New Orleans?

[Happy Mom2]

I live about an hour from NOLA and DH is from there. I have spent a lot of time in the French Quarter. That being said, Bourbon Street is not a place I would bring a minor, nor an alcoholic. Your son will see ****s... lots of ****s. The flashing is not just reserved for Mardi Gras. New Orleans is a fascinating, exotic, wonderful city. It's rich is history, character and unfortunately crime. It has only gotten worse since Katrina. As much as I love New Orleans, DH hates it.

Here's my tips:

1. Stick to main streets. NEVER, NEVER, NEVER go down a side street to cut thru. Stick to crowded areas.

2. Do not wear jewelry. The only jewelry I wear is my plain wedding band (I have a plain one that I wear when we travel.), and small plain earrings.

3. Tell your DH and your son to carry their wallets in their front pocket. It's a lot more difficult for a pic-pocket to get your wallet out of your front pocket. If you must bring a purse, carry a small cross body.

4. Stay together. Do not let your son go anywhere without you or get separated from you.

5. If someone tries to stop and tell you a joke or riddle... just keep walking. My favorite is "I bet you $20 I can tell you where you got your shoes." Then they say some kind of riddle, and end it with "you got your shoes on your feet." If you try not to pay, their friends come out of the woodwork and harass you until you pay up. Just say, not interested, and keep walking.

Ok, now that I've got my speech over with, here's the information you actually asked for.

Cafe du Monde is an absolute must for breakfast. Beignets... yummy!!! http://www.cafedumonde.com/ You must go to the original one on Decatur.

Central Grocery is the birthplace of the muffuletta, but get there early. When they run out, they are gone for the day! http://www.centralgroceryneworleans.com/

Brennan's has a great brunch - you may need reservations

Antoine's is good - you may need reservations

ACME Oyster House is casual & has great seafood.

Mulate's has good seafood and they usually have live Cajun music in the evenings.

For souvenirs go to the French Market. You'll find the same stuff found in all the tourist shops for much cheaper. Don't be afraid to haggle. http://www.frenchmarket.org/

The National WWII Museum is great.

Whether your Catholic or not, the St. Louis Cathedral is beautiful. Take a walk around Jackson Square and enjoy the sites and sounds.

Royal Street has lots of wonderful little antique and art shops.

The Audubon Zoo is a beautiful zoo. You can take a riverboat cruise from the Riverwalk to the zoo and back.

The Aquarium of the Americas is nice also. You can usually get a package deal for the zoo and aquarium if you look around.

St Charles Streetcar is a neat way to see the city. You'll go from the quarter, through Garden District and Audubon Park. Just be sure to take the St Charles Streetcar and not the Canal Streetcar.

The Trolley Car is a fun way to get from one end of the quarter (by the Riverwalk & Aquarium) to the other end (French Market).

Mardi Gras World is fun. It's where they make the floats and if you've never seen them, they are awesome.

There are lots of tours... Voodoo tours, Ghost tours, Cemetery tours, oh! and Swamp tours. Those are fun!

If you decide to go, I hope you have an amazing trip. If you have any questions, PM me.

Oh! One last thing... bring old shoes you can throw away when you are done. New Orleans STINKS! Seriously, Bourbon Street smells like urine and beer. It's just gross. You will NOT want to pack your shoes in your suitcase, and you will want to burn them!!

 

[North of Mouse]

Dh bought me a necklace and earring set at the french market. It was handmade as was all the jewlery on display. Still have it and love the set.

DS has a drama faces/mask set on his wall that was handmade and bought at the french market. And my niece and her husband have bought many paintings and other artwork from there--beautiful things that are representive of NOLA.

I do agree about the food!

