Country Gees

According to growtheology, New Orleans is the birthplace of Jazz. During a holiday in New Orleans you can listen to live music on every street corner! No city in North America can compete with New Orleans when it comes to culture, food, historic architecture, joie de vivre and tourism opportunities. Here you’ll find live music year-round, great Creole and Cajun cuisine, fresh seafood, farmers markets, shopping, nightlife, and more. During the Mardi Gras season, the city becomes the center of the world. Downtown turns into a playground for adults, while parades in residential areas provide thrilling entertainment for kids.

Music in New Orleans

Music is the beating heart of New Orleans and especially during Mardi Gras, Jazz Fest and other celebrations. Walk down Frenchmen Street, the main artery of the Marigny neighborhood that borders the French Quarter, and admire the lively streets lined with cafes, music clubs, and restaurants, including Snug Harbor, The Spotted Cat, and Blue Nile.New Orleans is the birthplace of jazz , the town of Buddy Bolden, Jelly Roll Morton, Sidney Bechet, Louis Armstrong, Louis Prima, Pete Fountain, Harry Connick, Jr. and the Marsalis family. New Orleanians care deeply about family, faith, food, traditions and, perhaps most of all, about making a joyful sound.

Eating in New Orleans

New Orleans and Louisiana cuisine is built on a tradition that stretches from Paris to Port-au-Prince and from Cadiz to Congo. It’s one of the reasons people live here and why you come to visit. Every day, the city’s more than 1,000 eateries are ready to welcome their guests with great enthusiasm. They spoon the gumbo, blacken the rockfish, smoke the pork, and prepare the dishes with respect for the old flavors and a warm welcome for new trends. When you come to New Orleans, come hungry. Go to Cafe du Monde and eat the beignets or go for the traditional Po-Boys a traditional Louisiana sandwich filled with garlic roast beef or fried oyster, shrimp or catfish.

New Orleans History

The Quinapisa and Tangipahoe Indians originally lived in what is now New Orleans. In 1718, the French established the New Orleans trading post, named after the French city of Orléans. In the mid-19th century, the highest concentration of millionaires in America was found between New Orleans and Baton Rouge. Their wealth came largely from sugar cane plantations, which depended on the labor of thousands of enslaved African Americans. In the 1850s alone, Louisiana plantations produced an estimated 450 million pounds of sugar a year, generating more than $20 million a year. It wasn’t until the 19th century that the slave trade was outlawed, and slavery was banned in the United States in 1865 officially abolished.

Landmarks in New Orleans

Mardi Gras

Mardi Gras in New Orleans is a one- to three-month season when the streets come alive with music, art, and costumed revelers. As of Twelfth Night, January 6, the best season of the year has arrived: King’s cake, bead throwing, and parade begins and only increases as we head towards Mardi Gras Day. It’s a long season this year, with Mardi Gras Day on March 1, 2022. There’s so much to celebrate during Carnival season, where locals rule and visitors are more than welcome to join in. On the weekends leading up to Fat Tuesday, parades roll across the city.

Jackson Square

Known as one of New Orleans’ most recognizable landmarks, Jackson Square is a National Historic Landmark in the center of the French Quarter. The 2.5-acre space welcomes more than 2 million visitors and locals each year and hosts a number of city events and celebrations, weddings and photo sessions. Jackson Square has even served as a backdrop for a number of popular feature films and television shows. The monument takes its name from the bronze statue of Andrew Jackson that stands in the center of the square.

The Bayous

A bayou is a slow-flowing creek or swampy part of a river or lake.
These are mainly found just outside New Orleans. It is therefore a must to do a Bayou boat tour. During this trip on the Bayous you will see many animals and plants such as alligators and birds and you will learn a lot about the area from the guide.
There are Bayou tours of 90 minutes or even 3.5 hours.

French Quarter

Often referred to as the crown jewel of New Orleans, the French Quarter is one of NOLA’s most historic neighborhoods. But you will find a lot of new mixed in with the old. There’s a revamped French Market, modern boutiques and craft cocktails interspersed with beloved antique shops and old restaurants.

Garden district

The Garden District is a tight-knit, cozy, and family-friendly place in Uptown New Orleans. It is a short drive or streetcar ride from the French Quarter, Central Business District and the universities further uptown. The boundaries of the Garden District are St. Charles Avenue to the north, First Street to the east, Magazine Street to the south, and Toledano Street to the west. Characteristic gardens of hibiscuses and crepe myrtle, angel trumpets, and bougainvillea make this neighborhood a of New Orleans’ finest neighborhoods.

French market

Since 1791, the historic French Market has been an enduring symbol of pride and progress for the people of New Orleans. In more than 200 years of existence, the market has been built, destroyed and rebuilt many times. Founded as a Native American trading post that predates European colonization, the market is the oldest of its kind in the United States.

Aquarium of the Americas

Located on the Mississippi River adjacent to the French Quarter, Aquarium of the Americas has been voted one of the top five in the country in USA Today. The Aquarium transports visitors to an underwater world of the Caribbean, to the Amazon rainforest, to the waters that give New Orleans its lifeblood: the Mississippi River and the Gulf of Mexico. With more than 3,600 animals from more than 250 species, including endangered species, such as African penguins, and rare animals, such as white alligators, the Aquarium offers you an experience you will never forget.

Magazine street

Magazine Street is known as a popular shopping area for tourists. However, the street is six miles long, so it is generally advised to take a taxi.
Magazine Street, which extends six miles parallel to the Mississippi River from Canal Street to Audubon Park, runs from the Central Business District and the Warehouse Arts District through the Garden District and Uptown.

The plantations

On the Mississippi River between Baton Rouge and New Orleans, old plantation homes straddle the river, reminiscent of pre-Civil War times. There were no less than 400 sugar plantations in the region at the time, but not all of them had such a beautiful house. A few important plantation houses near New Orleans are: Nottoway Plantation and Oak Alley Plantation.

Cruise on the Mississippi

There are three major cruise lines that offer itineraries along the Mississippi River: Viking River Cruises, American Queen Voyages, and American Cruise Lines. American Cruise Lines operates nearly nine itineraries, ranging from five to 22 days, on the Lower and Upper Mississippi, while American Queen Steamboat Company operates four paddlewheelers on the entire Mississippi.