Sights in The South
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Bourbon St
‘That street just T-shirts and tit bars, ’ says one local, and he’s not far off. Bourbon St, like the Vegas Strip and Cancun, is where the great id of the repressed American psyche is let loose into a seething mass of karaoke, strip clubs and (it seems) every bachelorette party ever. It’s sold as New Orleans squared; ironically, it’s actually negative New Orleans, a far cry from what the city truly is. Locals don’t tend to unleash their need for sin in such concentrated bursts; there is a grace to their debauchery (usually). But Bourbon St can be fun for a sliver of an evening, when you need to remind yourself that this is indeed what happens when buttoned-down mankind…
reviewed
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Voodoo Spiritual Temple
Priestess Miriam Williams keeps her Voodoo Spiritual Temple stocked with religious paraphernalia from…damn, is that a Mexican crucifix next to a Nigerian Eshu statue? Under a Tibetan mandala? Above a Balinese Garuda? You get the idea. Miriam’s temple feels as New Age as it does voodoo, or maybe that’s just her interpretation of voodoo, or…whatever. The temple is big on the tour-group circuit and it’s often entertaining as hell to watch Miriam give her lectures on life, the universe and everything. In a back room, a snake relaxes in its vivarium and on the odd occasion, with a transfixed countenance, Miriam will take it out and lift it up, the snake appearing to move its…
reviewed
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Grant Park
A large oasis of green situated on the edge of the city center, the park is home to Zoo Atlanta, which features flamingos, elephants, kangaroos and the odd tiger. But the zoo's pride and joy are the giant pandas. They tend to have cubs that slaughter you with cuteness. Be prepared to wait to see the cubs.
For history buffs, on the south side of Grant Park is the Cyclorama building that houses the gigantic mural Battle of Atlanta, which visually recounts the history of the fight.
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Pitot House
Come out to Bayou St John to stroll along the bayou (stagnant or not, it is scenic), enjoy a po’boy from the Parkway Tavern, catch one of the many concerts played on the median that runs through the bayou and gape at the gorgeous residences. You’re only allowed to enter one: Pitot House, a restored mansion with a lovely set of gardens in the back. This French colonial plantation-style house was built in 1799 and James Pitot, who was the first mayor of the incorporated city of New Orleans, acquired it in 1810. Built without corridors, the en suite (adjoining) interior rooms allow air to circulate through the louvered shutters on the windows and upstairs back porch. The…
reviewed
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Cabildo
The former seat of government in colonial Louisiana now serves as the gateway to exploring the history of the state in general, and New Orleans in particular. It’s also a magnificent building in its own right; the elegant Cabildo marries elements of Spanish colonial architecture and French urban design better than most buildings in the city.
Exhibits range from Native American tools to wanted posters for escaped slaves to a gallery’s worth of paintings of stone-faced old New Orleanians. This was the site of the Louisiana Purchase ceremonies, the city council hall of New Orleans up until the 1850s and courtroom for Plessy v. Ferguson, the 1896 landmark US Supreme Court…
reviewed
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House of Dance & Feathers
The Lower Ninth Ward was one of the neighborhoods hit hardest by Hurricane Katrina, and for many watching coverage of the Storm, ‘Lower Ninth’ became synonymous with destruction and disaster. But residents have a very different view of the neighborhood. Roland Lewis, a Ninth Ward native and former streetcar worker and union rep, showcases the heritage of his home in his actual home, which has been converted into the awesome House of Dance & Feathers. This museum-turned-community-center brims with exhibits on Mardi Gras Indians, Social Aide and Pleasure Clubs, and the basic gestalt of a unique American neighborhood. To get here you’ll need a car and you’ll need to call…
reviewed
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Gallier House Museum
Walking down the road of New Orleans’ history, take note of the buildings along the way: physical evidence of the city’s evolution. Many of those buildings owe their existence, either directly or in terms of design, to James Gallier Sr and Jr, who added Greek-revivalist, British and American accents to the French/Spanish/Creole architectural mélange evident in so much of the Quarter. In 1857 Gallier Jr began work on this impressive town house, which incorporated all of the above plus the latest in then-contemporary amenities, such as copper interior plumbing, skylights and ceiling vents. The period furniture is lovely; not so much are the intact slave quarters out back –…
reviewed
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New Orleans Center for Creative Arts
New Orleans, like few American cities of its size, lives and dies off its arts scene. This is a city unapologetically in love with (and largely built on) the work of its musicians, painters and writers, and many of the next generation of such artists are educated at Nocca. Admission to this prestigious center, one of the best arts schools in the USA, is by audition only. If accepted, students (who are concurrently enrolled in their normal schools) specialize in fields ranging from the visual arts and creative writing to dance and cooking, instructed by artists at the top of their craft. As it is indeed a school, Nocca understandably isn’t open to visitors 24/7, but check…
reviewed
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New Orleans Jazz National Historic Park
The headquarters of the Jazz National Historic Park has educational music programs on most days of the week. Many of the park rangers are musicians and knowledgeable lecturers, and their presentations discuss musical developments, cultural changes, regional styles, myths, legends and musical techniques in relation to the broad subject of jazz. A nearby ‘Jazz Walk of Fame’ ambles by lamp posts dedicated to jazz greats. You can also pick up a self-guided audio walking tour of jazz sites in the Quarter at this office – the tour can be downloaded as MP3s or listened to on your phone. At some point (there have been several delays so far), the center is supposed to relocate to…
