I visited New Orleans for a family wedding last week. Hadn't been there before; I almost did nine years ago for a conference, but that was ruined by Hurricane Katrina, and I never came close since.
When I asked others who had been to NOLA about what they thought of it, the one consistent reply was that it was kind of a dirty place. All they seemed to recall was the heat and grime and smell of Bourbon Street.
I didn't think it was inordinately dirty or smelly. I would tell you it's a lot better than that. Some observations:
* Generally speaking, the French Quarter area is an eclectic place, as the inhabitants blend in with the tourists and street performers around Jackson Square. The weekend day I was there, the Gumbo Festival was in full swing at a nearby park, and the local food and jazz music were flowing.
* Bourbon Street went from nearly deserted in the morning, to wall-to-wall people at night. While the crowd was rowdy, it was also friendly, with booze and food and live music everywhere. And it was fun to be a small part of the bead throwing. (Just ask -- you don't have to do more, at least not on the Saturday night I was there.)
* The Garden District, with its old, large, and (some) celebrity homes, is unique to see. Also, not interesting enough to go back another time, unless Sandra Bullock or Archie Manning happen to be out in their front yards.
* Yes, the cemeteries have the dead buried above ground. So there's that.
* This one doesn't apply to most visitors, but hands down, the best part for me was being part of a "Second Line" wedding parade. From beautiful St. Louis Cathedral, we walked several blocks through the French Quarter to the hotel reception, the streets often lined two-or-three deep with tourists taking pictures/videos of us waving white cloths behind a brass band. It was the coolest thing I've been a part of in a long time.
Overall, The Big Easy exceeded my expectations.
