When I first came to the New Orleans about a dozen years ago, it was mostly out of curiosity. Was it really as hedonistic as people claimed? It's true, wandering through the French Quarter can be a little jarring at first, as you discover literally something for every taste: jazz clubs, blues clubs, places where rock music blares, places where the girls dance topless, places where they dance bottomless, places where the girls are really boys. If you're ever looking for a place to indulge, New Orleans should be somewhere near the top of your list, whether your inclinations lean toward voyeurism or toward music appreciation or simply toward a little gastronomic sampling at the Desire oyster bar.
Yet this most European of American cities has a wonderful historic side as well, and having sobered a little over the years - I'm speaking figuratively, of course - I came back recently looking with more of an eye toward history. I was glad to see that the city did not disappoint. True to its spirit of laissez les bon temps rouler, New Orleans has as much to offer the history addict as it does to those following less intellectual pursuits.
For many people, of course, New Orleans is the French Quarter, for that's the part that is the most colorful. Most of us, I'm sure, have seen photographs of the place during Mardi Gras season, with people sitting on the balconies and throngs pouring into the streets as the giant floats go by. Ironically, this image, too, is part of New Orleans' past. Several decades ago, as both the floats and the crowds got bigger, the krewes, or social clubs, who sponsored the parades moved out of the narrow Quarter onto Canal Street and other venues which were much more manageable.
The French Quarter, by the way, isn't entirely French. Sure, the French may have settled there, but they did so by erecting wooden buildings which were quickly lost in the first major fire. The features that give the Quarter its distinctive architectural style - the wrought iron balconies and adobe buildings - are actually of Spanish origin. The French may have given the Quarter its name, but the Spanish gave it its distinctiveness.
