Friday, June 1, 2012

Nola 2012

Here are few pics to give you a taste and feel of the colorful city of New Orleans!

Up until the early 1800s, it was the French and Spanish who lived in the French Quarter. When the Louisiana Purchase was made,  a number of Americans from Kentucky and other Midwestern states moved to the city and settled uptown. Along the division between these two cultures, a canal was planned to be constructed. The canal was never built and the street that took its place was named in its honor.  



We stayed at the beautiful Astor Crowne Plaza...

  Napoleon Bonaparte decided to sell the territory to the United States in the Louisiana Purchase of 1803, ending France's presence in Louisiana.  However the French culture and architecture are still evident in the food and surroundings...look at the cute vintage payphone!  

St. Louis Cathedral in the middle of Jackson Square... it has the distinction of being the oldest continuously operating Catholic cathedral in the United States.

 Just a cool building....

 Some fancy graffiti on Frenchmen Street...which is also the compact musical enclave where the “locals” hang out.

Clothing is definitely "optional" in the French Quarter! 


House of Blues...

Nola Style!

Swamp critters of Honey Island, Louisiana!  Louisiana is home to over 1, 000,000 alligators!  

Only in New Orleans, which is unique in so many ways, could cemeteries be major tourist attractions. However, because the city is built on a swamp, the deceased have to be buried above ground here in elaborate stone crypts and mausoleums. Over time the cemeteries, with elaborate sculptures and other decorative artwork embellishing the tombs, have come to come to resemble small villages. They are known by the nickname of “Cities of the Dead.”  Creepy...yet, really cool!





No comments:

Post a Comment