New Orleans

My sister, Alicia, and I are visiting New Orleans for a week.  This is without a doubt one of the friendliest places I have ever been.

The fleur de lys is prominent everwhere here.  It was quite a surprise to see it displayed so prominently.  But, the fleur de lys has a different meaning than it does back home, where it is the symbol of Quebec, and is largely associated with separatism.  Here it symbolises the revitalization of New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina.

The French Quarter, where we are staying, is the oldest part of the city, on the bank of the Mississippi River.  It is the original city, and was burned down twice.  After the second fire, the city ordered that all new buildings could not be made of wood, rather had to be stone or brick, and had to have some space between buildings, hence the structures we see today with their inner courtyards.  As one person said, that requirement  really was the first fire code.  The architecture is a mixture of French and Spanish influences.  I always thought the second storey balconies with the wrought iron railings were French.  However our guide on one of the tours we took explained that they were actually a Spanish design.  Now that I think of it, it makes sense.

One thing I learned was the difference between a gallery and a balcony.  If the structure had a second storey verandah (my word) with supporting pillars underneath from the sidewalk to the underside of the verandah, that's a gallery.  The owner of the building had to pay tax on his or her portion of the sidewalk where the gallery existed.  If the second storey verandah did not have supporting pillars underneath, that's a balcony.  And for the owner, less taxes.

Food here is delicious, and if I'm not careful, I'll undo all the work I've done trying to shed a few pounds.  Luckily, Alicia and I have been sharing meals.  Hopefully that, and all the walking we've been doing will keep my waistline in check.  Blackened shrimp, jambalaya, southern fried chicken, red beans and rice, key lime pie, banana foster ice cream cake - these are some of the dishes we've enjoyed.

Across the street and a few houses up from our hotel is the Beauregard-Keyes House.  The house was actually built in the early 1800s, and its chief claim to fame is that it was once rented by General Beauregard (a Confederate general), and was once owned by the author Frances Parkinson Keyes.  It's a fine example of a centre hall style house.  I thought I would hear a lot more about Gen. Beauregard,  and didn't.  Thst doesn't mean that I was disappointed, because I wasn't.  There are furnishings from the time when the general would have lived there, some of which belonged to his family. And our guide, Ott, did talk about the general.  But what I found more interesting was learning about an author I had read oh so many years ago.  Mrs. Keyes at first rented the house, and then bought it on the understanding that she would restore it.  She was an avid collector of fans and dolls, and you can see much of her collection on display in the house.  When we went in, we were given a copy of one of her books to keep.  A great keepsake, and a unique way to spark interest.

Unfortunately,  this narrative does not have pictures.   They will come later, when I've figured out how to work my tablet.  But for now, I'll add more stories as I can.