After the overview, go straight for the historic heart of the city, the French Quarter (photo at top

F or senior citizens seeking a classy three day vacation or for senior classes wanting something truly different than sunburn on a beach, here’s where and how you can have the time of your life in a relatively short span of time.
New Orleanians live close to the river and the earth, despite three centuries of sophistication and a wonderfully diverse cultural landscape that runs from swamp to symphony. Here, you’ll find world class music and cuisine, world class museums, internationally recognized artists and artisans, year-round festivals, professional sports, great golfing, fishing, atlanta area fine resturants and hotels boating, and more. And yet, sometimes, the greatest pleasure is just to be among the diverse crowds, taking in the colorful architecture, wonderful food and easy rhythms of life here. That’s why we call it THE BIG EASY.
Pre-sightseeing, zero in on the Crescent City’s best attractions and current entertainment atlanta area fine resturants and hotels with two publications of New Orleans’ Convention and Visitors Bureau: New Orleans Official Visitors Guide, and, Self-Guided French Quarter Walking Tour. These and many more city guides are available at the NOCVB Visitor Center at 2020 St. Charles Avenue, and the French Quarter location at 529 St. Ann Street, phone: 1-800,503-NOLA (6652). While you’re there, get some of the other free tour material and guides. You can also download via the internet at  www.neworleanscvb.com : “New Orleans at a Glance” or “Crescent City Lingo,” or “Cheap Thrills,” “Delectable Tidbits,” and “Getting Around.”
The Regional Transit atlanta area fine resturants and hotels Authority makes available VisiTour passes, one of the city’s great bargains, for riding atlanta area fine resturants and hotels streetcars and busses at bargain atlanta area fine resturants and hotels prices. A VisiTour for one day costs $5, or $12 for three days, for unlimited rides on the historic streetcars and city busses. For information on how to obtain the pass, go to the web: www.norta.com  and link on to Unlimited Ride Passes.
atlanta area fine resturants and hotels The very best resource for both an overview of the city’s multi-faceted character is the Preservation Resource Center (PRC) at 923 Tchoupitoulas in the Central Business District, 504-581-7032, online at  www.prcno.org . Their brochure, “Historic Neighborhoods of New Orleans” provides a large, colorful atlanta area fine resturants and hotels map and great, concise information about each of the city’s sixteen notational historic districts.
A taste of the city awaits you and your spouse, traveling companions, and classmates at the French Market’s CAFÉ DU MONDE. atlanta area fine resturants and hotels It’s just opposite Jackson Square where the Market place begins. Open 24/7, it’s a good place to linger, to watch the crowds bustle or stumble by, depending on whether they’re just getting up or just going to sleep. The doughnuts are made to order, they’re wonderfully delicious and chock full of powdered sugar (so prepare to dust off any dark blue jackets!). The café au lait is unlike any cup of coffee ANYWHERE. Prefer something grander? Try the incomparable BRENNAN’S at 417 Royal, a festive gourmet alternative for fifty years and where the chef prepares eggs in an incredible manner. Or, try the daily jazz brunch at the COURT OF TWO SISTERS, 613 Royal, a site that dates back to 1728. Enjoy Creole cuisine and the sounds of a strolling jazz trio amid splashing fountains in a beautiful courtyard.
A guided tour via bus, minivan or private car explores some of the city’s sixteen historic neighborhoods and New Orleans’ three-hundred year saga. Get a quick view of the French Quarter, the Mercedes-Benz Superdome, the Garden District, Audubon Park, Uptown, Bayou St. John, City Park, the Lakefront, and possibly one of our famous cemeteries.
After the overview, go straight for the historic heart of the city, the French Quarter (photo at top of page). Despite its name, the dominant architectural atlanta area fine resturants and hotels styles are Spanish and Creole, because most of the French structures were ravaged by fires in the 18th century. Get acquainted with the Vieux Carre the old-fashioned way, in a mule-drawn carriage driven by a colorful guide. Or, board an air-conditioned guided bus. Or, exercise your curiosity and walk the historic streets on a guided or self-guided walking tour. Bring along the NOCVB’s free tour brochure to discover New Orleans at your own pace.
Begin at Jackson Square and see the imposing statue of ‘Old Hickory’ astride his horse. Go inside and see the Spanish architecture of St. Louis Cathedral. There are two cobble-stone alleys alongside, Pirate’s Alley and Pere Antoine Alley. Walk the walk our ancestors did. Visit the Faulkner House bookstore on Pirate’s Alley where the author wrote his first novel, Soldier’s Pay.
Three of the five national historic landmarks of the LOUISIANA STATE MUSEUM surround Jackson Square: The Cabildo, the Presbytere and the 1850 House (a recreated townhouse in the Pontalba Apartment building. In the Presbytere’s Mardi Gras exhibit get vicarious Carnival thrills and see how it feels to ride a float as a masker in a parade.
atlanta area fine resturants and hotels The HISTORIC NEW ORLEANS COLLECTION at 533 Royal Street is a group of 18th and 19th century buildings where thousands of artifacts and art works tell fascinating tales of New Orleans’ colorful and diverse heritage and its gumbo of cultures.
