The French Quarter

   No visit to New Orleans is complete without a trip to the French Quarter. We packed up and headed into town to do just that. Since we are camped well above the North Shore, we took the Lake Pontchartrain Causeway and drove into town. 

    As we came into town, we stopped at the Visitors center near St. Louis street. From here we went into the St. Louis Cemetery #1. Here it is said that one of New Orleans most notable (or notorious) citizens resides. None other than Marie Laveau. It is generally acknowledged that she is buried here, but it is not for certain. To appreciate her whole story, you should go to this link: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marie_Laveau . Short story is both she and her daughter were famous practitioners of vodoo in New Orleans in the late 1700’s and early 1800’s. She was very powerful and influential in her day. People to this day mark her grave with three X’s (you can see them below) and make a wish for Marie to grant them. If the wish comes to pass, then the person making the wish is supposed to return and circle the X’s on the tomb. It’s said that many X’s were circled after the Saints won the Super Bowl!!

As you can see from the shot below, burials are above ground in family crypts. Many members of the family are buried in one crypt. Tradition holds that the latest burial goes on top, and all previous burials move down into the crypt or along the walls. 

Moving on we went into the French Quarter and just walked around. Here there are many examples of old architecture and history. Far too many to chronicle here. But I will share a couple of photos.

Along Esplanade street. 

LaBranche house.

The French Market

The Statue of Andrew Jackson in Jackson Square.

Here is St. Louis Cathedral along with the Andrew Jackson Statue. Here Pope John Paul II held services during his second visit to the US. 

The ornate interior of the Cathedral, looking towards the Altar. 

This is the large pipe organ as it sits on the second floor at the back of the Cathedral.

It is said that this is the last actual steamboat that operates on the Mississippi. It runs several river cruises daily and a dinner cruise in the evening. 

    From the French Quarter we made a short drive to the Garden District. Here many 18th century homes are decked out for Christmas and surrounded by beautiful gardens (even in this colder weather). 

It was in this house, on December 6th, 1889, that Jefferson Davis (President of the Confederacy) died. He was originally buried in New Orleans, but later his widow had him removed and entombed in Richmond, VA. 

This was the home of Anne Rice. She wrote several novels set in and around this area. In fact, many of the settings in her books can be found nearby. There is a small bookstore down the street where she always releases her latest book first, and is available for autographs when she does.