--We've compiled information and links to other Web pages that visitors to New Orleans might find useful.
last modified 5/24/97 by SJL
Chateau Motor Hotel
1001 Chartres Street
New Orleans, LA 70116
800-828-1822
504-524-9636
If you are looking for comfortable, convenient and cheap accommodations in the French Quarter, then Chateau is worth a call. Rates vary between $79 - $99 per room. Hotel has usual amenities, as well as a swimming pool in the courtyard and free parking. This is in the heart of the French Quarter and is convenient to Downtown and the Convention Center. (Photo: Courtyard at Chateau Motor Hotel)
The Frenchmen Hotel
417 Frenchmen Street
New Orleans, LA 70116
504-948-2166
This pleasant, small hotel is located one half block outside of the French Quarter, in the Faubourg Marigny section. The Frenchmen is within easy walking distance of all French Quarter attractions and is only minutes away from the nightlife along the first few blocks of Frenchmen street (Cafe Brasil, Snug Harbor, etc.). This hotel was restored in the early 1980's and the rennovations have been well kept. Secure, off-street parking. Prices start at $84 per room (full-size bed, double occupancy) and $94 (queen-size bed, double occupancy).
Maison St. Charles
1319 St. Charles Avenue
New Orleans, LA 70130
504-522-0187
800-832-1783
Of all the unofficial hotels listed here, this is one of the closest to the Convention Center (two blocks from Lee Circle -- at Lee Circle, take Howard Avenue six blocks to Convention Center) and one of the nicest. Isabel in reservations informs us that they are offering Queen Economy rooms for $79.00 per night. "While these rooms are not huge, the beds are large and comfortable," Isabel said. Free parking is available.
Ramada Hotel St. Charles
2203 St. Charles Avenue
New Orleans LA 70130
800-443-4675
504-566-1200
This full-service hotel is located in the heart of the Garden District and is conveniently located to the Convention Center. Hotel is located on the St. Charles Streetcar line and within minutes to the French Quarter. A special rate has been arranged for attendees of the Biophysical Society Meeting and is as follows:
Please ask for Christy in Reservations and mention the special Biophysical Society Rate. The cutoff date for the above rates is February 2nd.
St. Charles Inn
3636 St. Charles Avenue
New Orleans, LA 70115
800-489-9908
504-899-8888
This is usually a good value for the money but a little further from the Convention Center. Rates average around $65-$75 for a single.
Villa Convento Hotel
616 Ursulines Street
New Orleans, LA 70116
504-522-1793
Villa Convento is located in the heart of the French Quarter, near the historic Ursuline Convent. Across the street from the hotel is Croissant d'Or, one of the French Quarter's best pastery shops. While Villa Convento's rooms may not be the most modern in the city, they are pleasant and clean. Rates start at $89 per room.
One must embrace paradox and sensual overload to appreciate New Orleans. Hot and humid weather, spicy rich food, lasciviousness, a large Catholic presence, close and ornate architecture. There is a lot of "Real New Orleans," some of which can be found in the French Quarter. Nevertheless, part of our mission is to take you beyond what you easily could discover on your own within half a mile of the CBD. Many of these places are located where a pedestrian approach is unsavory if not unsettling, and sometimes ill-advised after dark. Take a cab after dark to destinations beyond the bustle of the French Quarter or more than a block from the streetcar.
Many restaurants, shops and other attractions recently have appeared along the River between the Convention Center and Esplanade Avenue. Since you will encounter them on your way to the French Quarter, we only mention the major developments. One can walk to Esplanade from the convention center in twenty to twenty-five minutes, or take the "new" Riverfront streetcar line for a buck and a quarter.
Downriver from the Convention Center, The River Walk leads to the Hilton, Spanish Plaza and the "foot" of Canal Street. The free Canal Street Ferry docks here. Although the ferry goes to the mostly residential community of Algiers, one can enjoy nice views of the city during its short ride to and from the West Bank. Here is located the Canal Place shopping mall and theater. Continuing along the River, one enters Woldenberg Park behind the Aquarium of the Americas and the IMAX theater. Woldenberg Park ends at the Moon Walk, the Jackson Brewery (formerly Jax Brewery), and the French Market.
Uptown, downtown, river-side, lake-...
Go by these and you won't be late.
