Reconnecting With The Past

by John Goodrow

Surrounding the banks of the Mississippi River are aspects of both the past and the present. Looking out into the river, the steamboats Creole Queen and Natchez take visitors from the French Quarter up the river and transport them into the distant past when the river was the highway of exploration. These steamboats use a paddle wheel to propel themselves along the river. Imagine a time in the past when similar ships steamed upstream loaded with bails of cotton and passengers of many types. You might meet a southern belle, or even a riverboat gambler. Jean-Baptiste Le Moyne de Bienville founded New Orleans in 1718. By 1860, the city had over 185 million dollars in commerce using the Mississippi River and a variety of ships from paddlewheel boats to flat-bottomed boats. The French Quarter exudes French and Spanish influences.

Walking inland from the river port, looking just ahead is an imposing figure of General Andrew Jackson on a reeling horse and surrounded by iron gated fences and palm trees with a backdrop of the three spires of Cathedral of St. Louis, King of France. The square was originally named Place d’Armes during the French period and Plaza de Armas during the Spanish period, or Weapons Square. This grassy plaza commonly known as Jackson Square (700 Decatur Street) is named for Andrew Jackson. He had a critical role in the history of the New Orleans.

France controlled Louisiana from 1718 until 1763. At the end of the French and Indian War, Spain gained control but returned Louisiana to French rule in 1800. The raising of the American flag in 1803, in this square ended colonial rule in Louisiana. In the War of 1812 only nine years later, it fell upon General Andrew Jackson to prevent the British from capturing New Orleans. With only a small group of soldiers, militiamen, Indians, and a few pirates, he was able to defeat the powerful British army.

Beyond the statue of Andrew Jackson are the trio of the Cabildo, Cathedral of St. Louis King of France, and the Presbytere. The Cabildo (700 Chartres Street) is a museum that commemorates the seat of colonial power under the Spanish. It was the center of municipal government in New Orleans until 1853. The final transfer of Louisiana to the United States occurred here. Do not miss this museum. It has many artifacts throughout the early history of Louisiana and has an exhibit on the third floor with more extensive coverage of New Orleans through the present time.

After leaving the Cabildo, enter the St. Louis Cathedral (615 Pere Antoine Alley). Towering above the surrounding buildings with its three steeples, it is the oldest active cathedral in the United States. The cathedral is the seat of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New Orleans. There have been three churches built on these grounds. The first church was built here in 1718 and designed by Adrien De Pauger during the initial period of French control.

A significant portion of the French Quarter including the cathedral was destroyed by a massive fire in 1788. The Cathedral of St. Louis completed its reconstruction in 1794, during a period of Spanish colonial possession. During the construction of the new church, Louisiana and Florida were included as a diocese by Pope Pius VI with the new church as a cathedral with Luis Pefialver y Cardenas of Havana as its first bishop.

After Louisiana became part of the United States, the population of New Orleans grew rapidly. In the period of fewer than fifty years, the St. Louis Cathedral needed additional room leading to the construction of the third church in 1850. The enlargement required many improvements to the structural walls of the church. The reconstruction reused the bell tower, but nothing else. The church has many notable residents buried under its floors, including the designer Adrien De Pauger as well as members of the French clergy of colonial Louisiana.

After all of your adventures reliving the past, enjoy some refreshments and entertainment. The French Quarter has plenty of places that will satisfy these requirements and is the oldest part of New Orleans. It was founded in 1718 and was known as Vieux Carré. The rest of the city developed around this area and received its current name as English-speaking residents arrived in New Orleans.

For a quick bite to eat and some light jazz head over to Music Legends Park (311 Bourbon Street). Their menu features everything ranging from beignets to sandwiches while jazz musicians play for your entertainment. You will have statues of music legends such as Irma Thomas, Fats Domino and Allen Toussaint welcoming you to the park.

As the afternoon gives way to early evening, head down to Pat O’Brien’s (718 St. Peter Street). This bar has been in business since before 1933 when it transitioned from being an illegal speakeasy to a legal drinking establishment.

The building that they use began its life as the French Theater Company in 1791. They introduced their signature hurricane drink during World War II. At the time, O’Brien’s had too much rum on hand but not enough whiskey, so they came up with an unusually bright red drink made of rum, fruit juice, and syrup. The drink gets its name from the shape of its glass container. The drink is usually served in a plastic glass, although you can get it in a hurricane glass for a nominal fee. The plastic glass makes it easy to carry your drink during your exploration of the French Quarter. It is legal in New Orleans to drink in public as long as you are not using a glass container. Their menu also offers a variety of other alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages. The staff will serve you light food items ranging from sandwiches to soups and gumbo.

