It feels like home…

New Orleans has always been a home away from home for us. It’s not the history or old facades but the citizens that make this special place so very inviting.

This was exhibited one afternoon as we waited for the St. Charles Streetcar. The humidity hung in the air and the sky was black. A well dressed woman in her mid-seventies approached us. She crossed the street from the historic gated Audubon Place residences. She asked, “Where we were going and if we needed a ride?” This stranger did not know us from Adam! She said, “The skies are going to open up any minute and that baby and you are going to be drenched!” I thanked her and commented that we were not made of sugar thus we would not melt. She continued to stand with us chatting, golf umbrella in hand, until our streetcar arrived. She was the epitome on southern charm.


These small encounters where the constant theme during our stay in the Crescent City. Strangers wandered into our conversations and brightened our days. One evening a local woman joined us as we finished our meal at Irene's. She talked to Brase as he babbled with inflection and expression. She sat with us for an hour as we all chatted. On her insistence, we also exchanged cards. She showed genuine interest in our family.


Most people cannot see past the hoards of tourist or Bourbon Street. They experience a New Orleans far from the one we are acquainted. This is a place that makes us step back and take a deep breath. It’s a city that feels like home and welcomes us with open arms.

On another note...
As we wandered around Jackson Square, we searched and inquired about our artist acquaintance, Nancy Davis.  She was never found.