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The Krewe of Boo

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on October 15, 2009 10:30 AM | Comments (0)

Mardi Gras has been synonymous with New Orleans for over 150 years, but the man behind some of the most stalwart traditions of Fat Tuesday is trying to change his city from a one-holiday town. Blaine Kern, the owner of Kern Studios, which produces 80 percent of the floats that zigzag through the city throughout Mardi Gras season, is on a mission to make New Orleans the nation's new Halloween capital. In 2007, he started the Krewe of Boo, a month-long series of events that culminates in a huge all-out Halloween parade. "We have cemeteries, voodoo parlors, haunted houses, and Gothic architecture," Kern said recently, enumerating the city's many creepy assets. With all that spooky stuff, it was a no-brainer for him to launch a new parade and encourage visitors to take part in the costumed revelry.

But the root of Kern's efforts isn't simply a passion for goblins and ghouls. He created the event as a way to raise money for his charity, The First Responders Fund, which helps house and support the city's fire, EMS, and police departments, many of which are still recovering from the impact of Katrina. "I found out that after Katrina most of the police were going home to trailers at night," Kern says. "The only way I know how to raise money [is to throw a parade]. " He has partnered with the Salvation Army and plans to construct 10 homes for first responders in the Algiers neighborhood of the city this year. This year's parade will be held on October 24th, at 7 p.m., followed by the annual Costume Exposé. Tickets to the party are $100, and all proceeds from both events go toward the fund.

[Krewe of Boo]

Photo: Krewe of Boo

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Cultural Recovery in New Orleans

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Susanne Hackett

on July 7, 2009 10:10 AM | Comments (2)

At this year's annual Jazz Fest in New Orleans, representatives from the four main industries of Louisiana's cultural economy--music, food, art, and film--gathered for a roundtable discussion on how their unique cultural heritage holds the key to economic recovery and growth in the region. With Lt. Governor Mitch Landrieu as the host, local luminaries such as Grammy-winning musician Terrance Simien, chef John Besh, folklorist and radio host Nick Spitzer, and artist James Michalopoulos shared their perspectives on how to keep local cultural traditions alive while building sustainable livelihoods.

A couple of themes emerged, such as the necessity of collaboration among the various industries, which is critical to the success of the whole cultural economy. Richard McCarthy, who runs the Crescent City Farmers Market, spoke of his partnership with chef John Besh to build relationships between local farmers and the city's renowned restaurants. The role of local government in both creating the space for cultural activity and providing economic incentives for cultural development was another important theme, with the most notable example being the tax incentives which have fueled Louisiana's burgeoning film industry.

I left the roundtable inspired by the creative synergy I witnessed among the panelists. As the region rebuilds from the devastation of Hurricane Katrina, it seems that New Orleans will be, as Nick Spitzer noted, "even greater than it was before." This is a destination to keep an eye on.

Video: Susanne Hackett

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Preview: The WWII Museum's New Wing

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IT Blog

on June 5, 2009 12:40 PM | Comments (5)

In recognition of the anniversary of D-Day Amelia Mularz offers a glimpse of the new wing of the National World War II museum in New Orleans.

Tomorrow marks the 65th anniversary of the D-Day invasion, and while most thoughts will be directed towards the shores of Normandy, I can't help but set my sights on a coastline a little closer to home, New Orleans.

As if you needed another reason to visit the Big Easy, the city's National WWII Museum is in the midst of a $300 million renovation. The massive project, which will quadruple the size of the current museum, is set for completion in 2015. But overanxious museum-goers (myself included) can breathe easy--the first three attractions will open as early as November 6th of this year.

One such attraction is the Victory Theater, a 250-seat space with a 120-ft-wide and 30-ft-tall screen. So what film could possibly be worthy of such an incredible theater? Beyond All Boundaries, a WWII documentary produced by Tom Hanks and exclusive to the Victory Theater, fits the bill. Hollywood's latest slew of 3D movies has nothing on Boundaries, which uses 4D technology. Beginning with the attack on Pearl Harbor, the movie screen literally grows as the US plunges into war. Later, seats rumble and in-theater weather effects transport audience members from the jungles of the Pacific, to the blistering cold of the Battle of the Bulge...much more intense than a pair of glasses.

