It has been said that in history you can find all the secrets of living in the present. Such is the case as I stand outside the rusty arched entrance of Lafayette Cemetery, one of 42 "cities of the dead" found throughout New Orleans. This particular cemetery was established in 1833 in what is now known as the Garden District for les Americaines (the Americans). The Garden District features some of the most elegant and expensive homes found in the city. Successful immigrants built here as part of the city of Lafayette, bringing with them their love of Italianate and Greek Revival architecture. Today, the surrounding neighborhood -- showcasing enormous lots, spacious gardens and grand courtyards -- are owned by famous actors like John Goodman, Sandra Bullock, and Nicholas Cage, musician Trevor Reznor and author Anne Rice.
As I enter the cemetery gates, I encounter black decorative ironwork and sun-bleached tombs. Crosses and statues offer a faded contrast to the grey skies above. The threat of rain forces many of us to keep our umbrellas in hand, ready to open at a moment's notice. Around me are the bodies and remains of Irish, German, French and Spanish people who lived, worked and died in the later years of the 19th Century.
If I listen carefully, I can hear their voices.
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As part of our itinerary, we are taking a tour of a cemetery that has been seen in popular movies like "Interview With the Vampire" and "Double Jeopardy." So much of this city is based on historical events, that we thought it would be interesting to learn about it from a place where they bury their dead above ground since the high water table makes it impossible to keep caskets (and their occupants) from floating to the surface.
Our tour guide has been talking about the early division between the Creoles in the French Quarter and the new Protestant settlers. As he leads us through rows of attached vaults, some stacked above each other, I discover New Orleans and its citizens have always found a way to bring life to its turbulent past -- including its mysterious voodoo and piracy, its bawdy, tenacious traditions, its artistry of jazz, its diverse cultures and ornate French Quarter decadence.
These voices from the past tell tales of new world explorers from France and Spain, hardships of sickness, hurricanes and a flooding river, and the dueling influence of Roman Catholic and Christian religions. Born out of these influences was the birth of jazz, Creole cuisine, and tremendous commerce brought about by sugar and cotton plantations located near the Mississippi River.
To the sounds of approval, our waiter sets the plate of bacon wrapped jumbo shrimp and grits on the table. With my fork, I scoop a small helping of the shrimp and ground yellow grits and put it into my mouth, savoring its unique combination of smokey pecan and red-eye barbecued flavors.
I look up at the others sitting at my table, and see them enjoying their own selection of gumbo ya ya, chicken pontalba, Creole catfish and gulf shrimp with Barbecue sauce.
We are at Mr. B's Bistro, located in the heart of the French Quarter at the intersection of Royal Street and Iberville. This corner is a New Orleans' landmark and celebrated food corner. The downtown area is flooded with people returning from a Saints football game, and they are jubilant following a 42-17 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The throngs of people stop traffic as they crowd the sidewalks, fill the restaurants and find the nearest barstool in their favorite tavern.
Our hotel staff recommended that we get to Mr. B's early, so we are finishing our appetizer of oysters as the first of the revelers spin their way through the building's revolving doors. The restaurant's host greets the incoming throng and moves them to candle-lit tables draped with white cotton where its front staff of servers, bussers and bartenders eagerly await.
Many of the incoming are repeat customers, eager to enjoy their upcoming meal. For us, however, it is our first experience with New Orleans' love affair with food.
When the first settlers arrived from France, they encountered a Louisiana landscape where the water, the marshes and the woods were teeming with wild game and seafood. This abundance -- in combination with influences from local Indians and West African / French cooking -- created what is known as Creole cuisine. The Gulf of Mexico and the surrounding waterways provide much of the "meat" for shrimp creole, gumbo, crawfish bisque and e'touffe'e.
Many people shopped for meals at the local marketplace. Like many river towns, New Orleans' market formed near the Mississippi River. It was crammed with people buying and selling food from around the world. For sale were alligators, frog legs, Louisiana sausage, and an assortment of tropical fruits like lemons, strawberries, bananas and oranges. In the early days, voices could be heard of women and salesmen bartering the prices or quality of goods, and vendors hollering out their specials. Much of their conversations were carried on in French, English, Italian, Spanish and German. Added to these were the sounds of chickens, parrots and other caged birds, monkeys for sale and perhaps a brass band playing in the background.
Today, tourists who walk on Decatur Street near the Mississippi River, enjoy a market experience that includes clothing and record stores, as well as outdoor cafes selling Po'Boys, muffalettas and sugary beignets. Those shopping in the marketplace can take the Canal Street trolley past the warehouse district which lies along the river. These nearby buildings used to house much of the commerce and shipping that made New Orleans a destination for food, drink and culture.
New Orleans love affair with food continues through the contribution of well known chefs like Paul Prudhomme, Alex Patout, John Folse and Emerile Lagasse. Whether at a well-known restaurant like Mr. B's Bistro or a local favorite like Something Cafe with its excellent jambalya, eating in New Orleans is unlike anywhere else in the United States.
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Frenchmen Street borders the French Quarter to the west and is a short section in the Faubourg Marigny neighborhood. This area was once the plantation of a wealthy Creole born man who influenced the city of New Orleans with his "soie de vivre" -- or a keen sense of enjoyment. Through the years the Faubourg Marigny neighborhood has developed into a block of thriving New Orleans' music, culture and food. It is a diverse neighborhood with a personality that is unique to this city.
A poster taped to the window of a bar to my left advertises bands that will be playing throughout the holiday week. A quick glance shows names that are well-known in this part of New Orleans, but not to me: Meschiya Lake and the Little Big Horns, the New Orleans Cottonmouth Kings, New Orleans Moonshiners and Washboard Chaz Blues Trio. I step around a tuba (lying on the sidewalk) with the name "DisFUNKtional Bone" written on the instrument's round bell, announcing another popular bar band.
