New Orleans

[meowbunny]

As I said in my moving stinks post, we went to New Orleans to get away from the disaster here. All in all, we had a great time. I've had very few "firsts" with my daughter ... no first words, steps, tooth, etc., so it was truly a joy to take her for her first biegnet, hurricane, etc. All in all, a pretty good New Orleans experience.

Then, we get to our last excursion. Decided to take a cab ride/tour of the city. Supposedly better than a tour group cause you can stop when you want, etc. Well, the guy we got was nice but really didn't seem to know that much about his city. Our last stop was the cemetary. We were looking for a specific grave (he was guiding us but didn't know exactly where it was). After wandering a bit, a homeless guy took us to it. So, all is good and we're leaving.

I get out first and I see another homeless guy stopped by the cab with his shopping cart. No big deal, people get tired, even the homeless. So, he sees us and gets moving. I get to the cab, see the window is smashed and yell at shopping cart guy. He takes off! I take off after him. I yell at him. He throws Marie's new purse at me and says, "Here, you can have your purse!" Nope, not good enough for me. I have no idea what else he may have taken. I keep going. He rounds the corner, drops the shopping cart, grabs a bunch of stuff and takes off seriously running. Yup, I keep going. Past one apartment house, then the next, then the next, around the corner, past two more apartment houses. He turns another corner and I totally lose him. I'm furious. The man got away!!!!

Walk back to the cab and my daughter. My daughter's really upset. The cabby's calling the police. I didn't know it but I'd chased this guy into one of the worst projects of New Orleans. I think I looked so angry no one dared come near one. The police started to lecture me until I let them know it wouldn't be happening again since we were leaving after this. No question I was lucky (and I did get the purse back and he didn't have time to get anything else). :smile:

So, some basic tips -- make sure your kids don't leave anything of value visible in a car, don't go chasing some thief blindly and know your neighborhood. If you can't do those things, you better be dang lucky!

 

[witzend]

Wow, I'm glad that you got the purse back and didn't get hurt! NO is one of the most dangerous places in the country since Katrina. I love NO, and would like to go back, but it's pretty far from us in the NW. I will still want to wait until they get things under control better.

It's a shame what happened to that city, and is still happening to that city.

 

[meowbunny]

I've loved NO for a long, long time, but it was the NO of jazz and blues and fun. Now, it is drunkenness, stupidity and ugliness. The people who are from there are still wonderful and it definitely shows you exactly what Southern hospitality can be. But it is definitely not the NO of the past.

I was talking to some of the service people. They put the biggest blame on Girls Gone Wild. When they started renting out the balconies (and then Penthouse and Playboy), it really changed the whole attitude. What a shame!

 

[Penta]

I'm sorry you had such a bad experience in NOLA. I lived and worked there for 33 years until August 29, 2005. I've been back several times since and the tourist areas of the city are fine, but just a few miles beyond in all directions, the devastation still is very evident. It will take many, many years for the city to get back on its feet...I know there is much lawlessness now, especially in the abandoned areas.

 

[Nancy]

My difficult child's high school band, all 300 of them are going to New Orleans to play in the bowl football game there Jan 2-8. I am not happy that they chose NO at this time to go there and am more than a little worried about them keeping track of all 300 members. They are all going to be carry enough money to last 7 days and I just think this was a bad decision.

I'm so sorry for No but it's going to be a long time before it's back on its feet if ever.

Nancy

 

[meowbunny]

NO is still a great, fun city but it is not a city for a bunch of teens (don't think it ever was). Many bars don't bother with carding -- if you can buy it, you can have it. At night, the streets are rampant with drunks and, of course, this will be ten times worse during SuperBowl. Hopefully, there are plans in place to keep the kids occupied and chaperoned.

My incident happened in broad daylight and could have easily been avoided by my daughter either taking her purse with her or someone staying with the cab. Other than that incident, we had a ball together. We did find a lot of fun things to do that didn't involve alcohol or nudity -- mainly shopping and eating. So, if the kids can be kept off the streets at night and off Bourbon Street entirely on the weekend, they should be okay.

 

[Big Bad Kitty]

Hmmm, am I the only one seeing a pattern here?

One purse left in CA, another left in a cab...Your daughter needs a wallet on a chain, lol!

Try to take away from your visit to NOLA what a nice time you had with your daughter. Don't let the thief be what you remember about the trip.

 

[tinamarie1]

I love NO. I lived in Louisiana all of my life until being dragged to virginia this year. My friend and I spent 4 days there this summer and had a blast. BUT, you should never carry a purse with you when you go out sight seeing/ shopping/ eating. We just put what cash we needed in our pocket, or shoes. Unfortunately even before the hurricanes, the outskirts of new orleans were not safe places to go. New Orleans has been the murder capital of the US for quite some time, way before the hurricanes. If you do go again though, I have found that Sunday is the best time to be there, its when the locals come out and the music is THE BEST, even in the french quarter. Good jazz music and its way more laid back (all the crazy young folks have headed back home by then).