expand and accommodate larger gatherings and parties.

Old photos and memorabilia hang on an untouched wall at Napoleon House, New Orleans French Quarter.

Rooms in Napoleon House look about the same (well, that’s our judgement) as when Girod lived here: bunched-together random hangings of art and photos.  Peeling paint walls.  Shadowy lighting. It’s intimate. And definitely interesting.

A bartender prepares New Orleans cocktails in the elegant bar at Napoleon House.

The courtyard offers light and fresh breezes as you sit among the palms and dine on white tablecloths in what we’ve deemed “the epitome of a Deep South experience.”

Food, of course, is what we came for, and no disappointment there.  Napoleon House gumbo became a favorite with lots of seafood in a cooked-just-right roux. Although twilight lighting didn’t enhance my pictures, we encourage you to check out TripAdvisor for tourist photos of creole cuisine done right.  (Note to diners:  Unless you’re really hungry, order half a muffuletta — it’s on the menu that way — ’cause this sucker’s huge!!!)

Whole muffuletta from Napoleon House. Photo courtesy of TripAdvisor.com

Not one to sit quietly and wonder, I just outright asked our waiter What’s upstairs? He replied, That’s where we have parties and gatherings.  Want me to see if the manager will take you up for a look? And that’s how we hooked a private mini-tour of the elegant, beautifully preserved second floor!

If you appreciate old buildings with preserved fireplaces, chandeliers, doorways, floors, etc. — Napoleon House is almost a museum as most of its 200-year-old interior remains intact. But it’s first and foremost a great place for eating while you soak up that authentic French Quarter ambiance. C’est si bon!

Rooftop architecture: Napoleon House, New Orleans.

For more information:

Napoleon House, 500 Chartres Street, New Orleans, LA 70130; 504-524-9752; napoleonhouse.com

For private events: 504-934-4704

Colorful storefront on Decatur Street lures you into the land of good eating: Central Grocery

If you go to New Orleans on a diet, you’ll miss the best part of the city:  the food!  And what could be more quintessential in the French Quarter than a genuine Sicilian muffuletta from Central Grocery?

Stack of muffulettas from Central Grocery ready to be wrapped and served. (image: goldbely.com)

This tiny, squeezed-in place at 923 Decatur Street opened in 1906 by Sicilian immigrant Salvatore Lupo who continued to operate it until 1946 when he passed it along to his son-in-law Salvatore Tusa.  The sandwich, (well, this is what we’ve gathered from internet sources), was invented to feed Italian and Sicilian truck drivers delivering produce to the French Market.  They needed something they could hold.  So, Salvatore piled all the ingredients — cured meats (like mortadella, salami, and ham), cheeses (mozzarella and provolone), and olive spread — into a whole sesame-covered bun.  By wrapping the muffulettas in paper, they became portable lunches, if you will.  And you, too, can get the same treatment any day at lunchtime.

With Italian flags hanging on almost every shelf, there’s no doubting you’re in an authentic place!

The store itself is definitely worth a tour whether you belly up to the bar or not.  Crowded shelves hold all you could ever imagine in a Sicilian/Italian deli.  Like cans of olive oil . . .

Shelf of olive oil, Central Grocery

and bottles of hot sauce . . .

Hot sauce all lined up at Central Grocery, New Orleans

and our favorite Creole seasoning that we always bring back home — Slap Ya Mama!

Ready to spice up gumbo, muffulettas, etouffe, you name it!

You place an order and pay the cashier.

A busy cashier rings up another muffuletta for lunch.

And notice how the folks at Central Grocery still honor the founders that made the place so famous.

Honoring the founders and claiming bragging rights for one of the best muffulettas in the country!

Then you plop down at this simple bar where hundreds before you have left their mark.

Flags on the wall, handwriting at the bar: Central Grocery!

One lady noticed that I was taking pictures, and she said, You can take a picture of me eating a muffuletta.  I don’t mind.  It’s my favorite thing here! Or if you’re visiting and love the outdoors, you can grab a muffuletta for lunch and head for the levee.

It’s not fancy sitting on a stool at the bar, but it’s one heckuva lunch: Central Grocery!

Wanna make this at home?  Then don’t leave without a jar of the homemade, in-house Italian Olive Salad that’ll turn your average ham and cheese into something mindful of Old New Orleans.

Ah, goodness in a jar!

Well, we’ve gone inside Central Grocery where Italian and Sicilian fare can’t be beaten. Here’s hoping you get a chance to chomp into one of their muffulettas that’s on every New Orleans tourist’s bucket list. Or should be.