"representative of NOLA" being the key. We were just there and most, if not all the stuff is NOT made in LA Now when you're talking about the art work, some of that is unique from there, but a lot of that is in the shops, or around Jackson Square, not the open air French Market There is a big difference - some of the shops there have some VERY expensive stuff in them. The masks I saw and that are always there in the market are not even made in the US

 

[VirataMama4]

PS: for VirataMama



You can be fairly sure that your child will get over that fear once she eats those things without realizing it, which will definitely happen. Restaurants do not display shrimp and crawfish live, and you are more likely to see live crawfish at gas stations rather than restaurants. However, whatever you do, do NOT ever call them "crawdads" in Louisiana -- that will get you laughed at for sure. Those juicy delicious little crustaceans are called "crawFISH", and your kids will learn that crawfish boils are the best parties ever, though most hosts will also boil a few hot dogs for kids who are squeamish about them. My own kids were pros at peeling their own by age 3, and they love to pick a big one and race them before they go into the pots.

I was going to edit my post after I reread it for the "crawdad" part, but since I'm from the west coast and they are "crawdads" to us, I just left it. I won't be eating them, no matter what they are called. As much as I'd like her to get over her "fear", I highly doubt she'll eat them, knowing or unknowing. She is VERY picky and VERY cautious about what she eats, so if there is any question about what it has in it, she won't eat it.

My son goes to Belle Chasse Academy which is on the Navy Base in Belle Chasse. Will you be living on base? We currently live on Federal City in Algiers which was a Naval Base until September 2011.

Yes, we'll be living on base! We will be moving there around the 20th of March. DD will be in the 8th grade when we get there, but I'm guessing we won't be able to get her into the school on base, so she'll be going to whatever middle school is off base... My DS4 will hopefully go to kindy on base next year.

 

[jujube]

NotUrsula, just because you walked around the FQ at night and were ok does not make it a recommended practice. Being from the surrounding area (and especially since Katrina) I would not walk anywhere after dark, even on the River Walk. There has been problems (even in daylight) that doesn't always make news except locally and we know to watch our moves even in the safe areas and we always leave before dark. Too much precaution? Maybe, but being from there, better safe than sorry! It's a beautiful and unique area and we love it.

We go to NOLA all the time and walk and have walked around the Quarter at all times of the night and day. Just keep to the busier sections and use your head. There is crime in NOLA just as there is crime all over the place. My daughter was practically raised in the FQ. If I was a gambler, I'd take bets that 99% of the crime is drug related and in drug related areas.
OP, I would go to see the cemeteries only on a tour because some are right near a housing project where there is drug crime.
In 3 weeks my friends and I are taking my daughter and her best friend to celebrate their 18th birthdays and we're staying in the Quarter. That girl is my life and if I thought it was very dangerous, there is no way I would take her.

 

[matt98378]

Oh! One last thing... bring old shoes you can throw away when you are done. New Orleans STINKS! Seriously, Bourbon Street smells like urine and beer. It's just gross. You will NOT want to pack your shoes in your suitcase, and you will want to burn them!!

LOL - We were eating at Cafe du Monde on a Sunday morning when we were there. While we were eating, we saw some kind of city truck that was spewing some type of soapy liquid all over the street. DH and I were wondering how often they do that -- we had never seen anything like it before.

 

[Deb & Bill]

I was going to edit my post after I reread it for the "crawdad" part, but since I'm from the west coast and they are "crawdads" to us, I just left it. I won't be eating them, no matter what they are called. As much as I'd like her to get over her "fear", I highly doubt she'll eat them, knowing or unknowing. She is VERY picky and VERY cautious about what she eats, so if there is any question about what it has in it, she won't eat it. ....

I grew up south of Chicago in farm country. Our idea of a good meal was beef and potatoes. Until I moved to the South. Boiled crawfish are delicious. And fried crawfish tails are even better. Crawfish etouffee is heavenly. And Jambalaya is mouthwatering. If you told me when I was younger that I'd be popping the heads off of a boiled crawfish, peeling it, scooping out the vein and eating what was left, I would have said you were nuts.

But I do love my crawfish. Try the fried tails first because they don't have all the rest of the parts and look a little like popcorn shrimp.

