NEW ORLEANS Some Information Take Notes!

French Quarter Aka Vieux Carré (Old Square). The Spanish ruled from 1762 to 1800 –two fires almost destroyed the French Quarter. –The first in 1788 burned over 850 structures –another 200 were lost in –Rebuilding was done in the Spanish style with wrought iron balconies and central courtyards.

Mardi Gras Mardi Gras Day is on Tuesday: before Ash Wednesday and the beginning of Lent. Mardi Gras came to New Orleans through its French heritage in Mardi Gras means "Fat Tuesday" and is celebrated on that day of the week. The date can fall between February 3 and March 9, depending on the Lunar calendar. Colors were chosen in 1872 by the King of Carnival, Rex. He chose the following: –Purple represents justice –green stands for faith –gold stands for power

CAJUN/CREOLE "South Louisiana cuisine." Creole cultural mix of West-European, African, Caribbean and native Indian African and Caribbean roots Began in the early 1700s in New Orleans; eventually found its way along the bayous of South Louisiana. Cajun Most popular dish is rice with gravy A real Cajun apparently can look at a field of rice and know how much gravy it takes to cover it all and when it is all cooked There are 3 things to know about the gravy prepared in South Louisiana: 1.IT IS BROWN 2.GOOD GRAVY DOEAN’T COME FROM A LITTLE BAG, IT IS MADE FROM THE DRIPPINGS OF MEAT COOKED SLOWLY OVER A LOW FIRE. 3.IT IS THICK

French Huguenots "House-worshipper" or "House fellowship". French Protestants who were Calvinists (1550) Calvinists were firm believers in education, and boys and girls alike were taught to read and write Faced with religious persecution, the Huguenots, began leaving France in large numbers during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. Having faced so much bloodshed in Europe due to religious persecution, the Huguenots had no desire to stand out and adopted to the Dutch culture very quickly.

BOURBON STREET People are continuously having a good time on Bourbon street and you will find everything from five-star hotels to strip clubs on it. All day and all night there are people partying up and down the street. It was named to honor the great ruling dynasty of the time, The Bourbons. It was one New Orleans first streets. When thought of, Bourbon Street conjures thoughts of happiness and nonstop sensory pleasure.

PRESERVATION HALL Known as “the house that jazz built” Is at 726 St. Peter Street. Built in 1750 as a private residence and serving as a tavern during the War of 1812 Preservation Hall was purchased by Allan and Sandra Jaffe in 1961.

Lake Pontchartrain Brackish lake in Louisiana Second largest salt-water lake in the US next to the Great Salt Lake. Has a current population of over 1.5 million people. The south shore forms the northern boundary of the towns of New Orleans and Kenner. Its Native American name was Okwata ("Wide Water").

JAZZ/BEBOP BEBOP Bebop emerged in the 1940s as a style of jazz in great contrast to the music of the big bands. It consisted of 4-6 instead of 10 musicians. More complex melodies and chord progressions, as well as more emphasis on the role the rhythm section COOL JAZZ Cool jazz was more subtle, moody, muted, and restrained than bebop Influenced by the harmonies of 20th-century art music composers like Stravinsky and Debussy

POSTWAR SOUTH VS. PRE-CIVIL WAR POSTWAR The South had been broken by the war. Lands were devastated. Proud plantations were now mere wrecks. Banks were shattered; factories were dismantled; the structure of business intercourse had crumbled. Many of the slaves were emancipated by Lincoln so there was no work force, and many cities were wrought by fire. PRE-CIVIL WAR Popular writers created a stereotype, now known as the plantation legend, that described the South as a land of aristocratic planters, beautiful southern belles, poor white trash, faithful household slaves, and superstitious field hands. Large slaveholders were extremely rare. It was a very diverse region with a lot of farming and cash crops being done.

A STREETCAR NAMED DESIRE The Desire Line was originated by the New Orleans Railway and Light Co. in Desire served the bar and nightclub section of the French Quarter along Bourbon Street The last Desire streetcar ran the line on May 30, 1948, to be replaced by a Bus Line also named Desire.

ELYSIAN FIELDS Elysium is a section of the underworld in Greek mythology. The Elysian fields were the final resting place of the souls of the heroic and the virtuous. In New Orleans, there is a street named Elysian Fields that the streetcar Desire had to take. Elysian Fields is near Bourbon Street.