Afterwards, decompress at the Stage Door Canteen, another feature set to open in November. Rock out to Big Band tunes and catch a glimpse of swing dancers in the new museum cafe, modeled after the original morale-boosting canteens of the 1940s. While Lauren Bacall won't be available for a jitterbug or Mickey Rooney for a joke, but there will be plenty of live performances, cocktails, and a bite to eat.

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The House of Dance and Feathers

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Janelle Nanos

on May 26, 2009 2:21 PM | Comments (0)

The corrugated tin roof of the House of Dance and Feathers slopes up like a jaunty cap over the glass-paneled building in Ronald K. Lewis' backyard. "Everything in this building has a story," says Lewis, as he pushed open the door to the museum he curates behind his Lower Ninth Ward home. Inside, the walls, ceiling, tables and floor are all lined with relics from the Mardi Gras Indian "tribes" that live in the area. There are intricately-beaded panels from Indian costumes, and huge fans and plumes of feathers dangling from the rafters. Photographs cover almost every available inch of wall space, and piles of books are stacked on the tables. You begin asking questions, and patiently, Lewis takes the time to share the stories inside.

House of Dance and Feathers has been Lewis' passion since 2000, when is started as a shed where he taught local children about the area's culture. A retired streetcar conductor, today Lewis is the president of the Big Nine Social and Pleasure Club and the former Council Chief of the Choctaw Hunters. His museum celebrates the history of the Mardi Gras Indians in the Lower Ninth Ward, and since Katrina, has become a small ray of hope within a community that is still struggling to recover. (When I arrived during my visit, the home next door to Lewis' was empty, and still bore the telltale cross that signified whether a body had been found by rescue crews).

"When Katrina came, I wanted to rebuild and become a beacon within my community," says Lewis. "It gave me a venue to tell the world what happened to us. Three and a half years later we're pushing forward. We're trying to do anything we can do to keep the glue within our community."

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I Heart My City: Erin's New Orleans

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IT Blog

on March 23, 2009 5:00 PM | Comments (2)

Hello, city-lovers! Today's Southern city is New Orleans, which just wrapped up its Mardi Gras celebrations a few weeks ago. Read below to find out Erin Krall's favorite picks around Crescent City.

Want to see your hometown on IT? Copy and paste our list of fill-in-the-blank questions into an e-mail, fill in your answers, and send your responses to IntelligentTravel@ngs.org. And if you're still waiting for us to feature yours, fear not! We're attempting to post them as fast as we can (include photos and links!).

New Orleans is My City

The first place I take a visitor from out of town is the local bar in my neighborhood, The Avenue. It's my home away from home, and a friendly place that is a great, authentic introduction to our daily life here.

When I crave a perfect New Orleans setting with great food, history, drinks and service I always go to Napoleon House.

To escape the frustrating urban issues that come with city life I head to City Park, an oasis of tropical birds and vegetation.

If I want to relax in the heart of downtown (the CBD) I go to the Piazza D'Italia.

For complete quiet, I can hide away in Crescent City Books, a used bookstore with two floors of great finds to hunt through and relax on a coach over looking Chartres Street in the French Quarter.

If you have to order one thing off the menu from K-Paul's Louisiana Kitchen (Paul Prudhomme's restaurant) it has to be the Shrimp Remoulade and Fried Green Tomatoes appetizer.

Zara's is my one-stop shop for great local groceries and over-stuffed po' boys, plate lunches, and other local dishes served at a counter in the back of this small corner grocery.

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Mardi Gras Moments: Irrational Geographic

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Janelle Nanos

on March 2, 2009 4:35 PM | Comments (2)

IT Editor Janelle Nanos has been blogging about her behind-the-scenes Mardi Gras Moments for the past few weeks, and she and a few other Traveler staffers went down to New Orleans to document the celebration.