Crawfish are messy, but they taste so good.

 

[North of Mouse]

I was going to edit my post after I reread it for the "crawdad" part, but since I'm from the west coast and they are "crawdads" to us, I just left it. I won't be eating them, no matter what they are called. As much as I'd like her to get over her "fear", I highly doubt she'll eat them, knowing or unknowing. She is VERY picky and VERY cautious about what she eats, so if there is any question about what it has in it, she won't eat it.

"I won't be eating them, no matter what they are called". The best food in the whole US of A is in South LA I'm from there and I'm not a betting person, but I will say that if you are there very long you won't be able to resist Our favorite pastime down there was crawfish boils and yes, you will start calling them by their correct name LOL. If you like lobster, you will love crawfish. I like them better than shrimp and they are super great fried in light seafood seasoning and dipped in cocktail sauce. I can make the etouffee and gumbos, etc. but I sure do miss them boiled or fried where I live now. Have to go home once a year for my "fix". Have to stop now, I'm drooling too much

 

[EPCOTatNight]

We go to NOLA all the time and walk and have walked around the Quarter at all times of the night and day. Just keep to the busier sections and use your head. There is crime in NOLA just as there is crime all over the place. My daughter was practically raised in the FQ. If I was a gambler, I'd take bets that 99% of the crime is drug related and in drug related areas.
OP, I would go to see the cemeteries only on a tour because some are right near a housing project where there is drug crime.
In 3 weeks my friends and I are taking my daughter and her best friend to celebrate their 18th birthdays and we're staying in the Quarter. That girl is my life and if I thought it was very dangerous, there is no way I would take her.

Guess what? the French Quarter is a "drug related place". Drug dealers and criminals of all sort patrol the French Quarter. The truth is that 99% of people will NOT be a victim of crime, BUT it is still a more dangerous place than most tourist destinations. I LIVE here right now. I'm not speaking on the past and what I think. I watch the news. I KNOW what goes on. I want everyone to be informed with the truth. And the truth is Eleven people were injured and one man was killed during separate shootings on Bourbon Street and on Canal Street in 1 day in November. There has been several shootings in the Quarter and on Canal Street during the last year. And that's just the shootings. One was just a few feet from police and he still got away. I love my city, but it has a higher murder rate than most cities in the world. That's a fact. Will the OP be murdered or robbed? I highly doubt it, but it is more likely to happen here than most places.
I will never sugarcoat anything to give someone a false sense of security. Come here, enjoy yourself, but you have to be MORE concerned with your safety than you are most other places you go. Good Luck, OP!

 

[jujube]

Guess what? the French Quarter is a "drug related place". Drug dealers and criminals of all sort patrol the French Quarter. The truth is that 99% of people will NOT be a victim of crime, BUT it is still a more dangerous place than most tourist destinations. I LIVE here right now. I'm not speaking on the past and what I think. I watch the news. I KNOW what goes on. I want everyone to be informed with the truth. And the truth is Eleven people were injured and one man was killed during separate shootings on Bourbon Street and on Canal Street in 1 day in November. There has been several shootings in the Quarter and on Canal Street during the last year. And that's just the shootings. One was just a few feet from police and he still got away. I love my city, but it has a higher murder rate than most cities in the world. That's a fact. Will the OP be murdered or robbed? I highly doubt it, but it is more likely to happen here than most places.
I will never sugarcoat anything to give someone a false sense of security. Come here, enjoy yourself, but you have to be MORE concerned with your safety than you are most other places you go. Good Luck, OP!

Where do most of the murders take place? What is the instigation of most of the murders? I stated there is crime in NOLA and that there is crime everywhere. That's why I said to use your head. Sometimes it's unavoidable no matter where you are. It's unfortunate that there are thugs everywhere including the small city where I live.