If You Go:

Taste of New Orleans Private Walking and Food Tour

The climate in the summer tends to be very humid, and an umbrella will help for both pop up showers and protection from the sun.

For history and general knowledge:
Visitors Center
Cabildo
Cathedral of St. Louis, King of France
Jackson Square

For dining and entertainment:
New Orleans Musical Legends Park
Pat O’Brien’s Bar

About the author:
John Goodrow is a seasoned traveler, having visited every continent except Antarctica during his career in the United States Navy. Currently living and working in Mississippi, he enjoys traveling to historic and lesser-known areas throughout the world. He shares his knowledge of early American and Military history through travel writing.

All photos by John Goodrow

New Orleans, Louisiana

by Troy Herrick

The lifeblood of New Orleans is Mardi Gras, jazz, jambalaya and gumbo but “The City That Care Forgot” also has a spiritual side to it – voodoo. This religion was first brought to the Big Easy between 1806 and 1810 when slave ships were re-routed from Santo Domingo (present day Dominican Republic) to New Orleans during the Servile Wars. To their surprise the new slaves found that New Orleans had only one legally sanctioned religion which was Roman Catholicism. Furthermore the Code Noir, introduced by the French Government in 1724, required that all slaves be baptised Catholics. How did the newcomers solve this dilemma? They adapted their own religion to that of the Catholic Church by matching voodoo spirits (loas) to the various saints. Technically this meant that only Catholics could practice voodoo in New Orleans.

Our curiosity piqued as we entered the New Orleans Voodoo Museum to purchase tickets for the voodoo walking tour of the French Quarter. Our senses were challenged by the smell of incense and the sound of eerie music saturating the air as we visited the supernatural displays. The bizarre voodoo paraphernalia included several altars topped with offerings of paper money, coins, tobacco products and alcohol and a large orange and white snake used in some rituals.

Statues of saints seemed more out of place than the skeletons because this was no church. Then there were the voodoo dolls. Voodoo practitioners believe that voodoo dolls don’t just represent someone but actually become that person when a personal item such as a lock of hair or fingernails is added.

A sketch of a zombie conjured up an image of a hoard of zombies whose decaying corpses creep around in the misty dark of night seeking to devour the brains of the living. “Hold on there before your imagination gets carried away” said our tour guide NU’awlons Natescott. “There were no zombies in New Orleans. If you want to find a zombie in New Orleans you should go to the nearest bar and buy the drink.” He said that 70% of the things you hear about voodoo is actually hoodoo (a con game). What people think they know about zombies is the result of what hoodoo has portrayed them. He also indicated that a real zombie (those found in Haiti) might eat your brain but only if it was cooked.

Our education continued when our tour guide reported that New Orleans voodoo is synonymous with voodoo queen Marie Laveau (1793-1882), whom he referred to as a free woman of color. NU’awlons pointed up at her picture on the wall as we left the museum to begin the walking tour. She was at the height of her power/influence in the 1850s. Although she was not psychic she had built up that reputation by collecting gossip when she visited various houses in the French Quarter to braid women’s hair.

At the age of thirteen, Marie had a daughter named Marie Eloise who looked so much like her as she grew older that people could not tell them apart. This created the impression that the elder Marie could be in two places at the same time. Marie Eloise would eventually succeed her mother as the Voodoo Queen of New Orleans.

Our first stop was the St. Louis Cathedral but not to visit the interior. Instead we walked outside to the rear of the building where we found a small garden fenced off from the public. Peering through the wrought iron fence we saw a statue of Christ with raised arms. Marie Laveau was a member of this church congregation and she was known to perform voodoo rituals in this garden.

We then crossed the French Quarter to the former site of Marie Laveau’s home. Her house was torn down in 1903 and replaced by the present structure. Marie was known to have performed voodoo rituals in the back yard but we were not able to view this area.

We crossed Basin Street and entered the neighborhood of Treme to visit Congo Square in Louis Armstrong Park. Creole slave owners strictly enforced the practice of Catholicism but the slaves circumvented this by gathering at Congo Square each Sunday (their one day off during the week under the Code Noire) to sing and gyrate to the rhythm of drum beats. They also participated in voodoo rituals.

