Farewell to New Orleans: Inner Journey

As we sat on the train heading home from New Orleans, I reminisced on all of the things that made the trip so great. I think learning about New Orlean's food was my favorite part of class, specifically from the food tour. I think it's amazing how these foods haven't changed one bit from when they were originally made. I also loved that I've never had these foods before. It forced me to step outside my comfort zone and try new things, which I appreciated. For example, I'm not a big fan of spicy foods, and many foods that we ate were all very spicy. I genuinely enjoyed all of them, so I'm glad the spice didn't hold me back.

Spicy Shrimp and Turtle Soup

My favorite part of the trip was getting to spend time and learn alongside my classmates. It makes me very happy that I've left the trip with more friends that I started the trip with. Talking and learning from each other was such a lovely experience. You'd think I would be tired of seeing the same people over and over again for a week straight, but I'm already looking forward to seeing them at school once the spring semester starts.

My Classmates and I

The people in New Orleans had a mix of personalities. Some made you feel right at home and some made you want to run away as fast as you could. Obviously, there is a great deal of homeless people in New Orleans. I didn't mind them unless they said rude things. These kind of people made me feel sad and uncomfortable. I quickly learned how to avoid and brush these people off, because these were regular occurrences. There were also people who made you feel right at home. They didn't mind if we were tourists, they minded if we were having a good time. I liked these people the best, and they are one of the reasons I fell in love with New Orleans. I was raised in a small town with about 2,200 people in it, and everyone knows each other and says "hello." When people did this in New Orleans, it made me never want to leave.

This trip taught me so much about myself. It definitely confirmed that I am in introvert. During Saturday and Sunday, when a lot of tourists were clogging the streets, it was exhausting trying to get through everyone and making sure my friends were still right behind me. I also learned that I love to travel. My grandparents owned a fishing resort in Arkansas my whole childhood, so my family would always spend vacations and holidays down there. Because of this, we didn't really travel new places. Now that I'm old enough to make the decision to travel on my own, I've proved to myself that I love it.

Farewell New Orleans: Outer Journey

Our trip has come to a close and it was a bittersweet feeling packing my suitcase to head home. The whole trip was filled with seeing amazing places around the French Quarter, tasting the most delicious food, and meeting the kindest people, but my all time favorite place I visited was Muriel's The first time Muriel's was brought us was on out food tour. We didn't eat their, but our tour guide mentioned that Muriel's had an amazing gallery to sit on and look out over Jackson Square. Kendra, Marcy, and I immediately looked at each other and decided that Muriel's was a mandatory stop on our free day. When our free day arrived we walked into Muriel's and the woman who greeted us was so kind. She made sure we knew exactly where we were going. We headed to get a drink from the bar, and the bartender treated us with the same kindness. We headed up the stairs to the gallery and as we found a table to sit at, we were amazed by the beauty of the city. It was a Monday so there wasn't a lot of tourists crowding the sidewalks and the weather was warm, so we comfortable sitting outside. Another reason why Muriel's was my favorite is because of the story we learned about on our haunted history tour. Yes, Muriel's is haunted. According to our tour guide, slaves were kept before they were auctioned off and where servants were kept each night, This means that many troubled souls could have died there, Down the line, Pierre Antoine Lepardi Jourdan, came into ownership of the building, but had to rebuild half of it after the huge fire of 1788. He didn't have much money afterwords, so he gambled the building off. He lost, and committed suicide because of it. Muriel's is known to be haunted by Mr. Pierre Antoine Lepardi Jourdan. I love Muriel's because of it's beauty and history, as well as how much it made me feel like I was at home. I would definitely recommend sitting on Muriel's gallery for a drink to anyone, and I hope I get the chance to come back some day.

Muriel's

January 7th: Inner Journey

While Kendra, Marcy, and I got ready for the day, I thought about how excited I was to have a free day and not have to follow any schedule for class. I learned that I am way less stressed when there is no schedule and it is a lot of fun wandering around the city on my own. I loved being able to spend as much or as little time at a certain location as I wanted. My favorite part of the day was sitting on Muriel's Gallery to enjoy the evening. This made me realize that I like traveling more when the weather is nice than when it is colder. The first few days of the trip were cooler, whereas today was warmer. It made me sad thinking about how we would all be returning to 20 degree weather in Illinois. New Orleans spoke to me in a way of making me feel like a local. As Kendra, Marcy, and I walked into Muriel's, the hostess was so kind to us. I couldn't help but think she was someone I had known for years. When we ordered a drink from the bar, the bartender was just as nice. It made me feel like I was at home. In the small town that I live in, you walk into a public place and everyone greets you with a smile. These individuals at Murial's made me feel like I had lived in the The Big Easy for years. It was also so peaceful looking over Jackson Square. Because there were way less people there than over the weekend, it made it feel less like a tourist city and more like I actually lived there.