While wandering the streets of New Orleans with the Societé de Sainte Anne parade, we National Geographic folk stumbled upon Danielle King, a photographer who was costumed as... a National Geographic photographer. Wearing a thick blonde mustache and a pith hat and vest, she carried around our iconic yellow border (cut from the pages of an actual magazine). Her project was called "Irrational Geographic," and she attempted to photograph both the wildlife, and the wild life, of the Mardi Gras experience. She snapped my portrait and I passed her my card, and lo and behold, a gallery of images arrived in my inbox a few days later. I loved them so much I just had to share them here, and asked King to explain the project in her own words.

Her e-mail after the jump.

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Mardi Gras Moments: The Societé de Sainte Anne

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Janelle Nanos

on February 27, 2009 5:10 PM | Comments (3)

IT Editor Janelle Nanos has been blogging about her behind-the-scenes Mardi Gras Moments for the past few weeks, and this past weekend, she and a few other Traveler staffers went down to New Orleans to document the celebration.

After weeks of blogging about Mardi Gras, I set off to see it for myself, along with fellow Traveler staffers photo editor Krista Rossow and our business manager and resident videographer Susanne Hackett. Even though I'd done a fair share of reporting before I arrived, I still wasn't sure what to expect when we got there. I realized this was in part because of the pre-conceived notions so many people had when we talked to them about our trip. There is a stereotypical way to go to New Orleans and experience Mardi Gras, and it involves a lot of beads and booze, so when you tell people you're going, there is an almost knee-jerk reaction to roll eyes. But what we saw and experienced was, at the risk of sounding cliché, actually quite magical.

Perhaps it was a sign that our friend, who hosted us this weekend, has a costume closet in his basement. I'm not sure if this is a normal occurrence in other cities, but was perfectly natural in New Orleans, where the entire city seems to suspend reality and recreate itself over the course of the Carnival season. So within moments of dropping off our bags, we were whisked away to a costume party on the evening we arrived. The following day, as we stood on the sidelines of Sunday's parades, we came to coin the term "bead greed" as we stretched our hands up at the masked krewe-members on the floats, hoping to snatch another bauble. Between breaks in the parades, we wandered to the side streets to watch a smaller gaggle of people celebrate the arrival of the krewe of Bacchus, named for the god of wine, by having their own costumed Box of Wine parade. It was a vino-spectacle. When Bacchus began to actually roll, our necks quickly grew to ache as we collected our treasures (what to do with them now is the bigger question), but by night's end we and fellow Traveler researcher Rachael Dunlap were at Le Bon Temps Roule listening to the fantastic brass band Soul Rebels, who worked the crowd into a frenzy under the watchful gaze of an alligator portrait. One day of Mardi Gras can feel like it has chapters, and you start to forget where and when you began in the first place.

But that wasn't even the beginning.

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Mardi Gras Moments: Lundi Gras

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Janelle Nanos

on February 25, 2009 5:20 PM | Comments (2)

IT Editor Janelle Nanos has been blogging about her behind-the-scenes Mardi Gras Moments for the past few weeks, and this weekend, she and a few other Traveler staffers went down to New Orleans to document the celebration. We're busy downloading photos and videos to give you a glimpse of the Carnival spirit, but today offer a snippet from Lundi Gras, the Monday before Fat Tuesday.

If there's one thing I learned this weekend, it's that Mardi Gras is a marathon, not a sprint. That applies both literally--in the fact that sneakers are a must, and the ground we covered could easily be close to 26 miles--and figuratively, as there is so much happening that trying to do it all could result in exhaustion. But while the party is in a slow boil over the course of the last few days, the night of Lundi Gras, or the Monday before Mardi Gras, is when the party officially begins. At 6 p.m. on the city's Riverfront, there is an annual event to announce who will be Rex, the King of Carnival. This ceremonial position is often bestowed to a local businessman or bigwig within the community, and the mayor actually cedes control of the city to Rex for the day. Rex and the king of Zulu then have a ceremonial meeting, and the two men and their queens stir up the crowd as they announce the official start to Mardi Gras. Here's a glimpse of Mayor Ray Nagin handing over control to Rex.

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Mardi Gras Moments: Handa Wanda's

By

Janelle Nanos

on February 23, 2009 4:30 PM | Comments (2)

Last month, IT Editor Janelle Nanos traveled to New Orleans to explore the culture and traditions of Mardi Gras. For four days, she spoke with the people behind the masks -- the ones who help make the celebration happen -- to get their stories and insider tips. She's been blogging about her experiences throughout the month, and is there now experiencing the celebration firsthand. You can read through all of the Mardi Gras Moments featured so far.