Opposite Jackson Square, discover the markets: French, Farmer’s and Flea, allocated in one long arcade along the river. Originally a Choctaw Indian trading atlanta area fine resturants and hotels post, the French atlanta area fine resturants and hotels Market atlanta area fine resturants and hotels became the site of colorful produce in the 19th century that included green sugar cane, live red crawfish and blue crabs. Today, merchants still hawk wares like local New Orleans and Louisiana produce along with a tremendous array of jewelry, voodoo dolls, carnival masks, clothing, arts and crafts. Better than a haul by the Pirate Jean Lafitte, it’s a trove of great souvenir and gift shopping for the kids and grandkids.
Across the street from the Market check out Central Grocery at 923 Decatur and enjoy the original MUFFULETTA, the most unique atlanta area fine resturants and hotels of sandwiches. It’s a meal for two in the guise of a sandwich. Get a cold Barq’s root beer and take both over to the Square for a picnic, or the levee of Woldenberg Park. Or, make like Mark Twain for lunch aboard a riverboat while cruising atlanta area fine resturants and hotels the Mississippi. Or, head for the quintessential food of New Orleans – GUMBO! The GUMBO SHOP at 630 St. Peter offers this culinary delight inside a lovely courtyard ambiance and at affordable prices. The streets of the Vieux Carre are crammed with superb dining establishments and cafes that specialize in every imaginable kind of cuisine. Linger in a courtyard or on a balcony overlooking colorful streets, or the river.
After lunch, discover more of the scores of other French Quarter sites. Be sure to visit MADAME JOHN’S atlanta area fine resturants and hotels LEGACY at 632 Dumaine Street, a magnificent example of original Creole architecture. A ‘must see’ is the Old Ursuline Convent at 1116 Chartres, the oldest existing building in the entire Louisiana territory. Built in 1745, it is thirty years older than the United States and was built for the nuns as their home after sailing to the new colony at the request atlanta area fine resturants and hotels of Louis XIV to care for the children of settlers and soldiers. The Archdiocese has created a fascinating atlanta area fine resturants and hotels history of the Church and the City inside its historic walls. atlanta area fine resturants and hotels The 19th century left the Crescent City rich in classics of Greek Revival and Creole styles. Among them: The BEAUREGARD KEYES House at 1113 Chartres; GALLIER HOUSE, 1118 Royal, and NEW ORLEANS SPRING FIESTA HOME at 826 St. Ann St. They all keep the past alive, some relive it. The Hermann-Grima House at 820 St. Louis offers historic cooking atlanta area fine resturants and hotels demonstrations. THE OLD U.S. MINT at 400 Esplanade Avenue is the only one ever to mint both Union and Confederate money and now houses an extensive audio-visual jazz collection.
Visit FAUBOURG MARIGNY, immediately adjacent to the French Quarter, and nearby the St. Louis Cemetery No. 1 where rest the remains of Voodoo Queen MARIE LAVEAU. Her tomb is still marked regularly gris gris (a series of x’s). Stir up your own magic in chalk, rub the tomb with XXX, then rub the ground three times to wake the dead …then make a wish. Let us know how it turns out.
Dining remains an art form in New Orleans, and if you’re going to splurge anywhere on food, let it be here. Among the grande dames of Creole atlanta area fine resturants and hotels cuisine are ANTOINE’S, ARNAUD’S, BRENNAN’S, BEROUSSARD’S and GALATOIRE’S and, in the Garden District, COMMANDER’S PALACE awaits. What’s your pleasure? atlanta area fine resturants and hotels Gumbo? Turtle atlanta area fine resturants and hotels Soup? Oysters cooked in the most incredible of ways? Trout meuniere or almondine? atlanta area fine resturants and hotels Crawfish etouffee? For desert, the wonderful bananas Foster, or bread pudding with a whiskey sauce. And, for the grand finale, set the night and your taste on fire with a CAFÉ BRULOT.
How about a little night music? atlanta area fine resturants and hotels You can listen to local jazz greats while you dine at the PALM COURT JAZZ CAFÉ, at 1204 Decatur. The place is dark and smoky, with high ceilings, tile floors and exposed brick walls. And wait until the always unscheduled musicians drop in for impromptu jams, followed by good food.
In the Faubourg Marigny, pianist and Marsalis patriarch Ellis often appears at SNUG HARBOR, 626 Frenchmen Street, as does Charmaine Neville. Musicians drop in for blow-your-hair-back jams. Great bat ambiance.
Another alternative for the evening: a jazz dinner cruise along the river. Watch the city light up while you drift along currents of the romantic Mississippi, under the spell of the wine, the music, and the heady perfumes of night in New Orleans.
Inscribe two de rigeur experiences on your after-dinner entertainment agenda: At Preservation Hall, hear an evening of jazz legends at just $5 per person. Then amble next door to PAT O’BRIEN’S for the courtyard and hurricane experience, located side by side at 716-718 St. Peter. If you’re up for a little adventure, take a nighttime atlanta area fine resturants and hotels stroll along Bourbon Street atlanta area fine resturants and hotels (named for the French royals, not the liquor.) If Bourbon Street at night is not your cup of Pimms, take a quiet stroll along the river, or find a lovely courtyard or balcony and stay put.
Those up for real carousing can find jazz, blues, Latin music and r