Inside the park we found ourselves surrounded by shady and gnarled oak trees. Coincidentally we could hear drum beats in the background but were never able to locate the source of the drumming. Looking down we found ourselves standing on a number of spiral-like patterns constructed from inlaid bricks. With a little imagination you could almost see a group of people dancing on top of these designs.

After you find your inner beat, leave Congo Square and visit the nearby Our Lady of Guadalupe Chapel. This church boasts a number of local voodoo practitioners among its congregation but you likely will not be able to identify them because they look just like anybody else.

Just inside the front door of the chapel on your right you find a statue of a Roman soldier holding a crucifix. This statue was originally found inside a crate labelled with the word “Expedite.” Since no one could identify who this statue represented he became known as St. Expedite. The Catholic Church has never canonized any saint bearing the name of Expedite so this statue had no one praying to him for his intercession. Slaves at that time adopted him and he has been worshipped by voodoo practitioners and local Catholics ever since.

Exit the Chapel and proceed to St. Louis Cemetery #1. The living is admitted free but the families of the dead must pay to maintain the upkeep of all the above-ground tombs that surround you. The French had a custom of interring people above ground because they did not want to have buried coffins rising to the surface and falling open because of the high water table and flooding for which the Crescent City is famous. With a little imagination you have the making of a good horror movie where the zombies rise from the open coffins in search of the living.

Your mission, if you choose to proceed inside the city of the dead, is to find the tomb of Marie Laveau. Look for a dilapidated red/brown brick structure covered with many sets of three handwritten Xs on its surface. You many also find coin offerings left by visitors in the hope that Marie Laveau will grant their wishes.

People often confuse Marie Eloise’s tomb with that of her more famous mother. In fact, for this reason, Marie Eloise’s tomb is the second most frequently visited grave in the U.S. behind that of Elvis. If you are able to locate this structure you will find that it is in better condition than that of the elder Marie.

Our tour ended at this site. After wandering around in search of the exit, we took the opportunity to find a Zombie but since we had stopped at Pat O’Brien’s we had to settle for a Hurricane instead, something else that New Orleans is famous for.

Historic Voodoo and Cemetery Tour in New Orleans

If You Go:

♦ The New Orleans Voodoo Museum is located at 724 Dumaine St. You can purchase your Voodoo Tour ticket here. It was $19 at the time of my visit and includes admission to the museum.
♦ St. Louis Cathedral is located at Jackson Square.
♦ The former site of Marie Laveau’s home is 1020-22 St. Ann Street
♦ Congo Square is situated in Louis Armstrong Park which is located at 835 N. Rampart St. Admission is free.
♦Our Lady of Guadalupe Chapel is located at 411 N. Rampart St.
♦ St. Louis Cemetery #1 is located at Basin and Conti Streets. To find Marie Laveau’s tomb enter from Basin Street and proceed to the side wall on your far left and then turn right. You pass three tombs on your right before you see that of Marie Laveau. Do not visit the cemetery after dark as people have been attacked here (by the living).
♦ If you wander around a little in the area between the elder Marie’s tomb and the Basin Street entrance you might find a small aluminum disc on the ground with the #3 on it. You will know that Marie Eloise’s tomb is nearby when you find it this disc. Look for the sets of triple Xs on the whitewashed tomb.
♦ Pat O’Brien’s is located at 718 St. Peter St.
♦ If you wish to purchase that perfect voodoo souvenir, there are number of voodoo shops located around the French Quarter. Just take a leisurely stroll and you are sure to pass by one. Just look for names like Marie Laveau’s House of Voodoo and Reverend Zombie’s House of Voodoo. Marie Laveau’s House of Voodoo is located at 739 Bourbon St. Reverend Zombie’s House of Voodoo is located at 723 St. Peter St.

About the author:
Troy Herrick, a freelance travel writer, has traveled extensively in North America, the Caribbean, Europe and parts of South America. His articles have appeared in Live Life Travel, International Living, Offbeat Travel and Travel Thru History Magazines.

