A Trip to New Orleans
Assignment: Capture the carnivalesque essence of the city – its places and faces – in a few short days.
Camera of choice: Mirrorless Olympus OM-D E-M5 Mark III with a 12-100mm zoom lens.
I arrived at the Festival Capital of the World in time to catch the Annual Gay Easter Parade, stayed through the French Quarter Fest, and left before even bigger crowds descended for the Jazz Festival.
An odd choice, perhaps, for this vegetarian to visit a city known for nothing I choose to eat: po-boys, oysters, crab, crawfish, jambalaya, and gumbo. My foodie friends would think it such a pity, but I did recharge with the beignets at the world-famous Café du Monde…
I stayed at the One11 Hotel, a recently renovated historic building and the first hotel to open in the French Quarter in half a century. Below is the relaxing twilight view from my balcony — just out of reach of the hustle and bustle below.
There is an amazing array of music spilling out everywhere … from bars and clubs to stages and street corners.
Oh yeah … and the architecture. Despite the name, the French Quarter consists mostly of Spanish architecture built after two major fires in 1788 and 1794 destroyed 90% of the original wood buildings constructed by the French.
Three great ways to get around: by trolley ($3 to ride for 24 hours), by Blue Bikes (pedal-assisted electric bicycles for 15 cents per minute that you can drop off anywhere), and by foot. It’s a very pedestrian-friendly city - except for the crumbling condition of the sidewalks.
Speaking of murder and mayhem, a nighttime ghost tour called “Bad Bitches” featured stories about the women who terrorized and scandalized the Crescent City with prostitution and beatings at brothels like this one, now a hotel where you can rest your head … along with, perhaps, an old soul.
Delightful one-of-a-kind shops are a welcome antidote to the ubiquitous retail outlets taking over cities worldwide. Beckham’s Bookshop owners have been steadfastly hanging out in their place for 55 years, offering a dusty selection of 60,000 second-hand books. Artist Massoud Dalili, educated as an architect, has been making exquisitely hand-crafted masks since 1985 for parades, tourists, and more.
A highlight for me was a visit to Frank Relle’s studio, whose work I can only do justice by sharing this link. A native of Louisiana, he’s an amazing fine-art photographer. Coincidentally, he just returned from a shoot in Hawaii.
Finally, in Woldenberg Park, along the Mississippi River, immigrant artist Franco Alessandrini sculpted a “Monument to the Immigrant” in 1995 from Carrara marble shipped from Italy. It’s a fitting reminder that this historic and colorful city – as our nation – was built by courageous men and women who (sometimes very unwillingly) left their homelands seeking freedom, opportunity, and a better life.
For more images of A Trip to New Orleans, enjoy this slide show. Click on any to enlarge.