Sign the bar at Central Grocery, if you can find room!

For more sights and scenes from the New Orleans French Quarter, click onto Travel Series: New Orleans in the top bar of this post.

Here’s hoping you’re enjoying the Deep South with us!

–Bert and Rusha

Credits and sources:

Danno. “Central Grocery,” Nola Cuisine (May 24, 2009).  Retrieved from http://www.nolacuisine.com/2009/05/24/central-grocery/

Danno. “Muffuletta Sandwich Recipe,” Nola Cuisine (July 17, 2005). Retrieved from http://www.nolacuisine.com/2005/07/17/muffuletta-sandwich-recipe/

“Muffuletta.” Wikipedia. Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muffuletta

Image of sandwiches and ordering information:  https://www.goldbely.com/central-grocery/15504-original-muffuletta-sandwich-5-pack

An iron maiden adorns the rim of a pool against a mural in the French Quarter near Cafe du Monde.

It takes maybe oh, um a minute or two at most upon leaving your hotel in New Orleans’ French Quarter to realize that ironwork is everywhere. Not just iron.  But works in iron. You know, handcrafted, aged, forged ironwork so hard to duplicate today, but so desirable, especially if you live in the Deep South.

In fact, you may have first seen the ironwork as you drove into the Quarter.  Balconies framed in ornamental iron. Fencing around commons areas like Jackson Square.  And horse head poles where steeds bearing tourists in buggies are tethered.

You may have even pointed out railings bearing moss-lined planter baskets and the like, because that one vignette reminds you of all the pictures of the Deep South you can think of.

Wrap around, ornamental ironwork on a classic two-story home in the New Orleans French Quarter.

When you walk through the quarter, though, you take a closer look.  There’s ironwork in most places.  Like around Jackson Square where sturdy ornamental poles hold street lamps in sentinel fashion.  And fencing becomes appreciated for its artiness as much as a boundary for this holding place for Jackson astride his trusty horse.

Ornamental iron light pole in Jackson Square

Move in even closer, and you’ll notice hand-forged hinges on many of the antique doors where aging looks good.  (We’d double-dog dare anyone to touch these doors — preservation means keeping it old, if you ask us.) Old ironwork, sometimes bearing multiple coats of paint, symbolize another time way back when.  (See “Old is what you come for:  French Quarter, New Orleans.”)

Perhaps the ultimate iron work stands guard around the Cornstalk Fence Hotel where (what else?) the Cornstalk Fence offers photo bugs a chance to gawk and shoot at will. This French Quarter Victorian built in 1840 has been home — at least for a night or two — to Bill and Hillary Clinton and even Elvis himself!  But it’s the fence that drew us in with its embellishments of painted well-formed stalks of corn and curlicue vines along the way.

But as you walk narrow streets, you can’t help but notice fences . . .

and rods adorned with fleur de lis.

Fleur de lis adornment, French Quarter

Right beyond the Quarter, but perhaps officially in it (I don’t really know), lies St. Louis Cemetery 1, the city’s most famous cemetery and home to thousands of bodies of residents both wealthy and poor.  (A future blog will cover more of the tombs and aging structures in this place now open only to guided tour groups.) Ironwork still stands — mostly erect and stable — around the crumbling tombs, a testament to the resourcefulness of those who wanted to be remembered in perpetuity and to the art of the iron workers in the late 1700s.

No matter where you stroll in the French Quarter, you’re sure to be amazed at the craftsmanship and Old World beauty of its ironwork.

Ironwork for sale at shop in French Quarter

Thanks for traveling through New Orleans with us.  Hope you’ll take a look at our other posts under Travel Series, New Orleans.  Or check out photos on Flickr.

All the best,

Rusha and Bert

Leave it alone — we love it! The aging exterior of Napoleon House, New Orleans French Quarter.

It’s not that we’re opposed to new.  Levees need repairing.  The Cabildo needs a facelift.  And paint makes old spaces new again.

Doors with broken slats, painted many times.

It’s just that we love old.  Timeworn, tattered, peeling paint old.  And where else could we be more at home with the oldness than in New Orleans and the heart of the French Quarter?

Preserving more than the rich heritage of jazz, the exterior of Preservation Hall shows off its ironwork and aging exterior.

Take Napoleon House, for example.  Occupied from 1812 to 1815 by Mayor Nicolas Girod and offered as a residence to Napoleon in 1821 while he was in exile (even though Napoleon never made it there), the home has stood solid since at least 1798 when Girod bought it at auction.  And with its history and untouched spaces (well, they look untouched), it’s as much a favorite on the outside at 500 Chartres Street as it is on the inside.

