Texas and New Orleans

I’ve been sitting on this for about a month. I wrote most of it shortly after getting back, but I’ve been trying to come up with a good summary of New Orleans and utterly failing. Rather than never post, I’m going to clean up what I have and share it.

Hey, I went to the States in February!

The preamble

This is a weird time to visit the States. The relationship between the USA and Canada is the most fraught it has been in my lifetime, and the US government has masked goons seizing people in the streets. The news is full of horror stories. Going down there isn’t appealing.

That said, my cousin in Texas invited me to his wedding. I’d only seen him once since 2020. I waffled for a bit, but ultimately decided I should go down—he was getting married, after all.

Speaking of…

The wedding

It was great! It was at a venue called Lost Mission out in German Hill Country. It’s purpose-built for hosting weddings, and the chapel looks like an old Spanish mission. The grounds were beautiful, the staff were capable, and the food was delicious. The attendees were a mix of Canadians, Texans, and Southerners¹, weighed more towards to Americans—a very different crowd than I’d ever experienced.

I have to mention the food again. My goals for Texas were to 1) attend the wedding, 2) eat Tex-Mex, and 3) eat Texan BBQ. Thanks to the delicious assortment of barbecued meat served at the reception dinner, I was already at two out of three goals completed. Huzzah!

My only complaint is that the hotel was in the middle of nowhere. I’m sure there are nice parts of Spring Branch (more accurately: Bulverde, Texas), but the only places in walking distance were chain stores and restaurants, and you had to drive to go anywhere. It wasn’t where I’d go as a tourist. Fortunately, I was there to see family.

San Antonio

I did get to do a few touristy things, tho. Specifically, I got to see a bit of San Antonio. On Sunday I went down with one of my cousins to poke around for a few hours; and then on Monday, I returned with the rest of the family in tow. I barely scratched the surface.

My cousin and I visited the Alamo. I thought it was going to be a fortress, but it was more of a walled-off area. There’s the old mission, which is what I imagine when I think of the Alamo, but I’m not sure if it’s part of the Alamo, or just outside of it. We didn’t have much time and it cost money to go inside, so we skipped the mission.

The rest of the Alamo had some nice courtyards, statues, some posters explaining the history, and a gift shop from the 1940s. It’s more of a place where history happened instead of an architectural wonder. That said, I knew zilch about the history—did you know that the Texians² seized San Antonio from the Mexican government, and the siege at the Alamo was the Mexican army taking it back?

I also didn’t know what to expect from the River Walk. Like, sure, there’s a river. What’s special about building alongside a river? San Antonio isn’t quite desert, but it’s pretty dry, and the sun is hot. Then you stumble across the River Walk—a loop of water going from the San Antonio River through downtown and back. It’s a story below the street level, and lined with walkways and shops and pedestrian bridges. It’s an unexpected aquatic landscape threaded through downtown. It’s amazing.

I also saw Market Square with my cousin. It’s a big Mexican market. We got drinks and some souvenirs, but I missed out on street food.

The next day I checked out La Villita with my aunt: it’s a few blocks of heritage buildings turned into galleries, restaurants, and shops. I also had some enchiladas and tacos, scratching that Tex-Mex goal off my list.

That’s about it. I wish I had more time to dig into San Antonio, but Tuesday morning I hopped on …

The train

It was a full day. The train left at 6:45 AM, and the arrival in New Orleans was scheduled for 9:45 PM. (It arrived an hour early, which is really weird for train scheduling, but I won’t complain.) It was a fun way to travel, and cheaper than flying … but it was a long time to spend on the train. By the end my legs were sore, even though I could walk around and even got off the train at the different stops.

Also: I know I’m spoiled by living in BC, but the landscape in East Texas is boring. It’s all rolling farmland, patchy forest, and sprawl. The most exciting part of the whole trip was seeing Houston’s skyline, and I didn’t realize I was close to an actual city until I was four ring roads deep.

New Orleans

Unlike the rest of the trip, I felt like I got a decent feel for New Orleans. It’s a fascinating place. It was established by the French in early 18th century; then run by the Spanish for forty years; reacquired by the French; then sold to the US as part of the Louisiana purchase. I can’t say I heard much spoken French (or Creole), outside of some guys working at a cafe, but the influence is still there.