I've been talking a lot about the Mardi Gras Indians, and now that I'm actually down here, I'm really excited to see them tomorrow live and in person. But I did get a sneak peek while I was here in January, by visiting the Indian practice at Handa Wanda's. Located in Central City, the club (and the nearby Yia Cafe, where the practice was held the night we visited) is not the safest part of town. But if you're smart and don't wander too far away from the club, it's a terrific opportunity to get a glimpse of the Indian experience, particularly for anyone who comes down to New Orleans when it's not in the full throes of the Carnival season.

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Mardi Gras Moments: The Little Shop of Fantasy

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Janelle Nanos

on February 18, 2009 4:50 PM | Comments (3)

Last month, IT Editor Janelle Nanos traveled to New Orleans to explore the culture and traditions of Mardi Gras. For four days, she spoke with the people behind the masks -- the ones who help make the celebration happen -- to get their stories and insider tips. She'll be blogging about her experiences through February 24th, when the party culminates. Check back for more Mardi Gras Moments.

It's hard not to feel like you're being watched when you enter the home and workshop of sisters Laura and Ann Guccione. Push open the two wooden doors to their 1830s-era Creole cottage, and you'll find yourself in a room covered floor-to-ceiling in gorgeous, intricate, dazzingly delicate masks, depicting the likes of Marie Antoinette, jesters, cats, clowns, and other facades made from leather, wire, feathers, papier-mâché and even silverware. And they're watching your every move.

The two sisters got started in mask-making when their mother, a nurse, cared for a local merchant Mark Stark, who was renowned in the French Quarter for his feathered masks. They began working with him in his shop, The Little Shop of Fantasy, while he recovered, and eventually they came to help run the store, taking it over in 1998 when he died. Growing up in the city, they had always wanted to have a shop in the Quarter, but after Katrina, their overhead costs grew too steep, so now the two sisters make and sell their masks, alongside a collection of amazing masks from over 35 artists, out of their home. The mask-making community is a small one, and the sisters believe they are the only remaining mask-makers who still live in the city.

"The costume starts with the mask," Ann explains of the Mardi Gras tradition, which stems from the belief that in the final hours before the Lenten season begins, the mask allows for you to become more uninhibited and fully enjoy the last moments of fun. She says that people will often email them with their costume ideas and make requests for orders months before the celebration begins. Prices range from $35-$200 for a mask, with the average being about $80. You can visit their shop by appointment, where you can see the confluence of glitter and feathers and industrial glue guns and bizarre face-shaped molds they use for their creations. When I visited them in January, they had about 50 masks to make by Mardi Gras. "We're pretty much covered in glitter" throughout the season, said Laura.

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The Mardi Gras Moments Map

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IT Blog

on February 17, 2009 2:10 PM | Comments (0)

Those of you who have been enjoying our Mardi Gras Moments, or who are planning a trip to the Big Easy for Fat Tuesday, check out our new interactive map highlighting the ways the locals celebrate in New Orleans.

Have your own recommendations? Let us know in the comments, below.

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Mardi Gras Moments: Locals Know Best

By

IT Blog

on February 13, 2009 3:45 PM | Comments (0)

For the past few days, IT editor Janelle Nanos has been blogging about her Mardi Gras Moments. But today she cedes the floor to our photo intern Jenn Blatty, a New Orleans native who has been to more celebrations that she can count. Here's her take on where to catch the festivities -- and stay tuned for her list of things NOT to do on the big day.

While Mardi Gras is a once in a lifetime "must do," it can be quite the overwhelming experience for everyone, even the New Orleans locals. If you want to avoid the standard chaos of the tourists, avoid the French Quarter altogether. The place to be is in uptown New Orleans, on St. Charles Street in the Garden District area. It offers a little more of the easygoing "laissez les bon temps roulez" (let the good times roll) temperament of the natives without the pushing and shoving that you are more likely to experience downtown. The corner of Napoleon and St. Charles is a perfect starting point: from there you can walk to plenty of local hangouts and good eats (Parasol's, Fat Harry's, Igor's, Superior Grill), and even explore the historic Garden District homes or one of the famous New Orleans cemeteries, Lafayette Cemetery #1. And if you like making new friends, you may even find yourself joining a local house party and catching beads above the crowds from a St. Charles Street balcony.