 

[EPCOTatNight]

Where do most of the murders take place? What is the instigation of most of the murders? I stated there is crime in NOLA and that there is crime everywhere. That's why I said to use your head. Sometimes it's unavoidable no matter where you are. It's unfortunate that there are thugs everywhere including the small city where I live.

You simplify it when you say that there is crime everywhere. That's true, but misleading. "Everywhere" didn't have 21 murders in the first 26 days of 2012. As far as where they happen.......Unfortunately, they are spread out. Pre-Katrina, it was easier to pinpoint, but not so much anymore. The "Thugs" are everywhere now. Most of the housing projects are gone, but the undesirables just moved to different neighborhoods. In most cities, it's easy to avoid bad areas, but it's a little different here. I don't want to keep going back and forth. I tried to help by being honest. What is dangerous to me might not be that way for everyone. I'm cool with that. Either way, I'm through.

 

[Planogirl]

Check out the crime rates in many other cities. New Orleans is hardly unique sadly enough. I do agree that it is the worst in murder rate though even though it's apparently lower than many other cities when it comes to other crimes.

When I said that we veered down side streets, I meant those only well lit and populated. I would never go down a dark, quiet street in the Quarter and frankly I've always been a little scared of Canal Street at night.

 

[North of Mouse]

I'm totally with EPCOTatNight, being from the area, I would not be out after dark. I the FQ and go back every year for my "fix" at Cafe du Monde and River Walk and River Walk food court for my sampling of dishes at Mike Andersen's Seafood, but I park right at the public parking and LEAVE by dark. My DH loves the WW2 museum, but parks in public parking there also - no street parking. Since Katrina it is much worse IMO. But, I too, love it and it's such an interesting place (FQ area, that is). And yes, Planogirl, there are other cities that are very bad, but I would not be venturing in them at night either, and some places not in daylight either. We lived N. of DC in MD for 6 yrs. and we ONLY took the METRO down to the Smithsonian and Zoo, not our cars!! It's just that I KNOW NOLA better than some cities, that I have stressed I would not be out after dark.

 

[GOOFY D]

You simplify it when you say that there is crime everywhere. That's true, but misleading. "Everywhere" didn't have 21 murders in the first 26 days of 2012. As far as where they happen.......Unfortunately, they are spread out. Pre-Katrina, it was easier to pinpoint, but not so much anymore. The "Thugs" are everywhere now. Most of the housing projects are gone, but the undesirables just moved to different neighborhoods. In most cities, it's easy to avoid bad areas, but it's a little different here. I don't want to keep going back and forth. I tried to help by being honest. What is dangerous to me might not be that way for everyone. I'm cool with that. Either way, I'm through.

You are certainly correct in that tourists need to be careful (as I would hope most are in any place they are unfamiliar with). I live here as well and your posts give an impression of fear at every corner. These murders/shootings are not random. Many are drug related with almost all being specific targets, not just random citizens walking to the Aquarium or Zoo or the sort. If you are careful and do not venture off into unpopulated shady areas at night, you are better off. I can say this with almost any city though.

Make sure to check out the Zoo and Aquarium and maybe the Insectarium (smaller though). The WWII Museum is fantasic as well. New Orleans is a unique city and you will enjoy. Personally, I would prefer to stay somewhere other than the French Quarter if I had children.

 

[prncess674]

I'm totally with EPCOTatNight, being from the area, I would not be out after dark. I the FQ and go back every year for my "fix" at Cafe du Monde and River Walk and River Walk food court for my sampling of dishes at Mike Andersen's Seafood, but I park right at the public parking and LEAVE by dark. My DH loves the WW2 museum, but parks in public parking there also - no street parking. Since Katrina it is much worse IMO. But, I too, love it and it's such an interesting place (FQ area, that is). And yes, Planogirl, there are other cities that are very bad, but I would not be venturing in them at night either, and some places not in daylight either. We lived N. of DC in MD for 6 yrs. and we ONLY took the METRO down to the Smithsonian and Zoo, not our cars!! It's just that I KNOW NOLA better than some cities, that I have stressed I would not be out after dark.