By examining a map of New Orleans you can appreciate why its called the Crescent City. Note that the morning is sun in your face when traveling across the twin spans of the Mississippi River from the East Bank to the West Bank. It's easy to understand why notions such as North and South are not useful here. City streets are laid out in concentric circles intersected by radii emanating from Midcity. Well-worn paths often follow a radius from the perimeter to an inner circle, around a bit, and then out another radius to the perimeter again, i.e. Downtown to the Riverbend via Poydras to Claiborne, Claiborne to Broadway, and Broadway to St. Charles, whereas the streetcar takes the long route via St. Charles.
Hummingbird Hotel & Grill
"Yat" is a local New Orleans dialect, indicative of the Ninth Ward section of town, but is common to the area. Yat stems from the phrase, "where y'at". This is discussed below.
ALLIGATOR PEAR Avocado.
ANYWAYS And, then; and, so.
AWRITE While "Where Y'at" is usually thought of as the common greeting in New Orleans, "awrite" is much more universal. A man may say "Where Y'at" to a friend he passes by on the street, but he'll say "awrite" to a stranger. This is the South, after all; one doesn't merely brush past someone else when walking down Carondelet St. without saying hello. We don't want to be impolite, yet we don't usually waste time on strangers, so "awrite" is a fair compromise. Usage: One man walking down the street comes upon another man going the other way. The first man says "awrite; the second responds "awrite".
AWRITE, HAWT A variation on the standard greeting, but using an endearment usually reserved for a friend, usually female.
AX Ask. Usage: "Dey axed for you down by da VFW Hall last night ad Madeline's cousin's daughta's weddin'."
BANQUETTE The sidewalk. Pronounced "BANK it". Usage fairly rare nowadays.
BERL To cook by surrounding something in hot, bubbling liquid; the preferred method for cooking shellfish. For example, many a New Orleans student learned in World History that a great defense of a castle under attack in the middle ages was to dump "berlin' erl" on the attackers.
BOO A term of endearment, frequently used by parents and grandparents for small children, even small children who happen to be 40 years old ... Believed to be Cajun in origin.
BRA A universal name for a male, usually one with whom you are not acquainted. Usually used in this manner: "Awrite, bra" The greeting "Say, bra" is usually heard from white guys who think they're talking like a black guy.
BY MY HOUSE, BY YOUR HOUSE, etc. Analogous to the French terms "chez moi"; "chez toi"; etc. Usage: "He slept by my house last night." "At" is never used in this sense.
CAP A universal name for a male, usually one with whom you are not acquainted. Women generally do not use this term. See also PODNA and BRA.
CATLICK As in Roman Catholic, the predominant religion in New Orleans.
CEMENT A standard English word, but with a special pronunciation. Yats say "SEE ment"
CHARMER The quintessential female Yat. Pronounced "CHAW muh"
DA The.
DAT That.
DAWLIN' A universal form of address. Women use it universally to both sexes, men use it toward women. See also HAWT.
DEM Them.
DESE, DOSE These, those.
DIS This.
DRESSED When ordering a po boy, "dressed" indicates lettuce, tomatoes, pickles and MYNEZ on it. (See NUTTINONIT)
EARL
ELLESHYEW Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge. Occasionally preceded by the term, "Go ta hell..."
ERSTERS Oysters.
ESPLANADE Walkway (archaic usage).
FAUBOURG A suburb or outlying neighborhood, as in Faubourg Marigny. A neighborhood is considered outlying in relation to the original neighborhood, the French Quarter. Metairie would never be a Faubourg, because it wasn't part of the city in the first place.
FLYIN' HORSES Accented on the first syllable. A merry go round, sometimes specifically describing the merry go round in City Park, but also used in general.
FOR a preposition used by New Orleanians instead of "at" or "by" when referring to time. E.g., "Da parade's for 7:00, but we betta get dere for 6 if we wanna find pawkin'." This one tends to be particularly confusing to non natives.
F'SURE!
F'TRUE When phrased as a question, it means "Is that so?" or "Ya kiddin'!!". When phrased as a statement, it's an affirmation, a shortened version of "Nuh uh, I ain't lyin' ta ya ..."
GAWD A supernatural deity, worshipped by most New Orleanians.
GRIPPE The flu.
GRIS GRIS Pronounced GREE GREE;. Noun, A (voodoo) spell. Can be applied for nefarious purposes ("to put a gris gris on someone"), or as a force to ward off evil, like wearing a gris gris bag (the folks at the Voodoo Shop on Dumaine will make one to order for about $20).
HAWT A term of endearment.
HOUSE COAT 'N CURLAS The preferred dress for charmers while shopping at Schwegmann's.
I'LL TAKE ME A... May I have a...
KAY BEE The drugstore, as in (K&B, Katz and Besthoff). The ampersand is always silent.
