Assumptions

I realize that my assumptions about urban settings are most likely very typical and stereotypical, especially my assumptions about New Orleans. I have a romanticized version of New Orleans in my mind, but I know that it is most probably not the case. I gave my descriptions about general urban settings based off of my few trips to downtown Chicago. I have been to downtown Chicago and downtown St. Louis multiple times, but for some reason I have it in my mind that New Orleans is much different. Perhaps I think this because New Orleans is in a completely different part of the country, and the culture may be different there than here in the Midwest. Every urban setting is different, and I had it in my mind that New Orleans is more similar to Dublin, Ireland than a city like Chicago or New York. When I went to Dublin 3 years ago, I was shocked to see that the tallest buildings there could not have been more than five or six stories tall. Every building seemed to be different, and there was unique and interesting architecture everywhere. Also, it seemed like there was a piece of history around every corner. From the few pictures I have seen of New Orleans, and hearing about all of the history there, I was immediately reminded of Dublin. This is why I described New Orleans as I did in my previous blog post. This is also why I realize my assumptions are most likely wrong because every city is different, and I cannot picture any city like Dublin here in the United States.
I honestly feel as if I do not know very much about New Orleans. I have seen many pictures of the most iconic places in New Orleans, talked to a couple people who have been there, and I have watched a few shows involving the supposedly haunted places in the city. Other than that, I feel like I have much more research to do prior to the trip so I can get the full experience out of it. One of the assumptions I made was New Orleans is not as modern as other cities, and I made this assumption because I was thinking of all the history there that is hopefully preserved. I know that this assumption is most likely entirely not accurate, and I am excited to see for myself how right or wrong I am. As for my assumption about people in New Orleans being more friendly than those in Chicago, that remains to be seen. It is unfair to judge an entire population of a city of course, but from my past experiences it seems as though people in cities are more on edge than most. I am looking forward to looking back on these posts and realizing how right or wrong I was. I know that most of my assumptions are most likely romanticized in some way, but I am very excited for this trip nonetheless.