My big conference for work is in New Orleans this year, so I’m looking for advice on how to spend my free time while I’m there. Unfortunately, the free time is mostly Sunday morning/early afternoon, and Wednesday morning (I’m there the last week of April). I’ll have some free time in the evening, but groups form and I usually just tag along. I’m looking for stuff to do on my own. Is there a good museum in town (yes, I know, New Orleans is a world-class city, so it must have a great museum or two, I want to know whether the art museum is better than the natural history museum or if the historical center has enough to keep someone who is not into battles interested, or if there’s some cool little toy museum or medical oddity museum that shouldn’t be missed). How about an art gallery or two (preferable one with at least some modestly priced stuff–I like to look at what I’d like to be able to buy, but I like to buy, too)? A Sunday morning Dixieland Jazz Gospel hour? A park to wander through while I break my fast with whatever New Orleans morning delicacy you’re going to tell me I must have? Just keep in mine–I’m a tourist, but I’m a tourist with class. Any suggestions will be appreciated.
Medical oddities? There’s the Pharmacy museum right in the Quarter. That’s pretty interesting. It also has a fair bit of old optometry stuff.
Sunday morning, go to the original Cafe Du Monde in the French Quarter. Sip cafe au lait and eat beignets, and people watch. You can go there before you head over to the Pharmacy museum. 
Then for lunch you can go to Central Grocery and get a muffelata (they are huge sandwicheds with lots of meat and olive spread - get a 1/4 of one)
I believe they have a jazz brunch on Sundays at The Court of Two Sisters on Royal. That’s usually pretty good. Just walk around the Quarter. It’s very historical and always entertaining.
Seems like the last week of April is the beginning of Jazz Fest, so there might be some crowds.
There’s a really nice aquarium by the riverside…try to avoid going first thing in the morning during the week, though–it’s full of noisy kids on school fieldtrips.
Good, good, just the kind of ideas I was looking for. I believe my hotel (the Fairmont) is close to the French Quarter, so I do intend to walk around that area.
Morgainelf, a beignet was exactly the delicacy I was looking for–I’ve heard of them and they sound marvelous, but can I have a mocha instead of a cafe au lait–or that gauche? Of course, lost4life’s jazz brunch also sounds good, as does DeVena’s mufflelata–although I’m not big on olive spread.
In the non-food catagory, thanks for the tip on the aquarium, yawndave, I’m fond of aquariums, so this is a contender. And UncleBeer, I’m not sure where I came up with the idea of medical oddities, but the Pharmacy museum sounds kind of interesting.
More ideas are welcome.
A second on the Aquarium of the Americas. I could spend a whole day there. If you get bored with the fishies (and other cool stuff like the white alligator), they do have an IMAX theater.
The river is literally right outside the doors of the aquarium. It’s nice to just sit and relax on the benches that are on the walkway by the river (or spread a blanket on the grass behind it) after too much drinking/museum visiting/whatever-tires-you-out.
You can get a mocha with your beignets. The last time I was at the beignet place at the mall the cashier looks at me and says, “Mocha?” Apparently I look like somebody who works in the mall. Beignets are ADDICTIVE, let me warn you. The powdered sugar is messy but oh so worth it.
I haven’t had them at the shop in the Quarter but there are Cafe du Mondes here and there around town. Oh, YUMMY…
The zoo is great if you like zoos. It’s not very big, and there’s lots of trees and it’s very flat and the habitats are good. The white alligators are WEIRD but cool. You can even catch a boat from right near the aquarium to ride to the zoo on! I don’t know the details but I’ve seen it out and about.
Actually there is a great exhibit beginning April 12th at the New Orleans Museum of Art in City Park. It’s called “Jefferson’s America, Napoleon’s France”. I am very excited about it.
It is for the Louisiana Purchse bicentennial celebration.
Check this out.
http://www.noma.org/html_docs/coming.html
Here’s a better website.
Although I understand the lure of the mocha (mmmmm…mocha), to get the true Cafe du Monde experience, cafe au lait is the way to go. whiterabbit is right, they may look at you funny.
She didn’t look at me funny. And I HATE cafe au lait. I was just picking up an order to take them home, anyway…they do have other things on the menu. The first time I ate beignets I got hot chocolate and no funny looks.
Oops, let me specify – they have other drinks on the menu. Nothing else but beignets.
Lyra, the Jefferson/Napoleon stuff looks just great, and the rest of the museum sounds cool as well. I have a tendency to lose myself in museums (timewise, at least), so going the NOMA may rule out the other places, but I’m loving getting all these options!
lost4life mentioned a Jazz Fest–anyone know where I could get info on that event ( or more likely, series of events)? Sounds like it could be a good evening outing after they let up out of the conference.
Here’s a few great links:
http://www.experienceneworleans.com/events.html
http://www.auduboninstitute.org/fhome.htm
The second link has information about Jazz Fest.
And I always suggest to everyone, visit club 360 (formerly known as Top of the Mart). It is the 33rd? (I think) floor of the New Orleans World Trade Center. Located right across from Harrah’s Casino in the Quarter Area. It’s a bar that has a great view of the city, it rotates 360 degrees in an hour. If you are nervous about the rotating, it goes very slow and you hardly notice you are moving. Also, the whole place doesn’t rotate, just a wide section. This place is wonderful, to sit back, have a glass of wine and watch the city light up.
Jazzfest runs Thursday through Sunday during the day out at the racetrack.
But the really good thing about the fest is that most of the artists play night gigs whilst they’re there – try to get a guide to where folks are playing.
New Orleans is a night town – that’s when the good stuff happens there. So try to budget your sleep such that at least from time to time you can stay out late and catch the music. Even if you can’t actually go to the fest, you’re unbelievably lucky to be down there while it’s going on.
Also, I third the Aquarium of the Americas. The Amazon exhibit is excellent, and I learned a lot about GoM biosystems. Even if the whole thing is sponsored by the petroleum and chemical companies.
Oh ma gawd! Thats an assault on theology and geometry!
Kallessa, pick up a copy of A Confederacy of Dunces by John Kennedy Toole and read it before you come down. It captures the essence of N’awlins like nothing I have ever read. The city is a magnet for kooks and this book reflects that.
As far as sights and sounds, it all depends on what you’re in to. But since you mentioned museums, don’t pass up the D-Day Museum. Its world class.
More great suggestions and links–thanks y’all, I think I’m going to have fun in the city. Just wish I didn’t have to go to all the pesky little “plenary speeches” and “industry break-out groups” otherwise known as the conference. I’d sneak out, but the other lawyer from my office is a stickler for attendence, and he’d rat me out. I mean, most of the conference is great, I learn good stuff, but some of it is fluff or not applicable to what I do, or designed to inspire, and I’d rather be a a museum or listening to jazz or eating at a sidewalk cafe. Of course, it’s still a free trip to new Orleans, so the whining is a bit much.
Well, I don’t like milk, except in cereal. If that makes me some sort of heretic, so be it. I’ve never liked milk in my coffee anyway, even when I would drink milk.