LAGNIAPPE Pronounced LAN yap. A little something extra. Also, the name of the entertainment pull out section of the Friday edition of The New Orleans Times Picayune.
LOCKA Where you hang your clothes, analogous to the English word "closet". Example: "Mom MAH! Where my shoes at?" "Looka in ya locka!" See LOOKA.
LOOKA The imperative case of the verb "to look". Usually accompanied by a pointing gesture. Often used as a single exclamation: "Looka!"
LOOKIT DA T.V. To watch T.V.
MAKE GROCERIES, MAKIN' GROCERIES To do grocery shopping.
MARRAINE Your godmother.
MIRLITON A vegetable pear or chayote squash, which grows wild in Louisiana and in backyards throughout New Orleans. Pronounced MEL lee tawn, and wonderful when stuffed with shrimp and ham dressing.
MISTA As in "Throw me somethin' mista". Never used in any other context; "bra" or "cap" is used regularly.
MYNEZ Mayonnaise.
NEUTRAL GROUND The grassy or cement strip in the middle of the road. The terms "median" and/or "island" are NEVER used in New Orleans. Use of one of those foreign terms instead of "neutral ground ' is a dead giveaway that you ain't from around here, or anywhere close. If you're lucky, you live on a street with a neutral ground big enough to play football on.
NEW ORLEENS The way silly tourists pronounce "New Orleans". Natives do not do this. Exception song lyrics, as in "Do You Know What It Means to Miss New Orleans", for example, and when omitting the "New", as in "Orleans Parish", which is always pronounced or LEENS. Confusing, isn't it? More on this below.
NUTTINONIT A po boy that is not dressed, which only contains the main ingredient.
OR WHAT Pronounced r WUT, and placed at the end of a question: "You gonna finish eatin' dat, 'r what?"
OVA DA RIVER Across the river.
OVA BY A general replacement for the prepositions "at" and "to", particularly when referring to someone's home, or a destination in general. "Where ya goin'?" "Ova by ma mamma's."
PARISH A Louisiana state administrative district, analogous to the American "county". When used by Yats in the phrase "da parish", it generally means St. Bernard Parish specifically, which is suburban to New Orleans.
PARRAINE Your godfather.
PASS BY To stop at a place, for a visit or to accomplish something. "Ya gonna be home later? I'll pass by ya house." It doesn't mean just to drive by in your car and keep going ...
PO BOY The quintessential New Orleans lunch, a sandwich on good, crispy New Orleans French bread. This definition doesn't begin to describe what a po boy is all about, so if you really don't know you need to get one soon.
PODNA A universal form of address for a male. Frequently used in the emphatic statement, "I tell you what, podna ..."
'SCUSE ME PAWDON ME Polite expression when trying to get by somebody or moving through a crowd, spoken as one word.
SHOOT DA CHUTE A playground slide.
STOOP Usually expressed as "da stoop". The front steps to your house, particularly if it's a shotgun duplex. What ya go out and sit on to chat wit'ya neighbas (an' ta keep an eye on 'em).
SUCK DA HEAD, SQUEEZE DA TIP
1. The technique for eating crawfish. If you've never done this, have someone demonstrate.
2. A song by the Radiators.
SUG A term of endearment used primariliy by Yat females. Pronounced SHOOG; with a soft "oo"; as in "book".
TURLET A device for the sanitary disposal of human waste, and for nasty food ya snuck away from da table as a child (like ma mamma's roast beef...yuck).
UPTOWN SIDE, DOWNTOWN SIDE, LAKESIDE, RIVERSIDE The four cardinal points of the New Orleanian compass. "North, south, east, west" do not work in New Orleans.
VALISE Suitcase.
VEDGE A TIBBLE Neither animal nor mineral. What ya mamma used to make ya eat before ya could leave the table when ya were a kid. The word has four syllables.
WHERE YA STAY (AT)? Where do you live?
WHERE Y'AT? The greeting. The proper response is, "Awrite."
WRENCH To clean something under running water. "Aw baby, ya hands 'r filthy! Go wrench 'em off in da zink." See ZINK.
YA You, your.
YA MAMMA Your mother. Used in a variety of ways, usually endearing. Also usable as an insult, specifically as a simple retort when one is insulted first; simply say, "Ya mamma." Be prepared to defend yourself physically at this point.
YAMAMMA'N'DEM A collective term for your immediate family, as in "Hey dawlin', how's yamamma'n'dem?" Spoken as one word.
