What I Learned In N'awlins

We spent three nights in the Crescent City and despite what many of you might think about New Orleans, there were lessons to be learned...

(1) The air is thicker and wetter here than anywhere else I've ever been. There were times that our skin was wet just from being outside... and not from oppressive heat... just from the humidity. And when it rains, it pours. There is a threat of rain everyday, but it comes and goes. The three of us agreed that we actively hate those who can walk around in this weather in a full suit.


(2) There is more to New Orleans than Bourbon Street. Don't get me wrong, Bourbon Street is great fun in all of its novelty, but this time around the city I got to see other neighborhoods, such as the Garden District and the strip of bars and restaurants on Magazine Street. Binh and I spent some time at Community Coffee, finally getting the chance to sit down, relax, and catch up on emails and other news.

(3) Acme Oysters are worth the wait. We didn't even wait that long actually. This is one of those restaurants that all the travel guides tell you to go to, so you would figure huge tourist trap. However, there were both locals and tourists alike in there and the oysters were seriously delicious: fresh, cold, clean, and bright, Binh and I split a dozen of the raw variety. We also tried the char-grilled oysters, which I was skeptical about trying, but would now argue are a must-have. Similar to baked clams, the oysters are flash broiled in a buttery, garlicky sauce. They are topped off with the perfect cheese that grills to a perfect crunch on the top. There isn't enough bread in the world to sop up the delectable drippings. So, add a dozen of those. Finally, we split a softshell crab po'boy, perfectly solid. Sadly, Mackenzie, allergic to shellfish could not partake in this food event and could not even order what she wanted because it was cooked on the same grill as the shellfish. Trooper though she is, she hung in there and was ready for an afternoon and evening and night of fun after Acme.


(4) Streetcars are fun. There is something adventerous about riding in a rickety, wooden cable car, windows open, in and out of the downtown area. The cars don't go very fast and I probably wouldn't love them if I had to use them to commute, for us visitors, they were great.

(5) I can do karaoke in a public place... This was big... Mack and Binh convinced me to go up on stage and sing. The three of us sang "Brown Eyed Girl" at the classy "Cat's Meow" on Bourbon Street to a crowd filled with (at least by the time we got on stage) women and men in their early to mid 40s.

(6) The drinks are colorful. For all of you young people, one thing New Orleans is pretty famous for is partying. In many places they serve very fruity mixed drinks, bright in color, and usually not cheap. While not my favorite kinds of drinks, we had to try... it just seems to be part of what you do. One of the most famous drinks is called a "Hurricane". It is a big, red drink that you can get in pretty much any place and even on the streets in take-out windows.

(7) Finallly, the jazz is real, and so is the Dr. John. New Orleans really does have a musical sound of its own. NOLA really is the birthplace for jazz in America, the home of Louis Armstrong and marching jazz bands. Street musicians flood the downtown scene and most places feature live bands that play some form of classic dixieland jazz. Of course, as with Memphis and Nashville there are also a slew of places that play classic rock covers and crowd-pleasers that everyone can sing along to. And the jukeboxes in the local places are just what you would expect - down and dirty rock and roll with tons of gumbo-style , bippity boppity jazz funk soul rock, or however you want to describe it.