Arrival Part 2

Everything is not always as it seems. That is the biggest lesson I learned from arriving in New Orleans and exploring on my first day. Upon first seeing the city from across Lake Pontchartrain, it looked like any other major city in the United States. All I could see from far away was the gray skyscrapers. When I arrived in the French Quarter I realized how wrong I was. It was the exact opposite of the typical major urban setting. As I mentioned in one of my first posts, when I thought of New Orleans I imagined Dublin, Ireland. I thought I would be very wrong in my assumptions, but as it turns out, I was not too far off. From what little I saw of the French Quarter I was reminded of Dublin is many ways. The streets are narrow, the buildings are different colors and they are also not very tall, and there are small shops and cafes everywhere.
The French Quarter gave me this intense feeling of wanting to explore every nook and cranny. It was almost as if there were hidden secrets just waiting to be discovered. I felt this way in Ireland, but I have not felt it again until now. This strange desire of mine was met during the historical ghost tour. I may have just walked right past the buildings that were mentioned on the tour, and I would have never known some of the happenings that went on there. Most of the buildings looked completely normal. Again, everything is not always as it seems.
I am in the process of trying to learn and understand the beliefs here in New Orleans. It seems to be more difficult than I thought because there are so many different cultures and people that are here today. For the most part I have learned that they value individuality, religion/spirituality, and family. That does not mean that everyone in New Orleans values these things, but those seem to be the most important that I have gathered so far.
In my assumptions about New Orleans, I speculated that New Orleans could not differ too much from Peoria because it is in the same country. I have learned that I am very wrong, and I learned this on the very first night. This is not a bad thing at all, in fact I believe that it is a good thing. While waiting for our table outside of Pierre Maspero's, I said that New Orleans feels like Disney World, except it is the real thing. The buildings are real and have historical significance. This city has been here for a very long time, and it is definitely not here just for show.

Supposedly haunted courtyard

LaLaurie House