So is the architecture. The French Quarter dates to the Spanish period, when much of it was rebuilt after massive fires. The streets are narrow, many of the buildings are gorgeous, there are courtyards hidden away everywhere. And it’s big. I tweeted:

Right. Here’s my read on the French Quarter.

It’s Gastown
—Except fifty times bigger
—And dingier
—Minus the poverty of the Downtown Eastside
—Plus the Granville entertainment district right in the middle of it.

There are, like, quiet parts. And super loud and busy parts. Interesting historical stuff. Tonnes of tourist rubbish.

In retrospect, Gastown is probably dirtier, and the French Quarter has a million times more stuff to see and do. It is a must-see if you’re visiting NOLA.

That said, there’s a lot more to New Orleans. I spent a decent chunk of time in the CBD (mostly walking to the post office), which wasn’t especially touristy, but it’s a reminder that New Orleans is a place where people live and work. Canal St is the border between the French Quarter and the CBD, and it’s the most soulless, touristy part (complex with a Vegas-style mega casino). St Charles Avenue is lined with giant mansions that look gorgeous but are probably a pain to look after. Magazine St is a bit more off the beaten path, with lots of interesting shops and restaurants. I got out as far as Audubon Park in the west, City Park and Lake Pontchartrain to the north, and Bywater to the east. There’s so much left to see.

It’s very different from anywhere else I’ve been. It was an experience being in a majority-Black city³. It was my first time visiting the South. And most of all, the lingering French influence makes it unlike anywhere else in the world. I’d love to visit again some time.

Pictures!

Texas, as brought to you by Coke! This was taken inside the Walmart by the hotel, and … yes.

The landscape of German Hill Country.

Inside Lost Mission, heading down to the reception hall. Very pretty place.

Inside the Alamo.

The Alamo mission.

The River Walk.

The River Walk, continued.

San Antonio.

La Villita.

Sunrise on the train.

Inside the lounge car.

Texas landscape (near San Antonio).

The Houston skyline + crazy highways.

Nearing Louisiana.

This could be anywhere on the majority of the 800 kilometres between San Antonio and New Orleans. I’m pretty sure this is in Louisiana.

Sunset on the train.

This was on display at the Ruby Slipper by the Pelham Hotel, where I ate three out of four breakfasts in New Orleans. Good hotel and good restaurant.

New Orleans CBD.

Lafayette Square. Said “Lah-FEE-yet.”

A tree covered in carnival throw⁴. The beads will eventually fall off in the summer.

Riding the streetcar down St Charles Ave.

Audubon Park.

More Audubon.

I was there the week after carnival. Apparently parades start in January.

Lots of places had carnival throw all over their fences.

I saw a few “No ICE” signs around.

Magazine St.

… Yeah, this is a fraught time to visit. For future reference, this is about Alex Pretti, a nurse in Minneapolis who was killed by ICE.

Inside a graveyard. The graves have to be above ground because the earth is too soggy.

Inside Café du Monde in City Park. He’s making beignets.

And lo, fresh beignets.

City Park. The tree is covered in Spanish Moss.

City Park again. This is the swampiest picture I took.

Lake Pontchartrain.

Inside Sazerac House, a museum devoted to the cocktail invited in New Orleans.

… I swear I took the exact same picture at the Jameson Distillery Tour in Dublin.

The Mississippi River.

The French Quarter. Specifically one of the buildings along Jackson Square.

Walking down Pirates Alley next to St Louis Cathedral.

More FQ. Probably Bourbon St.

Bourbon St.

Random FQ picture! It’s not all tourist territory.

Inside the Storyville Museum. It’s about the history of New Orlean’s red light districts, most notoriously Storyville. It also gave an excellent general history of New Orleans.

Canal St.

More French Quarter, but at night!

Listening to live music. This was just off Frenchmen St, which is like a smaller version of Bourbon St without the craziness. This bar was pretty quiet, but the places on Frenchmen St were packed.

A carnival outfit from the Museum of Louisiana at the Presbytère. I believe this was worn by the King of the Zulu Krewe.

A painting of carnival nobility. Again, at the Presbytère.

Random neighbourhood sidestreet in Bywater.

Louis Armstrong statue.

Flying away.