But for those of you who are tempted to stick your toe in the madness without taking the full plunge, ensure you hit Frenchmen Street in the Marigny. It's a perfect blend of the tourists who stumble over on foot from Bourbon Street, and the locals who just point blank love to go there for the live music and good times.

Photo: Jenn Blatty

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Mardi Gras Moments: The Backstreet Cultural Museum

By

Janelle Nanos

on February 12, 2009 5:45 PM | Comments (1)

Last month, IT Editor Janelle Nanos traveled to New Orleans to explore the culture and traditions of Mardi Gras. For four days, she spoke with the people behind the masks -- the ones who help make the celebration happen -- to get their stories and insider tips. She'll be blogging about her experiences through February 24th, when the party culminates. Check back for more Mardi Gras Moments throughout the coming weeks.

The Backstreet Cultural Museum deceives upon first glance - its rather plain-looking appearance from the street belies a rainbow of colors that peacock inside. Step through the doors of this eclectic museum and you'll find some of the most fascinating glimpses into the African-American Mardi Gras traditions, from the dazzling feathered costumes of the Mardi Gras Indians, to a detailed photographic history of Jazz Funerals, Second Lines, and the area's Social Aid and Pleasure Clubs. The entire museum has been the life's work of Sylvester Francis, who has devoted most of his adult life to taking photos of the Mardi Gras celebrations.

A bit of a backstory: There is no single event during Mardi Gras, and no single place to take part in the revelry. In the Tremé section of town, you'll find the historically black, "Under the Bridge" Mardi Gras celebration, and this is where you'll also come across one of the biggest spectacles around - the Mardi Gras Indians.

The history of the Indians is said to have developed from the time when African-American slaves ran away from their owners and were helped by the American Indians who lived in the region. To pay tribute to their support, families would create tribes of their own, and assign members to different roles. If you attend the parade today, you'll see the Chief, who's often the head of the family, and the Wildman, who's there to protect the chief (they typically wear horns). Then there's the trail or "second" who walks behind the chief to protect his back. There are Spyman, Queens and even children that participate as Little Chiefs and Wildmen. If you watch the crowd, you'll probably see a stroller or two decked out in feathers.

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Mardi Gras Moments: The Krewe of Zulu

By

Janelle Nanos

on February 4, 2009 2:20 PM | Comments (4)

Last month, IT Editor Janelle Nanos traveled to New Orleans to explore the culture and traditions of Mardi Gras. For four days, she spoke with the people behind the masks -- the ones who help make the celebration happen -- to get their stories and insider tips. She'll be blogging about her experiences through February 24th, when the official party begins. Check back for more Mardi Gras Moments throughout the coming weeks.

Larry Roy, the Minister of Fun for the Krewe of Zulu, at the official opening of the "Tramps to Kings" exhibit.

A few weeks ago, I went down to New Orleans to scope out the start to the Mardi Gras season. It was just a few days after Twelfth Night, when the season officially begins, and the city was already beginning to buzz. After arriving at the airport, I explained to my cabbie that it was my first visit to NOLA, and as he drove me into town he mentioned that the "only thing this city is serious about is having fun."

So I wasn't all that surprised to meet my two friends waiting for me in my hotel lobby, who urged me to hustle and get dressed - we had partying to do. I happened to arrive on the night of the opening of the new "Tramps to Kings" Zulu exhibit at the Louisiana State Museum, and so we hurried to the center of the French Quarter, where a celebration was in progress in Jackson Square. By the times we arrived, a jazz band had the audience swinging their hips, the warm night air had people spilling into the streets, and I'd already met a half-dozen locals who had welcomed me to town - and I'd only been in town for all of 20 minutes. I felt a little bit like when Annie arrives at Daddy Warbucks's mansion, and hummed a few lines of, "I think I'm going to like it here."

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