All photos by Diane Gagnon, a freelance photographer who has traveled extensively in North America, the Caribbean, Europe and parts of South America. Her photographs have accompanied Troy Herrick’s articles in Live Life Travel, Offbeat Travel and Travel Thru History Magazines:

New Orleans Voodoo Museum
St. Expedite
Portrait of Marie Laveau
Yard behind the St. Louis Cathedral
Congo Square
Our Lady of Guadalupe Chapel
Tour guide by Marie Laveau’s tomb

by Larry Zaletel

New Orleans is known as the ‘Crescent City’ to the residents and the ‘Big Easy’ to tourists. ‘Crescent City’ relates to the course of the Lower Mississippi River as it bends around and travels through the city.

The origins of the term ‘Big Easy; is not clear, some say that the term was created by the media. In the 1970s a local columnist Betty Gillaud used the term to contrast life in the city to that of New York City. It was also a reference by musicians in the early 20th century because of the relative ease of finding work there and the easy-going, laid back attitude to life that jazz musicians and local residents indulged in.

The name Big Easy also may have originated in the Prohibition era, when the city was considered one big speak-easy due to the inability of the federal government to control alcohol sales in open violation of the 18th Amendment. Or it could refer to New Orleans’ status as a major city, at one time “one of the cheapest places in America to live” where everything was slower, simpler and easy-going. Who knows?

New Orleans is known for many other things: seafood, e.g. crawfish, shrimp, crab and also for its music and musicians. The New Orleans area has the most home grown musicians in the country. They run the gamut from rock and roll, blues, jazz and even classical, from Fats Domino and Professor Longhair to Louie Prima and Louie Armstrong. However if New Orleans is known for anything it is a slogan and an attitude of, “Laissez les bons temps rouler, let the good times roll.” And that’s the truth! Ask any native New Orleanian.

This was not my first visit to New Orleans. Returning back after being away for a few years I was able to see the changes brought about by Hurricane Katrina. Something surprising I learned is that now everything is classified either pre- or post Hurricane Katrina. For example when people are having a discussion and talk about everyday life, or something that was rebuilt, or something that doesn’t exist anymore or has been replaced, they put it into the context of whether it was before or after the effects of the storm. Hurricane Katrina changed that for all time.

My wife and I visited the city of Slidell and our old neighborhood, New Orleans East and Downtown New Orleans. We had resided in Slidell, Louisiana located about 20 miles northeast of New Orleans from 1978-1984. We lived through two floods and two hurricanes, luckily none of which caused us any major problems, because we had boarded up the windows and battened down everything. The second hurricane was more severe than the first one and we did not get to sleep as the sound of the winds emanating from the storm kept us awake. They were howling at over 110 mph and sounded like a locomotive as the hurricane passed over us.

Katrina was its most devastating along Lake Pontchartrain and the North Shore. This area was the hardest hit and as we drove along Highway 11 we saw the remains of the homes and businesses that were ravaged by the severity of the storm. The many homes that once stood along the lake are gone and there is vacant land everywhere. Some of our favorite restaurants and seafood shacks are gone. We passed driveways and concrete aprons that are still visible, also the docks and the pilings extending into Lake Pontchartrain that are standing like wooden sentinels of a bygone era. However the docks emanate from nothing as the homes that they were once attached to are gone, wiped out by the storm surge. I am struck however by one lot where a new concrete driveway and concrete pilings are visible. Apparently someone is planning to build. For sale signs however far outnumber any new construction in the area.

The Slidell Memorial Hospital on Gause Blvd expanded in January 2011 with the opening of the Regional Cancer Center on Robert Blvd. Slidell has prospered since our last visit. There are many new commercial and business establishments. Some old ones are gone and new ones have taken their place.

We visited old town the historic downtown area where we learned how much Katrina affected Slidell. The old part of the city was under water. However Slidell is now bustling and revitalized just as it was when we lived there. Interstate 10 has two new interchanges and new subdivisions were built more expensive than before especially south of Interstate 10 near Lake Pontchartrain. In the 1970s it was the fastest growing city in the United States until the recession hit during the early 1980s when tourism faded and the city’s growth declined.

We drove through our old neighborhood which seems the less for wear. Talking with old friends and some of our old neighbors we learn that our old subdivision along Interstate 12 was spared the wrath of Katrina. There are new stores, gas stations and Brownswitch road one of the main routes now has a turnabout at Robert Road reflecting the growth in traffic patterns. Ah, progress.

