| I don't know where Pierre went. Maybe I can sneak away. This is the Our Lady of Guadalupe Chapel across the street from St. Louis #1. It was in fact the mortuary chapel back when the cemetery was on the outskirts of town. Built in 1826, it is the oldest surviving church building in the city. |
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| The cemetery is in the part of town once called Storyville. It was a district where prostitution was concentrated. There were some famous jazz musicians, like Jelly Roll Morton, who played in the brothels in Storyville. The old buildings were destroyed in the 1930's to make way for the Iberville Projects seen here. |
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| P: Bonjour! J: Oh well, I guess you found me. P: You don't seem happy to see me again. J: Gee, imagine that. Anyway, this is the entrance to Louis Armstrong Park. The park suffered damage from the hurricanes of 2005 and it remains closed. |
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| J: There is a statue of the ol' Satchmo in the park. |
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| J: I took this photo through the bars of the
fence surrounding Armstrong Park. P: Who is that? J: Well, if you would read the plaque on the pedestal you would know that it is a bust of Sidney Bechet. P: Yes, I can read. I mean who was Sidney Bechet? J: He was a New Orleans jazz pioneer. He played clarinet and soprano sax. |
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| J: Also inside the park is Congo Square. P: Like a congo drum? J: No, that would be a conga drum. I would image the Congo in Congo Square has something to do with Congo in Africa. It is where slaves gathered on Sundays, their day off. Some even managed to earn enough money by singing, dancing or selling items to earn their freedom. |
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| J: So, Pierre, do you live in the Vieux Carré? P: Where? J: I thought you knew French? P: I know as much as you do. J: Yeah, I guess that makes sense. Vieux Carré is French for "Old Square", what the French Quarter was called back in the olden days. |
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| J: Do Uneeda biscuit? P: They used to cost five cents. |
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| J: You have to be careful walking under some of these balconies. People water the plants and it drips to the sidewalks below. |
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| J: Pierre, why don't you chime in and describe
some of this stuff? P: Okay. Cucullu Row was built in 1828 and the six rowhouses are the oldest intact row in the French Quarter. |
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| P: Mmm. Beer. J: Yup. This is the old Jax Brewery building. It now houses shops and restaurants. |
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| P: Can we eat here tonight? J: What did I tell you yesterday about these expensive restaurants? Look, Brennan's is hiring. Maybe you can get a job. P: Being an imaginary friend is a full-time gig. |
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| J: This is a little confusing. This is a bar called Old Absinthe House. However, there is another building in the Quarter that has a plaque on the wall that says it is the site of the original Old Absinthe Bar. Maybe there were two of them. |
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| J: Statues of three New Orleans greats. |
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| P: What makes this joint special? J: According to a pamphlet I picked up, this used to be owned by Al Hirt. |
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| P: Why is the Famous Door famous? J: I don't really know. There is a list of all the people who have played there right next to the famous door. |
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| J: In addition to the old strip clubs we saw
yesterday, there are a lot of newer ones like this. P: I'm going to pop inside here for a little bit and I'll catch you later. |
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| More plants on balconies. |
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