INies from New Orleans?

[anna7602]

I feel like I've seen some, talking about buying Cajun food ingredients abroad and whatnot.

This is me procrastinating, but talk to me about your hometown. Would you live there now if you could? This is about the only city in the U.S. on DH's "wish list" post-our-stint-in-France that I feel like I can seriously consider. (Although what I really want is to just go back to NYC.) I feel like it's more culturally diverse than some of the other places he has on the list, and it has good food, but I have no idea what the economy is like there or quality of living for a family raising a young child. I also wonder how easy it is to fit into/find a new community as an outsider to the city. This last one is a big one for me and one of the reasons I've rejected some of the other cities on the list (including international ones).

Anyone else who is bored or procrastinating, feel free to weigh in on the whole thing.

[allibally]

Well DorothyinAus lived there and I believed grew up there.

I can't weigh in much on New Orleans. But Chicago at times is almost too Multicultural for me to handle. Sometimes it's really fun to branch out at the grocery store or check out the activities. But other times I'm a bit overwhelmed with it. I'm not a big city girl... But the people are pretty welcoming.

I think you totally have valid concerns for a possible move. What were the cities you nixed?

[anna7602]

May 24, 2012 4:35:13 GMT -5 allibally said:

I think you totally have valid concerns for a possible move. What were the cities you nixed?

In the U.S., I nixed Charlottesville & Richmond, VA, and Fayetteville, Arkansas (I am completely zoning out on the abbreviation for that now- AR???). Charlotte, NC was on the "let me think about it" list for a while, but I am a little scared of North Carolina now.

In case you haven't noticed, DH loves the South. However, he has a thing against Atlanta, so that's not up for consideration at all (even though I would consider it). His southern hometown & state are out because we can't live too close to his boundary-ignoring parents.

Internationally, I've only nixed Buenos Aires, for long personal reasons that have nothing to do with how delightful the city itself is.

[allibally]

Oh. I can't say I would be jumping to those locations either.

I'm pretty content in Chicago. I would be pleased to move back to Wisconsin. Otherwise back to Zurich or larger city in Germany would be my other options. I can't see myself living anywhere but the Midwest if we stayed in the US. Maybe to Austin or San Antonio.

[dorothyinAus]

I was born and raised in NOLA. And I would go back in a heartbeat if DH could get a job there and we could get his parents to move with us.

Growing up and living in any city is different from visiting as a tourist, and there are many parts of the city that tourists never see. Locals tend to fall into two categories: those who love the Quarter and those who avoid it like the plague. I fall in the latter. So anything I tell you will tend toward avoiding the Quarter.

As for multi-culturalism, I tell people that in NOLA, you are Catholic by default, as the church festivals and holidays are interwoven with the city's cultural and social calendars -- I miss that. I miss restaurants having Lenten menus (so I don't have to think about where I can get seafood or vegetarian dishes on Fridays, even fast food places run Lenten menus). But All Saints Day and St. Joseph's Day are woven into the city's calendar as well.

I also tell people that New Orleans takes cultures and absorbs them into the fabric of the city. DH once asked me where "China Town" was in NOLA. And the truth is, there isn't one. Everyone lives together. There are not really cultural sections to the City. There were at one time, but not anymore. The only remnant of the cultural areas is an area of Uptown called The Irish Channel, which was, originally where the Irish lived. Now it's a hip transitional area. NOLA is a city of neighborhoods -- Uptown, Bywater, Faubourg Maringy, Lakeview, Carrollton, Algiers, etc. The neighborhood define the inhabitants, but there are really not cultural delineations to the city, it's all geographical.

I would definitely recommend living in NOLA. It's like no other place on earth. I haven't lived in Europe, but many people describe NOLA as being European in feel and attitude. The biggest drawbacks to the city to me are the massive humidity -- many days are right at 100% humidity (and yes, it is possible to have 100% humidity and it not rain), and the possibility of hurricanes. Living though Katrina has really left me with PTSD as far as the weather is concerned. But I would move home if it were at all feasible.

I've written a book. I'm happy to answer any questions, give local tips, discuss the best areas to live, the best schools (and you would want to send you children to private/Catholic schools, public schools are not good -- and you do not have to be Catholic to send your children to Catholic schools, many of the girls in my high school class were not Catholic). I can even tell you the best places to catch parades near clean restrooms on Mardi Gras Day.

[anna7602]

Wow, Dorothy, you've pretty much expanded on all the reasons DH thinks I would love NOLA (except he would also throw in its port city resemblance to Havana, my ancestral home).

Ok, good food for thought. Thank you!

[dorothyinAus]

May 24, 2012 5:22:54 GMT -5 anna7602 said:

Wow, Dorothy, you've pretty much expanded on all the reasons DH thinks I would love NOLA (except he would also throw in its port city resemblance to Havana, my ancestral home).

Ok, good food for thought. Thank you!

Ohh, I can help with that too. There is a fairly large Cuban community -- nothing like Miami, but still, there are a good number of Cubans.