reviewed
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Old Us Mint
The Mint, housed in a somewhat blocky Greek-revival building, was the only one in the USA to have printed both US and Confederate currency. Its roof was badly damaged during Hurricane Katrina and the majority of displays housed here remained closed at the time of writing. There’s a small exhibition in the interior hall on the currency that has been printed here. When they’ve been reopened, the jazz exhibit is worth a visit to see dented horns, busted snare drums and homemade gut-stringed bass fiddles played by some of the Crescent City’s most cherished artists, and the Houma Arts exhibit is an impressive and often humorous collection of colorful wood carvings depicting…
reviewed
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Louisiana State Bank
Federal-style architecture, with its restrained grace and Classic Roman references, may not be representative of the New Orleans aesthetic. However, architect Benjamin Henry Latrobe’s Louisiana State Bank is a local landmark that reflects the straightforward geometry, plain surfaces and fine detail of the Federal style. Note the elegant, slightly pitched beams over the second-story windows and the narrow arched dormers. Slender wrought-iron balconies extend just far enough to allow the parting of casement shutters to peek out and wave hello. The influence of this style can be observed in many town houses in the French Quarter. Simply patterned cornices commonly found on…
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Maspero’s Exchange
Now Original Pierre Maspero’s (a fairly middling restaurant), this was once La Bourse de Maspero: a cafe-cum-slave-auctioneering house where the city’s elite sipped au lait while human chattel were traded in Exchange Alley (now Exchange Place). Note the entresol (a mezzanine floor with a low ceiling visible from the exterior through the arched windows); this cramped little room was only reached through a ceiling door from the bottom floor, and is where slaves are said to have been imprisoned while awaiting their sale. This room now serves as a dining room. In 1814, the building was the headquarters for the local Committee of Public Safety, charged with marshaling citizens…
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St Roch Cemetery & Chapel
One of New Orleans’ more interesting cemeteries, and arguably the most eccentric chapel, is dominated by a necropolis and ‘relic room’ that’s a great example of the old Catholic practice of offering fake body parts to the healing power of a sacred site. You’ll see all sorts of ceramic body parts (ankles, heads, breasts), prosthetics, leg braces, crutches and false teeth hanging from the walls. these are ex-votos, testaments to the healing power of St Roch. The chapel has been appropriated by syncretic voodoo worshippers as well, and if you take a picture inside, floating orbs may appear in your photo, which could be spirits of the dead, or manifestations of saintly…
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Sugarlands Visitor Center
This excellent visitor center features exhibits, a large bookstore, a free 20-minute film and a well-staffed information desk. During the summer, visitors are welcomed with frequent presentations by rangers, and ranger-led walks to nearby Cataract Falls leave from the patio area four times daily.
The exhibits provide an informative introduction to the incredible biodiversity of life that abounds in the park, with mounted specimens of the plants and animals you may encounter. Outside the center is a strange, cordoned-off piece of concrete called the 'First Amendment Expression Area'; it's often peopled by folks with strong opinions about park issues such as the future of…
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Louisiana State Museum
This institution operates several institutions across the state. The standouts here include the 1911 Cabildo, on the left of the cathedral, a Louisiana history museum located in the old city hall where Plessy vs Ferguson (which legalized segregation) was argued. The huge amount of exhibits inside can easily eat up half a day (don't miss the 1875 Upright Piano on the 3rd floor), the remainder of which can be spent in the Cabildo's sister building, on the right of the church, the 1813 Presbytère. Inside is an excellent Mardi Gras museum, with displays of costumes, parade floats and royal jewelry; and a poignant new Katrina & Beyond exhibit, chronicling the before and after…
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New Orleans Public Library
The New Orleans Public Library fights the good fight despite limited resources and severe damage from Hurricane Katrina. In the aftermath of the Storm, 90% of NOPL employees were laid off, leaving a staff of 19 for the entire NOPL system. At the time of writing three of 14 branches are served by temporary structures, five are closed indefinitely and six, including the main headquarters listed here, have been reopened. The library is worth visiting just for the sake of supporting its good works, although it is a lovely building in its own right. The Louisiana Room, on the 3rd floor, is a good resource of regional history, while the computer room is handy for getting online…
reviewed
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Berta’s & Mina’s Antiquities
This cluttered gallery, with paintings seemingly tumbling out onto the sidewalk, specializes in regional folk art, especially the works of the late Nilo Lanzas, whose daughter operates the shop. Lanzas began painting at 63 and produced an impressive body of work, most of it of an outsider art/religious bent, up until his death. Museums and serious collectors have snatched up many of Lanzas’ paintings already, but there are dozens of nice pieces, all very eye-catching and worthy of homes. Lanzas’ work is, in fact, very easy to like. His daughter, Mina, also paints and her works show alongside her father’s and a few other artists from the city and its surrounds.