I wish you would please quit scaring people. There is no reason to hole up in a hotel once the sun goes down in either DC (my current city) and native city (New Orleans.) It is a crying shame that you have never experienced either in the evening. Both cities have a wonderful array of nightlife, entertainment and restaurants enjoyed in the evening. Sure I wouldn't go wandering at night in Anacostia (DC) or the 9th Ward (NOLA) but then I would have no reason to go to those areas.

Tourists area are relatively safe and as long as one carries a good dose of common sense then you should be fine.

 

[NotUrsula]

I was going to edit my post after I reread it for the "crawdad" part, but since I'm from the west coast and they are "crawdads" to us, I just left it. I won't be eating them, no matter what they are called. As much as I'd like her to get over her "fear", I highly doubt she'll eat them, knowing or unknowing. She is VERY picky and VERY cautious about what she eats, so if there is any question about what it has in it, she won't eat it.

Don't be so sure. The first time that someone offers her fried crawfish tails at a party and she thinks that they are little chicken nuggets, she'll find out what she's missing. I preduct that it won't take her long to go from that to eating boiled crawfish at boils, because among kids that age the only excuse for not eating them is being Jewish or allergic to shellfish, though she may get someone else to peel them for her. (My DS is the pickiest eater you will EVER meet, but the boy loves boiled crawfish. As a person who distrusts mixed-up foods, he really likes taking crustaceans straight out of the shell -- that way he knows that no one has added any strange ingredients, LOL!) As for gumbo and etouffee, if she is attending a local school in Belle Chasse, they will probably be on the lunch menu. Really, we eat crawfish prepared in a huge number of ways, most of which don't leave them recognizable as crustaceans, and many of which are soups or stews or dips; newcomers always end up eating them initially without even realizing it, because they will sit down to a bowl of soup or a plate of pasta and it just happens. I grew up in a gulf coast military community where we had newcomers from all over the country coming in all the time; we simply delighted in stealthily feeding them things that they swore they would never touch, LOL.

As to the crime: let's use the police 911 call map to take a fine-toothed look at some of what happened in Nov. of last year in the Quarter. There was ONE homicide, on Canal St. near the Quarter (on the corner of University), on Nov. 1st, and it happened at 1:43 am. There were 22 robberies, 6 of them happened during hours other than between 10 pm and 7 am. (3 during daylight hours), and 3 of them involved weapons; all three of those in the wee hours of the morning. I won't go into the assaults and disturbing the peace (mostly domestic disputes and drunks getting into brawls), but again, most of the crime OTHER than simple run-by cellphone and purse-snatchings happened in the wee hours. Can you get held up on a streetcorner in daylight hours? Yes, and I never said otherwise. However, if you use your head, stay alert, and keep your valuables put away, it isn't really likely. (Nor is it likely to happen to you if you go out to eat dinner in the lower Quarter before 8 pm. Strolling around back of the Quarter at 11 pm? That's asking for trouble.)

 

[North of Mouse]

I wish you would please quit scaring people. There is no reason to hole up in a hotel once the sun goes down in either DC (my current city) and native city (New Orleans.) It is a crying shame that you have never experienced either in the evening. Both cities have a wonderful array of nightlife, entertainment and restaurants enjoyed in the evening. Sure I wouldn't go wandering at night in Anacostia (DC) or the 9th Ward (NOLA) but then I would have no reason to go to those areas.

Tourists area are relatively safe and as long as one carries a good dose of common sense then you should be fine.