Rooftop structure, Napoleon House, New Orleans French Quarter

Original wall of Nicholas Girod House, now Napoleon House, on Chartres Street.

Looking through the arched doorway to the courtyard at Napoleon House

But there’s more old everywhere you turn.  From hand-made bricks settling year after year . . .

to doors that make you wonder who went in and who came out.

It’s the cute factor, too.  Shotgun houses with their quirky carved adornments and colorful facades . . .

Shotgun house, New Orleans French Quarter

to lighting shops that use peeling plaster walls as backdrops for new merchandise.

New lamps and mirrors contrast nicely with aged brick and peeling plaster walls.

Sometimes it’s preservation efforts that ensure we get to see the old.

Preserved 1788 fireplace in Madame John’s Legacy, now a Louisiana State Museum

And sometimes, it’s just happening upon a glimpse of a courtyard when you wonder who goes to and fro in a place as charming as this.

Old courtyard with painted stairs as seen from Madame John’s Legacy.

Look up to see aging, antique balconies and windows and doors.

Two windows, one door open onto a stately ironwork balcony.

Aged but colorful — windows on the French Quarter

And old window ties together brick and stucco walls for a glimpse of French Quarter charm.

Or look down dark corridors to see inside and out all at once.

Glimpse of a courtyard in New Orleans French Quarter

It’s old, all right.  And we hope NOLA can keep it that way.  ‘Cause for some of us, that’s what brings us back again and again.

Old window and downspout in the New Orleans French Quarter

Thanks for joining us as we share our sights and sounds of New Orleans.

— Bert and Rusha

About as happy and contented as any person we met in New Orleans. Badge says, “Work without love . . . is slavery.”

You might think that a city that parties into the wee hours would sleep in, barely seeing morning light.  But that’s not what we found.  In our quest for early, near-dawn French Quarter beignets at the legendary Café du Monde , we spotted ’em.  Men.  That’s right, strong, hale and hearty, Louisiana men.  Up and at ’em just barely into what we’d call first light.  Workin’ it.  And, for the most part, likin’ it.

Some were handy with buildings. Like the Cabildo, Louisiana’s State Museum, situated next door to St. Louis Cathedral on Chartres, facing Jackson Square.  Men on scaffolding putting a shine to the old façade.  Readying it, no doubt, for another century of housing artifacts and welcoming visitors.

Sprucing up the Cabildo

Others, however, did the work that needs to be done over and over in a city of oldness and antiquity and ever-changing owners. Painters, fixer-uppers, and tinkerers transforming old to new. And trimmers of branches once dripping with Mardi Gras beads.

Next door, St. Louis Cathedral was in need of dusting.  And sweeping. And you would be too, if you welcomed visitors all day, every day.

Sweeping up at St. Louis Cathedral

And then there was other religious work.  Necessary religious work.

It’s gotta be done!

There were men working with horses.  Moving up in line as one horse and buggy was chosen at the front, and then another, and so on and so on. Or maybe they were just talking about the day. Or the weather. Or the patrons.

Music makers were up early, too.  Or maybe they never went to bed.  Like this bagpiper.  Looks happy, doesn’t he? Dapper, too.

Already done at Jackson Square. Moving on.

Or the foursome on Royal Street entertaining the coffee crowd on a closed-off street.

Playing on Royal Street to a welcoming, early-morning crowd.

And the man caught up in soft-hammering a thingamajig to evoke soft, moving Calypso notes blending with Cajun and Creole and Jazz.

Moving with those Calypso sounds.

A man who knew his business — and took it seriously — served us café au lait and sugary mounds of soft doughy pillows at the Cafe du Monde.  He’d definitely done that a time or two.

Serious server at Cafe du Monde.

While a man of Jesus professed his faith and sounded the trumpet.  All part of the morning’s entertainment.  And sermon of the day.

Trumpeter at Cafe du Monde, New Orleans

At least one man was singled out for superior work.  There’s an art to everything, I guess.

Posted on store window — Shoplifter of the Month!

And, of course, there were artists.  Plain-clothed and otherwise.  It’s an artsy place. Ya gotta give it that.

Up early and painting in the cool morning hours — a street artist near Jackson Square.

French Quarter Golden Man — ready for pictures. And donations.

Bu all in all, what’s better than doing the work you love in a city you love?  Nothing we can think of. Unless it’s watching men at work.

Feeling the vibes of a morning in the Quarter.

Hope you enjoyed our early morning observations in New Orleans.  Watch for more pics of life in the Quarter in our next posts.

Lovin’ the South,

Bert and Rusha