Sitting Outside on Muriel's Gallery

January 7th: Outer Journey

Kendra, Marcy, and I started our free day with a little extra sleep than what we had gotten the past couple days. We slept in an extra hour than usual and took our time with breakfast and getting ourselves ready to leave the hotel. We treated the day More like a Saturday morning than a Monday morning. We left hotel at about 1pm and headed to Jackson Square. We initially planned to go to the Aquarium near by, but since the weather was going to be in the low 70's, we decided we wanted to spend the rest of the day outside. We wanted to start off the day by visiting the 1850 House, a museum with the some of the original furniture from when Micaela Pontalba had build the apartment buildings on either side of Jackson Square. Unfortunately the museum is closed on Monday's so we had to make other plans. Since the museum was closed, we stopped a few doors down at Creole Delicacies, one of our stops on the cuisine tour we took yesterday, We looked at sweets and souvenirs to bring back to out families and talked to the owner a little bit more. When we were done, we headed to the open-air French Market to look around. We didn't find much we liked, so after about 20 minutes we headed back toward Jackson Square for a drink on top of Muriel's gallery. This was my favorite part of the day and such a nice way to end the evening. The weather was beautiful, and the square wasn't packed with people like it was on the weekend. Kendra, Marcy, and I relaxed and talked about the museums that we has been in yesterday. We talked about out favorite exhibits and how different New Orleans is than anything we had ever seen. It was a bittersweet way to end our time in this amazing City. 

View from Muriel's Gallery

Muriel's Courtyard

January 6th: Inner Journey

The thing I loved most about the Mardi Gras exhibit was how different it is. When I walked into the exhibit where all of the grown and scepters were for the past Mardi Gras kings and queens, I had to remind myself that I'm not in a foreign country. I couldn't believe that I was only a few states away from home. When looking through the Mardi Gras exhibit, I couldn't help but think of how the parades are different from the ones that we have back home in Illinois. Back home, we usually have parades for homecoming and our annual festivals, but they are nothing like the parades put together for Mardi Gras. The costumes are a huge difference. I couldn't help but think how uncomfortable and heavy he Mardi Gras costumes are. All of the heavy beading and huge head pieces. It made me think about what I would want my Mardi Gras gown to look like if I were a Mardi Gras queen. I would probably choose something very edgy. Maybe something black with a leather jacket over it to stand out from all of the glitz and glam that I saw in the museum. Something new that I learned about Mardi Gras was the maskers. These maskers were part of the Cajun courirs de Mardi Gras which is popular in many Cajun communities in southern Louisiana. I feel like if the city that I live in back home celebrated Mardi Gras, this is what it would be like. These maskers would ride their horses, dance, and beg for food to make Mardi Gras dinner. It is so fun to learn about the Mardi Gras side of New Orleans.

Courirs de Mardi Gra Masks

Maskers

January 6th: Outer Journey

While visiting the two museums in Jackson Square, my favorite part was the Mardi Gras exhibit. As soon as you walk up the stairs to the exhibit, the first thing you see is a case filled with small trinkets that are thrown out during parades. I've learned over the past couple days that each float has its own theme, so each float throws trinkets that go along with their theme into the crowd. I also enjoyed looking at all of the costumes and crowns that the people in the parade would wear. These dresses and head pieces have to be very expensive because they are completely covered in jewels and feathers. They are so colorful and unlike anything I've ever seen. They are so big and beautiful. We also got to see all of the crowns and scepters from the past queens and kings of Mardi Gras. I loved how each crown was different shaped with different colored jewels. I tried to pick my favorite, but it was impossible. Kendra, Marcy, and I also got to experience what is like to ride on a float in a Mardi Gras parade. The museum had a parade simulator where you could board a float and see what it would look like if it were actually moving through the streets of New Orleans. It was also really fun to look at the old Mardi Gras posters. I'm a sucker for antique posters, so this was right up my alley. The museum was very fun to look through and I thoroughly enjoyed every part. It made me even more excited for the upcoming parades that my class and I would be seeing since it is the first day of the season for Mardi Gras today.

Click HERE for more information on the Presbytere Mardi Gras exhibit.

King of Mardi Gras Outfit

Queen of Mardi Gras Gown

Queens of Mardi Gras Gown

Queens of Mardi Gras Gueen 

Corwns and Sceptors of Past Queens and Kings

Antigue Mardi Gras Posters

January 5th: Inner Journey

One thing that I found most interesting today was the story behind each family restaurant and the why food were served why they were served. For example, red beans and rice was served during chore days. These were the days that families would clean up shop, bath animals, and do laundry. They needed a dish that they could leave unattended for house and not worry about it overcooking. This reminded me of home. Usually on the weekends when we all have different schedules, my dad will cook up a bog pot of chili and we can feast off of that all weekend long so we dint have to worry about making any meals. It's enlightening to learn about the stories and reasons behind each food like this.

I also really enjoyed the turtle soup and how wild animals like turtles, rabbit, and other small animals were popular to eat among people because they were easy to kill and bring back to the family. I also have really loved all of the seafood. Eating the shrimp and fish have reminded me of my childhood. My grandparents owned a fishing resort in Arkansas my entire childhood, so my family and I would spend many school breaks their catching fish and other river creatures. We would take out catch from the day, and my grandpa and dad would cook it up each night and that was our dinner. There are fewer things more comforting to me than eating sea food. I can tell New Orleans is so proud of these dishes because you can't get them anywhere else the way they are made. The seasoning and spices are so different from what I eat back home in Illinois, so it's been such a delight trying these new things.

Learning about popular ingredients
used in Cajun nd Creole foods.