Doesn't look like I'm the only one telling it like it is I know where of I speak, I'll tell you. Before my husband's job transferred us from MD my two sons and I were on the metro from Shady Grove to Smithsonian station to meet my husband there that evening and two stations before this guy jumps onto the side of our car ( almost like Spider Man) as it was pulling into the station, then comes in as the door opens. Scares me to death, started saying wild threatening things to some there and I try to distract my younger son and older son was sitting in front of us and had one leg propped on other seat as there was plenty empties. He saw that and told my son to put his leg off the seat. I whispered under my breath for him to do it and not look. This guy kept it up and we were petrified until our stop. Never again did we go down after dark. If you want to take all the chances you want, help yourself, but don't tell me what, and how to warn others. I'll call it as I see it, and I don't care if you do live in DC. I also lived near NOLA and love the FQ, but I will not be blind to the dangers there I'll carry my common sense, you carry yours.

 

[prncess674]

Doesn't look like I'm the only one telling it like it is I know where of I speak, I'll tell you. Before my husband's job transferred us from MD my two sons and I were on the metro from Shady Grove to Smithsonian station to meet my husband there that evening and two stations before this guy jumps onto the side of our car ( almost like Spider Man) as it was pulling into the station, then comes in as the door opens. Scares me to death, .

Wow! Please guote the WaPo story that states where a man jumps a moving train, Spider Man style, and then enters the train. I have to assume that such a feat of jumping a moving DC Metro train would elicit significant local press since these train vroom thru tunnels at 40 miles an hour!

To the OP, NOM is a true small town mouse who jumps likes a fraidy cat at someone who isn't her skin color while not driving a minivian and would be scared out of her skin by anyone who isn't licking a giant sucker and singing "It's a Small World" I suggest you do your own research and learn about where you are traveling.

 

[North of Mouse]

Wow! Please guote the WaPo story that states where a man jumps a moving train, Spider Man style, and then enters the train. I have to assume that such a feat of jumping a moving DC Metro train would elicit significant local press since these train vroom thru tunnels at 40 miles an hour!

To the OP, NOM is a true small town mouse who jumps likes a fraidy cat at someone who isn't her skin color while not driving a minivian and would be scared out of her skin by anyone who isn't licking a giant sucker and singing "It's a Small World" I suggest you do your own research and learn about where you are traveling.

You know, you do not know me, but I do not lie!! The train did not zoom in , it stopped. If you really live there, you know everything does not make news, only the ones on our train saw this. Believe what you want, it matters little to me how sarcastic you are, but I will continue to warn others to dangers I have seen and heard. What's skin color have to do with this, I never mentioned anything about it - wasn't an issue. As for being a small time mouse, actually I have lived in several big cities, being transferred, but only insecure people resort to name calling to make themselves feel better. I've actually never been called a liar before, so initially I was shocked, but because I know what I am, your lying words will never hurt me.

 

[Pigeon]

We were there over the summer and stayed on the edge of the French Quarter. We had a great time and the kids loved it and would rather go back there than go to Disney!

The acquarium and insectarium are great. The zoo is sort of sad. The enclosures are too small for many animals and you see the stereotypic stress behavior. But riding the streetcar to get there was great, and there is a lovely park that backs up to the zoo. Too bad it was about 110 the day we had to hike through it!

The WW2 Museum is good. There are a few good and lower cost museums right on Jackson Square, the Cabildo and the Presbytere. We did a swamp tour, which was great, and would have liked to do other tours but ran out of time.

We walked around the Quarter during early evening and stayed off Bourbon and had no problems. Our favorite restaurant was Oliviers.

 

[EPCOTatNight]

I wish you would please quit scaring people. There is no reason to hole up in a hotel once the sun goes down in either DC (my current city) and native city (New Orleans.) It is a crying shame that you have never experienced either in the evening. Both cities have a wonderful array of nightlife, entertainment and restaurants enjoyed in the evening. Sure I wouldn't go wandering at night in Anacostia (DC) or the 9th Ward (NOLA) but then I would have no reason to go to those areas.

Tourists area are relatively safe and as long as one carries a good dose of common sense then you should be fine.

It's not about scaring people, just being honest. It's dangerous. That simple. I'm here, you're not. The 9th ward has less crime than the quarter these days. Give some facts to support your claim. If not, it's just an opinion of someone that is NOT here.