This spray painted symbol left from the search and rescue days following Hurricane Katrina made me take a moment of silence to gather my thoughts and pay my respects to all who suffered during the disaster. Hearing the talks from Professor Steve Nelson helped me truly understand what had gone wrong with the levees and what might possibly be done for the future with better foresight and engineering.
The music was phenomenal to say the least. The Dana Abbot Band blew my mind with their outstanding musicianship and blues that reached down and grabbed your soul.
One of my favorite spots for live music in New Orleans is Frenchman’s a Street. To the first time visitor, it is easiest to describe this location as “the eastern edge of the French Quarter.” But actually this is past Esplanade, the Treme, etc.
Ten years ago this had a high proportion of locals. But over the past four years, it has seen a massive surge in popularity. Call it “gentrification” or “development” or an invasion of the “tragically hip hipsters” or whatever you like. Rents have soared, folks like the Louusiana Music Factory have relocated (from across the street from the House of Blues in the Quarter), and others have simply sprung up to serve the now-selling crowds of tourists. This is the nightlife spot for those interested in things other than the frat-boy, alcohol-drenched street like Bourbon.
One of the ways Frenchman has always differed from the more typical fare in the Quarter Nightlife scene is a tremendous concentration of music venues (Snug Harbor for straight ahead Jazz, DBA for acts like John Boutte and zlonnzi Zaorski, the Three Muses, Spotted Cat, etc.)
The Art Walk is an example of the unique mix of things here. This spot was a lot five years ago when a few street artists started selling their wares. Now you can chill on a frequently-rotating array of furniture, draw with chalk on the concrete floor, or just meander the stalls under a canopy of white lights. The Art Walk is a must-see for anyone visiting Frenchman’s Street.
We were treated again to another fantastic Levee Failure Tour by the great Dr. Steve Nelson of Tulane University today.
We began, as always, with the levee lining the Industrial Canal in the Lower 9th Ward.
Then we stopped at the other end of the Industrial Canal breech.
London Avenue Canal Breech (at Wilton Drive break).
The good folks at Levees.org are getting ready to open a Levee Museum here the summer. Very cool!
London Avenue (Pratt Drive breech)
And we ended at the Pump Station that is the centerpiece of the dewatering of the city should we have another hurricane/heavy rain event.
The first music book in New Orleans. A group of Ursuline Nuns came to New Orleans and taught girls and women how to read. At that time, 70% of women were literate, which was unheard of anywhere else around the world.
Thomas pointing on an old map where we currently were (at the New Orleans Museum Collection)
Sugar canes!!
Amazing depiction of the world map. Laditude was correct, however, longitude wasn’t figured out yet.
Dr. Anderson with Daphine.
A map of the state of Louisiana with part of the state of Mississippi and Alabama Territory ca. 1820 by Maxfeild Ludlow
#ilovemaps
Awesome paints, buildings and artifacts within the museum.
The Baratarians (aka Pirates) loved the Swamp. The American rebels used their gunpowder and trained cannoniers to take the city from the British.