YEAH YOU RITE A sign of definite agreement. The accent is on the first word, and it's spoken as one word.
ZATARAIN'S A local manufacturer of spices, seasonings, pickled products and condiments. In context, it's used by some as a generic term for either crab boil or Creole mustard.
ZINK A receptacle for water with a drain and faucets. Where ya wrench off ya dishes.
Early in the morning, as the sun is rising, stand at the foot of Canal Street and look across the river to Algier's Point. As you squint against the sun in your eyes, you realize that New Orleans must be the only place in the world where the sun rises over the west bank of the river because the west bank is east of the east bank.
To say that New Orleans is different from the rest of the country is to speak a cliche. New Orleanians who travel regularly to other parts of the country have to adjust to culture shock and understand that they may not be able to eat red beans and rice for lunch on Monday in Cincinnati or that there are no neutral grounds dividing streets in Pittsburgh. They have to adjust to being given directions in terms of north, south, east, and west rather than uptown, downtown, toward the lake, and toward the river. Those New Orleanians who rarely journey past Kenner or Slidell nevertheless seem to know inherently that theirs is a special place. Despite depressing reports of the health of the city's economy and business climate, Crescent City natives refuse to leave home merely for better jobs. There is too much here that cannot be transported to Ohio or Missouri or Oregon.
One of the characteristics least likely to survive a move is the New Orleanian's perception of daily life, the view of How Things Really Are. These are, in this unique niche of the world, unique ways of looking at events and sights and sounds.
SIRENS Almost everywhere else in the world a siren is a siren of anxiety or pain or even terror. It is the sound signature of the police car, the fire truck, the ambulance. The sound of a siren on New Orleans streets, especially in February, conjures up excitement, expectation, and an imminent street party. A New Orleans siren means the parade is coming.
RED LIGHT Motorists in other parts of the world refer to this device as a traffic light. The reason the New Orleans red light is so called is obscure. Perhaps it is because the only function of a traffic light is to stop traffic, uncontrolled traffic needing no green light to keep it going. Perhaps it is because stopping for a red light adds to the slower pace of a city called by some The Big Easy. Or perhaps it is because many New Orleans drivers consider the light only a decorative piece, to be noticed in passing but not causing any significant change in the forward movement of their vehicles.
PASS BY Unlike the red light, "pass by" means that you actually stop. (As in, "I'm gonna pass by my Mama's after the Saints game.") This means that you will stop and visit, even have a meal, but not spend the night. If you spend the night, especially if you do it regularly, you may be progressing to the condition of "stayin' by your Mama's."
CEMETERIES A graveyard is a somber, sorrowful place. Deceased family members and friends lie beneath the earth, at rest and in peace, mourned by those who knew and loved them. But the New Orleans departed lie in vaults above the ground where, perhaps, they can better enjoy the sounds of a jazz funeral. Like so much in New Orleans culture, a cemetery is a place of celebration. The flowers and socializing in the cemeteries on All Saints Day may not be unique to New Orleans, but where else can you buy a stick of Roman candy or a couple of pralines from street vendors as you walk away from a November 1st visit with the dead? And certainly no cemetery in Minneapolis, Milwaukee, or Missoula has seen second-liners dancing as the band "cuts him loose" and streets away from the tomb. In New Orleans even the dead party.
UMBRELLA Rain and threatening clouds may come to mind when umbrellas are mentioned, but the New Orleans umbrella is a flag signalling celebration. Second-liners rally to an appropriately decorated umbrella as the children of Hamlin did to the Pied Piper. The umbrella is a street version of a painter's canvas upon which the artist creates with color and sequins, tulle and trinkets.
POOR BOY Of course this is not a male child living in poverty. Maybe if someone used "poor boy" in a conversation in Indianapolis the listener would not think of French bread. But what would the listener think if told that, not only does it mean French bread, but it is also "lotsa fried erysters drippin' wit' my-nez"?
DESIRE This is the dark side of the New Orleans reality. The general meaning of the word has pleasant connotations of enjoyable yearnings or sexual attraction, but the Desire neighborhood of New Orleans is a place of deep poverty, violent crime, and social gloom. Say the word "Desire" to a New Orleanian, and thoughts of fear, desolation, and despair come to mind.
