You don’t have to have a fortune to live like royalty in New Orleans, just an active imagination and the inclination to walk a lot. There are tons of free and budget-friendly things to do – if you have an idea of where to look. The New Orleans Convention & Visitors Bureau has a bunch:
- Open up your ears and amble along Bourbon or Frenchman and let the jazz just wash over you, seemingly from every door. Revel in the street musicians. There’s talent aplenty arrayed along French Quarter streets.
- Properly primed, head for the New Orleans Jazz National Park at 916 N. Peters Street and learn about the roots of the music. You’ll appreciate it that much more.
- Head to the City that Care Forgot in the fall and drink in the ambiance of one of the world’s great urban enclaves – Audubon Park. Less well known, but with magnificent vistas of the mighty Mississippi, is Woldenberg Park.
- New Orleans is more than jazz, great food and recovery from Katrina. Come see the forces – natural and man-made – that have shaped this unique city for almost 300 years. You’ll get more than a primer on the subject at the Historic New Orleans Collection. It’s located at 533 Royal Street.
- If you’re in town during the summertime (that’s low season in hot, humid southern Louisiana) treat yourself to a free Friday show at Tipitina’s. The place pays homage to jazz legend Professor Longhair.
- Learn how the Creole masters cook at free cooking classes. You’ll find them at the Crescent City Farmers Market. This is the kind of place where one’s nose takes the lead and the rest of you just naturally follows. The market is open Saturday mornings.
- The best we leave for last. Get a good guidebook and explore the paths of the dead – specifically Cemetery #1 in the Garden District or St. Louis Cemetery #1 on Basin Street. Walk softly.
(Image: prayitno)
