615 Pere Antoine Alley
New Orleans, LA 70116
29.957811,-90.06352
Without a doubt, the single most
widely seen building in New Orleans is the St. Louis Cathedral. Well, unless
you are a member of the Who-Dat Nation, then your answer would be the
Superdome! One glimpse of this beautiful church and you automatically know what
city you are looking at. If standing on the roof of the cathedral was possible,
one would have an incredible view. Without having to move a muscle, you could
see the Cabildo, Presbytere, Jackson Square, Jackson Monument, the Mississippi
River, Muriel's, the Place d'Armes Hotel and the Pontalba Building! With the
French Quarter as the heart of New Orleans, the St. Louis Cathedral would serve
as the blood, spreading its Catholic heritage throughout every facet of the
neighborhood. With any settlement, the first structure, other than the basic
homes, is normally a church. As old as the city itself, so are the roots of the
Cathedral.
625 St. Anne St.
New Orleans, LA 70116
29.958753,-90.063406
Walking around the French Quarter,
as with any tourist location, you usually cannot walk more than twenty feet
without running into a gift shop. As you look around for your Mardi Gras beads,
shot glasses and offensive t-shirts, you will probably see a plethora of
paintings and postcards showing the iconic Jackson Square. This picturesque
view of the Saint Louis Cathedral and the gated square is probably the most
photographed area of the city.
Jackson Square was designed in 1721
and was mimicked after the famous Place des Vosges in Paris, France. When the
small village of New Orleans was initially designed, it was built on a grid
system. The center block was used for military parades and other public
gatherings so this area was called the Place
d’Armes or Place of the Arms. As the city expanded, the Place d’Armes
continued to remain as the central hub, with all buildings radiating from it.
By 1815, the land was renamed Jackson’s Square, after the city’s famed hero,
Andrew Jackson. From here, decorative touches would be added to the area by the
previously mentioned Baroness Micaela Almonester-Pontalba, such as the ornate
shrubbery and wrought-iron fences. Today, Jackson Square is visited by
thousands of people a day and is a prime place to catch interesting street
performers, buy one-of-a-kind artwork and get your fortune read by many of the
individuals claiming to be psychic. For more information regarding that
subject, please refer back to the Bottom of the Cup Tearoom blog.
801 Chartres St.
New Orleans, LA 70116
29.958349,-90.063107
One thing that makes New Orleans
such a unique city is that they gleefully embrace their buildings that contain
haunted activity, as opposed to shying away from making any mention of such
nonsense. One such restaurant in the heart of the city is not only glad to talk
about it, but they have made their resident ghost a part of the day to day operations.
Next to Jackson Square, sits Muriel’s Restaurant, an excellent restaurant with
some of the best food around. As I type this, my mouth is watering, thinking
about their goat cheese crepes! As you walk in to Muriel’s you are immediately
taken back by the décor, set to look just like an eighteenth or nineteenth
century private residence. As the hostess leads you to your table, you may
notice next to the staircase is an empty table set for two, with glasses of
wine and pieces of bread. No, the patrons are not in the restroom with an
eternal case of infinite diarrhea, as the guest that the table is set for is
the resident ghost!
To begin with the history of the
restaurant is only scratching the surface. The land that the building sits on
dates back to the founding of New Orleans in 1718, when it was given to a young
French Canadian by the name of Claude Trepagnier. Claude played a huge role by
assisting in the expedition that carved a clearing on the bank of the river that
soon became known as Ville de la Nouvelle
Orleans. Use your basic skills in the French language to assume what that
translates to. To award Claude for his hard work in this momentous event, he
was given a plot of land in the heart of the newly found area. By 1721, this
area would grow rapidly, as the land began expanding along a grid system with a
spot known as the Place de Armes,
later being called Jackson Square, as the epicenter. It is rumored that during
this time, the small home was used to temporarily house and catalogue slaves as
they got off the boat before they were moved off to many of the local auction
sites. With this particular area expanding quickly, Claude’s plot of land in
the middle of all the action became quite a valuable and sought after piece of
property.