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Louisiana Artworks
- New Orleans, USA
- Sights › Art
This 90,000-sq-ft space was established by the Arts Council of New Orleans to bring working artists and lovers of art together. By providing artists with affordable studio spaces, the project hopes to foster a continuation of the city’s growing arts scene, even as rents go up around town. The Arts Council hopes to promote the local arts by keeping the facility open to the public, thus giving visitors the opportunity to witness art being created. Tourists who appreciate art are the obvious target audience here. It’s an interesting idea, and a positive step for the city as it attempts to rebuild its tourist-based economy without going down the Mickey Mouse route.
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Mountain Farm Museum
Adjacent to the Oconaluftee Visitor Center, this excellent collection of historic buildings evokes life on a typical farmstead of the late 19th century. Together these structures paint a poignant picture of the mountain people who once eked out their sustenance from this rugged and isolated wilderness. The well-tended garden and old-strain cornfields are beautiful to behold any time of year.
The buildings include a meat house, where a mountain farm's most valuable commodity was butchered, dried and smoked. Other structures are dedicated to chickens, apples, corn, water and blacksmithing. A terrific time to visit is in mid-September for the Mountain Life Festival.
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Beauregard-Keyes House
This attractive 1826 Greek-revival house is named for its two most famous previous inhabitants. Confederate General Pierre Gustave Toutant Beauregard, a native of Louisiana, commanded the artillery battery that fired the first shots at Fort Sumter in Charleston, SC (starting the Civil War); he lived here for 18 months after the war ended. Author Francis Parkinson Keyes, who wrote 51 novels, many of which were set in New Orleans (and one, the 1962 Madame Castel’s Lodger, which was set in this house), stayed longer: from 1942 until her death in 1970. Her collection of some 200 dolls and folk costumes are also on display. Entry via tours only.
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Royal St
Walk over a little ways from Bourbon St and sober up; this is where you go to engage in the more acceptable vacation behavior of culinary and consumer indulgence rather than party-till-unconscious excess. Royal St, with its rows of high end antique shops, block after block of galleries and potted ferns hanging from cast-iron balconies, is the elegant yin to Bourbon’s Sodom-and-Gomorrah yang. Stroll past the beauty and its sense of patina-ed grace, have a chat with a local as they lounge on their porch, and get a sense of the fun with a dash of the…well…not reserve, but dignity that is the true soul of Vieux Carré
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Laurel Valley Village
Another option for wetlands exploration is to head further west of New Orleans. Positioned at the confluence of Bayous Lafourche and Terrebonne, Thibodaux ( ti -buh-dough; population 14,400) became the parish seat at a time when water travel was preeminent. It’s history that holds the interest for visitors here. Among the cane fields, Laurel Valley Village, about 2 miles east of town on Hwy 308, is one of the best-preserved assemblages of sugar plantation slave structures in the state. Overall, some 60 structures (c 1755) survive here, including the old general store and a school house.
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Lee Circle
Called Place du Tivoli until it was renamed to honor Confederate General Robert E Lee after the Civil War, Lee Circle is a tragic example of an urban junction planned horribly wrong. The presence of a nearby elevated freeway and two gas stations mars what should be a pleasant roundabout. Oh well; the Robert E Lee monument at its center, dedicated in 1884, is attractive, and still refuses to turn its back on the North. Also on Lee Circle, K&B Plaza is a modish office tower dating to 1963 with an indoor-outdoor sculpture gallery. The outdoor sculptures, featuring Isamu Noguchi’s The Mississippi, can be viewed anytime.
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Grand Isle State Park
The end of the road down bayou way is 70 miles southeast of Houma, in Grand Isle. The windswept barrier-island town took quite the beating from Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, but many businesses have reopened and the Old Fishing Bridge has been restored. In addition to seafood shacks and fishing camps, boat charters are the big business here. Watching the waves lap ashore at Grand Isle State Park, it’s easy to imagine the power of mother nature. Rent canoes ($20 per day) to explore the inland canals or just watch as the brown pelicans, the state bird, dive for fish offshore.
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Hula Mae’s Laundry
Cossimo Matassa’s J&M Music shop was the place where New Orleans musicians recorded some of the biggest R&B hits in the 1950s. It closed down years ago, but the site, now a busy Laundromat, preserves some fine musical heritage. The pebbly J&M sign is still inlaid on the front threshold; inside, one wall is dedicated to a photo-and-history exhibit. It was in this building that Fats Domino and Dave Bartholomew established the ‘New Orleans Sound.’ Countless oldies but goodies, including Lloyd Price’s ‘Lawdy Miss Clawdy, ’ were recorded right there by that box of Tide.
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