Reply #11: I Truly Loved New Orleans....Almost Moved There [View All]

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I had always wanted to go to new Orleans, so about 4 years ago my fiance took me for my birthday. We loved it so much we seriously considered moving there. We had actually started looking at houses and jobs in and around New Orleans, but then I did some research on the possibility of flooding and we decided against it. Also, the salaries and job market were not like they are where we live now.

Before I went to New Orleans I'd always had this image of a city that was just one big non-stop party, but when I got there I realized that the tourist area is a lot of fun, but small.

It was the people that I fell in love with and the vibes I felt. The people were so nice. They were so full of pride and so willing to talk about their history in New Orleans. Almost everybody I talked to was like a historian about the place. There was such a powerful feeling of warmth there.

I did the tourist thing. Went on the riverboat. Partied. Enjoyed the food. Jazz clubs. The street artists and performers. Just watching the sunset over the Mississippi. Cemetery tour. Ghost tour. Sex shops. Voodoo shops. Jackson Square. Horse and buggy ride through the French Quarter. I even stayed in a historic bed and breakfast instead of a hotel. We didn't rent a car, so we just rode the trolley car up and down St. Charles, took cabs and walked. I even went to Anne Rice's house and talked to a member of her staff and took a handful of dirt and leaves from the front yard (I still have it).

The best part of all was listening to the stories from the old-timers. I went all over and everybody I met from the senior citizens to the teenagers were pleasant and friendly. From the French Quarter to the Garden District to the Ninth Ward I met some of the most pleasant people ever.

I am so sorry about what happened and I pray for all that were affected by it.