All around us, the blast of jazz, blues and rock music screams from nearby open doors, inviting us into their dark, sweaty and crowded confines.
We cross the street to another open door where a blue haze shimmers and a persistent drum beat rattles the windows. As we walk through the entrance, a band ensemble kicks in to the sounds of "St. James Infirmary Blues," featuring Ecrib Muller on the trumpet. The full sound of guitars, drums, keyboards and bass propel us through the thickening crowd to the back of this small, but popular building. Our temporary destination is the bar where I order a round of Abita Amber beer for me and the boys and a rum and coke for Liz.
For the next couple hours, jazz is alive and well in N'awlins. And we are at the center of it.
When people think of New Orleans, they think of jazz. This unique sound comes from the city's exotic culture dating back to the early 1800's when slaves brought their music and dance from West Africa.
It was later, in a district near the French Quarter called Storyville that black musicians found work as musicians. It was here -- in the bordellos and nightclubs -- that people like Jelly Roll Morton, Louis Armstrong and Sidney Bechet crafted their unique sound. As their music evolved, its popularity grew beyond the boarders of New Orleans and even Louisiana. Over time, their bands migrated north by riverboats to Chicago and St. Louis.
Other styles of music found in New Orleans included the early Cuban music known as habanera, an Afro-Carribean rhythm popularized by songs like "New Orleans' Blues." Dixieland music could also be found in early music dating back to 1859, but it was not popular in the usual sense, because the term referred to any area of the South where slaves had not yet received emancipation. A citizen of New Orleans once said, "You must understand that there was always a bad feeling between the northern part of the country and the southern part. After the Civil War, they still battle against each other, and to those boys (the North) everything was Dixie and Dixieland as far as they were concerned. But to tell the facts, as far as we blacks were concerned, it was New Orleans music -- New Orleans, not Dixieland Jazz."
Meanwhile, new music continued to evolve in New Orleans through the contributions of Fats Domino with his rhythm and blues. Dr. John and James Booker both were popular during the 1950's, and in recent decades we've enjoyed such popular artists like the Neville Brothers and the Meters. Today, Wynton Marsalis and Harry Connick, Jr. carry on the city's rich musical tradition.
It's early morning, before the crowds return for another day of partying. Standing outside the Hotel Mazarin, I can see a trail of what looks like soap running into the gutters of the street. Apparently the city sends out a team to clean the garbage and power wash the streets nightly. Despite the city's best efforts, however, the smell of something wet -- booze, sweat, vomit or rain from the night before? -- hits my nose as I walk down Bienville Street toward the river and Jackson Square.
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Our walk down Bourbon Street -- less than eight hours before -- is best defined as a visit to an insane asylum which has let its inmates loose. The open container law in the French Quarter allows drinking alcoholic beverages in the street, and we -- like the rest of the inmates -- take full advantage of it. Large plastic cups litter the street, joining the drunk passed out on the curb holding a piece of paper advertising Huge Ass Beers.
We quickly pass through upper Bourbon Street, a noisy eight-block section of blue, red, yellow and purple neon colors with people surging up one side and down the other. In the sparse light coming from one doorway, I hear a young man shout, "No cover charge, mister. Eight dollars for drinks!" but I continue walking. Another window has a curtain that is parted showing dancing girls clad in G-strings and high heeled shoes. I keep telling myself that it's best not to make eye contact -- but I can't help myself. Standing before me is a young girl -- no more than 16 years old -- leaning against a door papered with a variety of naked women. A hidden strobe light flashes inside the building, casting her in its unnatural light. I turn my head and continue down Bourbon Street.
Dodging an incoming throng of Oklahoma football fans in town for the Sugar Bowl, I feel like the quarterback for the Auburn Tigers faking a step to the left, then darting quickly to the right. The four of us continue past a road barrier that has closed off the next couple of blocks. We pass bars with names like Pat O'Brien's, Jean Laffite's Blacksmith Shop, the Famous Door, Spirits on Bourbon, Razzo and the Cat's Meow.
Hours later, on the way back to our hotel, we pass more strip clubs, Marie Laveau's House of Voodoo, the Old Absinthe House and finally the Royal Sonesta Hotel. The sound of loud bands and the vibration of a thousand revelers vanishes as we enter the safety of our hotel lobby for a much needed night of rest.
In addition to the bars, restaurants, souvenir shops and strip clubs that line the street, Bourbon Street's history also provides a look into New Orleans' rich past. For that matter, the architecture throughout the French Quarter features over 200 years of rich characters, chaos and intrigue.
Walk down any street and you will find aging buildings with shops on the first floor and apartments or homes above. Outside doors are tall and surmounted by arched and barred transoms. Above them one can image prostitutes and musicians leaning over hand-wrought iron railings laughing and shouting at those below. The wrought and caste iron railings are everywhere you look, some with the most intricate designs to be found anywhere. The plaster and brick façade looks old and in some instances you wonder how the building remains standing.
As a horse-drawn carriage meanders past, you catch a glimpse of some of the wonderful courtyards tucked between buildings. They contain murmuring fountains and shady sitting areas. When it rains (which is often), people dash to the nearest art shop or tavern to dry off and spend time drinking a beer or ice tea.
The historical buildings, food and music found in New Orleans tell a story of great beginnings, terrible losses and renewed ambition. These stories, told by voices which permeate the cobbled brick streets and historic buildings of the French Quarter, Frenchmen Street, and Lafayette Cemetery make The Big Easy one of the most fascinating cities in America today.
