What a culturally significant and stimulating place! New Orleans radiates energy that I have not experienced in any other city I have visited. It is the perfect blend of historical tradition and modern trend. Look at the juxtaposition between the quaint buildings in the foreground and the high-rises in the background:

Different sections of the city have their distinct charms. The French Quarter has a traditional feel to it. It is the first thing that springs to mind when New Orleans is mentioned. After all, the French Quarter used to be the entire city of New Orleans. Despite the name being the “French” Quarter, the architecture is mostly Spanish, with continuous façades, arched passageways, and courtyards hidden from street view. The Quarter’s layout is also Spanish. In the center is the St. Louis Cathedral and Jackson Square (that’s where the Louisiana Purchase was signed!). All the shops and residential buildings are built around the square and the cathedral.

Frenchmen and Bourbon Street are more hipster, for lack of a better word. They the center of New Orleans nightlife. Frenchmen Street is the place to go for music, while Bourbon Street is the place to go for drinks. Hence the name “Bourbon.” We visited in the daytime, and they looked like regular streets. We didn’t visit at night because the area can get dangerous, but I can imagine that those same buildings that look so regular in the daytime are the hubs of hardcore partying at night. It is as if the buildings are in hibernation during the day.

The Garden District has a stately ambiance. It is the city’s rich neighborhood sector. It’s amazing how only a block or two away from these colonial-style mansions lies dilapidated houses, which goes to show the stark wealth gap in the city. The city also changes from being touristy to sketchy very quickly. On one block there are towering hotels with bright flashy lights. The next block has run-down shacks with no streetlamps.

I would have never known that these sections all together make up New Orleans. It is kind of like a jigsaw puzzle; the French Quarter is the center and all the other areas–the Garden District, Frenchmen Street, the Business District, you name it–are addendums, each area bringing its own sort of flavor to the conglomeration of puzzle pieces. New Orleans is a puzzle that tastes different with each bite. This metaphor is getting weird but I will keep it anyway.

More on New Orleans in the next post!

Katie