Irish Bayou can be reached by crossing the old twin span bridge over Lake Pontchartrain that was rebuilt and now has three lanes each way. During Hurricane Katrina the old twin spans suffered extensive damage due to the rising storm surge that pulled or shifted bridge segments off their piers. The new approach to the westbound lanes entrance from Slidell was shifted south to accommodate the new bridge. We veered off Interstate 10 to visit Irish Bayou on our way to Metairie. The old dirt and grass levee on Highway 11 has been changed now to one made of concrete. Irish Bayou seems less inhabited than I remember and there appears to be fewer homes although most home in the bayou were built using pilings or raised platforms. There is also a landmark of an old fisherman’s castle which was built in 1981 by Simon Villemarette. He originally planned for it to be a secondary tourist attraction for the 1984 World fair in New Orleans.

New Orleans East & Metairie was hard hit by water. We drove down Read Blvd through the area where once stood the Lake Forest Mall in New Orleans East. The huge complex is gone, and a building on the Interstate 10 frontage road where I where I was employed for a time is now four walls and gutted. You can see through it, some of the windows are broken. I also remember a restaurant down the street, a Denny’s I believe. It is now gone. Katrina did it all.

After the severity of Hurricane Katrina conditions have changed, new levees have been added and others strengthened. However more work still needs to be completed and that it will take many years. One thing I noticed were advertisements on trucks and billboards for various companies whose business is that of raising and placing homes on stilts/pilings.

Downtown, New Orleans is famous for the French Quarter, Canal Street, St Louis Cathedral, and Café Du Monde with their famous beignets and Café Au Lait. The coffee and beignets are still as good as I remember.

Play tourist and enjoy the ambiance of what New Orleans has to offer. There is a different feeling about visiting downtown New Orleans as a tourist compared to living there and visiting. Stop at historic Jackson Square and enjoy. It was originally known in the 18th century as “Place d’Armes,” and later renamed in honor of the hero of the Battle of New Orleans, Andrew Jackson. It is a timeless attraction in the heart of the French Quarter of New Orleans. There is a different view, tourists are everywhere, we walk through the cobbled streets and stop and listen to a jam session featuring a group of Jazz musicians performing, “When the Saints Go Marching In.” Canal Street is still vibrant and St Louis Cathedral is peaceful. We visit Harrah’s Casino to try our luck. We pass by a familiar face, the Superdome still intact, looking like a gigantic flying saucer. It is good to see some of our old memories.

The night before we leave we visit the Silver Slipper Casino in Bay St Louis. A new casino was built after we moved. Now you can gamble in a variety of ways to your hearts content and enjoy all you can eat crab legs on Friday night, the best I have ever eaten anywhere. The best part was that we came out ahead on the slots.

Taste of New Orleans Private Walking and Food Tour

If You Go:

We stayed at the Homewood Suites, 175 Holiday Blvd, Slidell, LA 70460, 985-726-7291 which is new and has friendly and helpful personnel.

One of our favorite restaurants that we used to patronize when we lived in Slidell and is still serving good food after all these years is Young’s Steakhouse, 850 Robert Rd, Slidell, LA 70458, (985) 643-9331. Young’s has been welcoming guest since 1969 to a warm friendly atmosphere. They are known for their thick, juicy steaks and a variety of seafood dishes, mouth watering appetizers and desserts.

♦ Café du Monde in the French Quarter 800 Decatur Street, New Orleans 70116, (504) 525-4544
♦ Speckled T’s, 158 S Military Rd, Slidell, LA 70461, (985) 646-1728, very good seafood.
♦ The Big Easy Diner, 1777 Gause Blvd E, Slidell, LA 70461, (985) 639-8006, a good place for breakfast
♦ Steve’s Marina Restaurant, 213 E Beach Blvd, Long Beach, MS 39560, (228) 265-7730, rebuilt after Katrina, very good seafood
♦ Silver Slipper Casino in Bay St Louis, Mississippi 5000 South Beach Blvd

There are many additional fine restaurants in the New Orleans area and information is available on the Internet.

Private Voodoo Temples and Cemetery Experience of New Orleans

About the author:
Larry Zaletel is a freelance travel writer, an avid and dedicated traveler, and a recurring visitor to Europe, the Caribbean, and the Far East. He writes about the various people that he has met and places that he has visited during his travels.

All photos by Larry Zaletel:
St. Louis Cathedral
Café Du Monde
Twin span bridge of Lake Pontchartrain
Levee in Irish Bayou
Destruction on the North Shore of Slidell
Superdome
Famous Canal Street