New Orleans

The thing I remember most (aside from the drunk guy that tried to steal my Hurricane) is taking the Creole Queen up the Mississippi to a Civil War battle field.

Oh, and wear good running shoes as you'll need them if you decide to take a short cut through an ally 

Don't go out of the busy areas, especially at night.   You can cross into a war zone just by crossing a street in the Canal St/French Quarter area.  

Lots of carjackings happening in broad daylight.  Seriously.

Don't park anywhere with a hint of being a "No Parking" zone.  You will be towed

And during Mardi Gras season they put up temporary no parking signs up.   Did I mention NOPD will tow your car? And forget about getting it out quickly.

Do not pee in public.  NOPD calls it Indecent Exposure.  Expect two days in lockup while someone tries to get  you out.  Ditto for drunk in public - its New Orleans so  you have to be really drunk to be tagged on this one. 

I grew up near New Orleans,  many in my family still live in the area.    They stopped going into the city because of the crime.

And my final piece of advice: If anyone asks you "I bet I can tell you where you got your shoes" just answer "I got them on my feet on the street". The hustlers will assume you are a local and leave  you alone.

 

Antihero (Forum Supporter) said:

John Welsh said:

Lots of previous GRM chatter about New Orleans...

https://grassrootsmotorsports.com/forum/off-topic-discussion/new-orleans/165616/page1/

Man......we still haven't got a chance to go to New Orleans

I'm two years late on a "Us no kids" long weekend to New Orleans.  Have never made it there in my travels.  Wifee is all about the architecture, food, and haunted tours.  I'm all about Poboys and the rando alcoholic frozen drink places with a million flavors.  The frozen rando may not wet my whistle but is so odd I have to try it.

In reply to Curtis73 (Forum Supporter) :

Oh yeah, we were there with the fam a couple years ago when one of the panhandlers gave me the "I bet I can guess where you got those shoes." line. 

He completely flipped-out when I replied "Yeah, your momma". 

In reply to Pete Gossett (Forum Supporter) :

Haaa.  Yeah, that'll do it.

N.O. has just gotten trashier with more street people every year.  The maintenance of roads is horrendous. 

I love N.O. but we've gone less and less due to the smells and overall sense of Mad Max about to break out.

A lot fewer real musicians around too.

I realize that I'm an amply beefy guy, so that contributes to my confidence.  I'm also a bit of a chameleon and I pick up on social cues quickly so I probably tend to appear more "local" to some... and I also realize that I lived in East L.A. for 6 years and worked in Inglewood/Compton for three, so I'm pretty desensitized to the feeling of being around criminal elements.  But I think it's up to the individual.  Wearing a fanny pack and a camera and wearing a shirt with a campy-sloganed $5 Tshirt you obviously just bought at the market?  Maybe steer clear of the places without street lamps.  Chillin in pants and a Tshirt, and you've had experience in places like that?  I don't think you'll have any issues.  They're people, and very nice people at that.  Criminals are everywhere, especially in tourist cities.  I'm convinced that some of the criminals there would give you their last nickel if you gave a better sob story than theirs.

And just for giggles.... watch The Big Easy before you go.  It's an awful movie with terrible acting and a $20 budget, but in many ways that's how NewO is.  Let's make art with what we have and be proud of it.  The whole movie is a caricature of NewO tropes and stereotypes, but somehow it captures NewO in the same way a tourism commercial would. 

It's one of the things I love about NewO - the economy sucks, the lowest-income people are humble and have found ways of making money with the talents they have, they keep getting pummeled by hurricanes because the highest elevation in the state is a bridge in Chalmette, and they just don't give a crap.  They just keep on loving.

Yupididit- Check your email.

Bumping this cause I'm leaving tomorrow and may want to refer to this thread some more.  Thanks for all the suggestions and info.

Also the garden district is nice. Just next to the French quarter. We had our wedding in the area on Magazine Street. 

I'm guessing I'm too late to post. Beignets at Cafe du Monde! I loved them. So many stories include them and they really are good. The smell (from people peeing everywhere) drove me nuts on a few trips. It hasn't been as bad the past two times I went but they kept bathrooms open 24/7 in a few places.

I'll be there from March 10-13th. My mama and stepdad lived there. Mama passed last year and he's moving in April so I have to get a trailer load of things to bring back home before he lands in Ohio. I'm not sure how much contact we will have with her being gone so.... yea. 

Hope you had a good time. Update us with what you did. It might help me with doing something fun while we're there because it's going to be a whirlwind trip and I don't really want to go back again.

Got back late last night & slept in today.  As usual, when I return from a trip there's a bunch of stuff to do before life gets back to normal.  I plan to post report tomorrow.  Had a great time.