FRIDAYS IN LENT The Second Vatican Council in the 1960's relieved Roman Catholics from the rule prohibiting eating meat on Fridays. The Council did, however, retain the rule for Fridays Lent, the pre-Easter penitential season for Catholics that supplies the justification for Mardi Gras on the day before Lent begins. ("Carnival" is from the Latin "Carne vale," literally "Good-bye to meat.") This prohibition requires New Orleans Catholics to forego hot dogs and chili and, in the spirit of penance and mortification of the flesh, to sustain themselves on those seven Fridays with such penitential fare as crawfish etouffe, soft-shell crabs, barbecued shrimp, and trout amandine. No one said penance couldn't taste good.
FAT Obesity is accepted in New Orleans, somewhat cheerfully, as nothing more than an occupational hazard of eating creole food. The word "fat" may sound ugly to a non-New Orleanian, but such names as Fat City, Fat Tuesday, Fat Harry's Bar, and the great monarch of rhythm and blues, Fats Domino, proclaim fat as a condition worthy of emulation.
THE FLYING HORSES This is the quintessence of the New Orleans idiom and its perspective on reality. Elsewhere "carousel" is the term used, but that word is no more than a generic name for a mechanical device that goes around in a circle. For several generations the carousel in City Park has been known to all who care by the name that signifies fantasy and magic, appropriate images in harmony with the city's spirit of exhilaration and celebration. Ride the flying Horses one evening as dusk matures into twilight and enter into the heart and soul of a kaleidoscope of sight, sound, and color. The Flying Horses are not just a carousel.
The alluvial mud on which New Orleans is built is soil that has been washed away from the heart of the continent. Dreams and fantasies that have been washed away from other places also come to rest here, thrive, propagate, and mutate. There are streets named Piety and Pleasure, Duels and Pirates, Hope and Abundance. The main street of the city is named for a canal that was never dug. The French Quarter consists primarily of Spanish architecture. Spanish Fort at the mouth of Bayou St. John was originally erected by the French. The Crescent City is home to The Church of the Free Mind and the Church of St. Expedite.
It all fuses with the same magic that transforms the day before Ash Wednesday into something quite different from just another Tuesday in winter.
Biophysical Society members who plan to do a little road running while visiting New Orleans should be grateful that they will be here in March, one of our most weather-friendly months (surpassed only by December, January and February). Most area runners put in most of their miles in Audubon Park, City Park, out by the Lakefront, along the levee, and on the bike trails in Metairie and on the North Shore. Only the Audubon and City Parks are convenient to the CBD, and they are not exactly a warm-up away. I'm scouted a few routes that are designed to minimize exposure to high-speed vehicular traffic and scary neighborhoods.
Starting at the foot of Canal Street, run downriver through pedestrian areas of Woldenberg Park and parking lot behind the Jackson Brewery and French Market to Esplanade avenue. Turn left onto the neutral ground (median) of Esplanade and continue to Burgundy Street. If you make it to Rampart, you went too far. Turn left onto Burgundy and proceed to Canal Street. Cross Canal and continue on O'Keefe Avenue to Lafayette Street. Turn left on Lafayette and continue to St. Charles Avenue, cross through Lafayette Park, and continue on Lafayette to Tchoupitoulas Street. Turn left on Tchoupitoulas, return to Canal Street and Finish!
Notes: There really are no good places to run downtown or in
the Quarter due to automobile and pedestrian traffic. However, I have found
that these impediments are an acceptable price for the up-close-and-personal
sampling obtained by running through the heart of an unfamiliar place.
I especially enjoy running in the morning when I visit new cities because
I get to see the regular folks getting about their business, and usually
the pedestrian traffic is minor in tourist areas (of course, I run in the
morning anyway). Beware of New Orleans drivers! Insurance rates
in Louisiana are among the highest in the nation, and its not because we
drive more expensive cars. When running in the Quarter, be conscious of
the one-way directionality of the streets. I suggested you run from Esplanade
to Canal on Burgundy, on which the traffic will be against you. Perhaps
this is better for you to keep an eye on the cars (and horse-drawn buggies)
sharing the road with you, but drivers (almost) stopping at the intersections
will be looking in the direction opposite from your approach. This is especially
true of taxi drivers, who are the only people on earth that have learned
the directionality of French Quarter streets.
Take Lafayette Street to Loyola Avenue; turn left on Loyola to Poydras.
Take Poydras to the Dome. Go up the ramp and run around. The view is not
too shabby, it's possible to stay out of the sun. The food court inside
the New Orleans Center offers a wide variety of refreshments. Water fountains
are next to the bathrooms at the end of the food court furthest from Poydras.
For more information contact:
For comments, questions or suggestions for additions to this page, please
contact
Gilbert Estrada : implant@mailhost.tcs.tulane.edu
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Last updated: 2/24/97 by GJE
