New Orleans

We planned a stop near New Orleans so we could take in the city.  The RV park was about 30 minutes north so it made for an easy day trip.  I spent a lot of time talking with the ladies in the park office and they gave me quite a few pointers.  We'd been there a few times before but it's been MANY years so it was good to have a refresher.  

We arrived fairly early in the morning, had no trouble parking, and headed to Bourbon Street to take a walk.

One of the most famous attractions in the French Quarter is Cafe Du Monde so we made our way there.  Along with every other tourist there that day!

Since we're not coffee drinkers, we stayed out of the line and just did some people watching.

There were some colorful people nearby.

And lots of music and dancing.

We took it all in and decided we'd come back later when, hopefully, the crowds had calmed down.

On the other side of Jackson Square is The Cathedral-Basilica of Saint Louis, King of France, also known as St. Louis Cathedral.

This is one of the oldest Catholic cathedrals in continual use in the country.  The first church on the site was built in 1718 and was a crude wooden structure.  Construction of a larger brick and timber church began in 1725 and was completed in 1727.  Along with numerous other buildings, the church was destroyed in the Great New Orleans Fire on Good Friday, 1788.  

The cornerstone of a new church was laid in 1789 and the building was completed in 1794.  In 1793, Saint Louis Church was elevated to cathedral rank as the See of the Diocese of New Orleans.  In 1819, a central tower with a clock and bell were added.  The bell was embossed with the name "Victoire" in commemoration of the Battle of New Orleans victory in 1815.

We'd never been inside so this was our chance.  So beautiful!  

The greatest moment in the history of the St. Louis Cathedral was the visit of Pope John Paul II in September, 1987.  Pope John Paul paused for a prayer before the statue of Our Lady of Prompt Succor, patroness of New Orleans and Louisiana.  Many of the more than one thousand priests, sisters and brothers who packed the Cathedral were greeted personally by the Holy Father.  The Holy Father also addressed gatherings of youths, educators and black Catholics and celebrated an outdoor Mass for over 200,000 on the New Orleans lakefront.

stlouiscathedral.org

Our Lady of Prompt Succor

Coming out of the Cathedral we stopped to take in Jackson Square.  Early French colonial New Orleans was centered on what was then called the Place d'Armes ('weapons' square').  Following the 1815 Battle of New Orleans, the former military plaza was renamed Jackson Square for the battle's victorious General Andrew Jackson.  In the center of the square is the statue erected in 1856, one of four identical statues in the U.S. by sculptor Clark Mills.  The statue was dedicated in a grand ceremony on February 9, 1856.

The Union must and shall be preserved

Major General Andrew Jackson

More interesting things around the perimeter of the square.

Hmmm, we were working up an appetite so it was time for a meal.  

Crab Benedict

This might have been the tastiest meal I've ever had!

Back outside to walk off some of that meal.

Too bad we'd just eaten.

I just love how there are performers on almost every corner making the streets alive with music.

Oh boy, we were hot and sweaty and needed a drink.  So off to the famous Pat O'Brien's Bar for a hurricane.

 

Pat O'Brien's began operation as a legal liquor establishment in 1933.  Before that, during Prohibition, the bar was known as Mr. O'Brien's Club Tipperary; the password "storm's brewin" was required to gain entrance to the establishment.  In December, 1942 it moved to it's present location on St. Peter Street, into a historic building dating from 1791.  It is home to the original flaming fountain in the courtyard.

O'Brien is reported to have invented the hurricane cocktail in the 1940s.  The story of the drink's origin holds that, due to difficulties importing scotch during World War II, liquor salesmen forced bar owners to buy up to 50 cases of their much-more-plentiful rum in order to secure a single case of good whiskey or scotch.  The barmen at Pat O'Brien's came up with an appealing recipe to reduce the surplus of rum.  When they decided to serve it in a hurricane glass, shaped like a hurricane lamp, the hurricane was born.

Just what the doctor ordered!

By now, hoping that the crowds at Cafe Du Monde had died down, we went back.  

The kitchen was busy, but the crowds were calm.

We'd had enough food for the day so we got in the take out line.

SCORE!

There was more to see but we were tired so decided to come back another day.