It was on Good Friday in 1788 that the bells of St. Louis Cathedral in New Orleans went silent. The silence of the bells for the holy day inadvertently failed to alarm the city of a raging fire that would destroy much of New Orleans, the cathedral included. This would not be the beginning or end of the cathedral’s troubles, but like most aspects to New Orleans, there is an insatiable spirit to move on, fires, hurricanes and all. St. Louis Cathedral sets up in Jackson Square, the center of the original settlement of New Orleans. It boasts of being the oldest continuously active Catholic Continue Reading
A Hurricane and Hope in the Lower 9th Ward of New Orleans
The French Quarter is just three miles away from where I stand and yet, I feel like I’m in a different world. There is a sobering photograph in front of me: a picture after Hurricane Katrina and a little arrow pointing out, “You are here”. Back in August of 2005 if I had been standing under the arrow’s point, I would have been completely submerged in water and debris. A man mows an empty patch of property nearby, one where you can see the foundations of a house, the place a family used to call home. I am in New Orleans’ Lower 9th Ward, an area of the city that was hit the hardest by Continue Reading
Memphis, Tennessee Wishes You Were Here
“You can always order more,” he says slowly, surely and calmly. Worried about having just the right amount of Memphis barbecue, I was quickly assured to settle down. There is also more to be had. The streets of Memphis seem deserted, until you round the corner to go to Charlie Vergos’ Rendezvous. Turn down into the unsuspecting alley and a whole crowd is waiting to sink their teeth into Rendezvous’ famous charcoal-broiled pork ribs. I am no different as I grab a seat at the bar upstairs to wait with the masses for a table. It all began in 1948 when Charlie Vergos decided to convert his Continue Reading
An Oddball in Search of Oddities on the Road to New Orleans
Stevie Nicks belts out “Dreams” countless times on the radio during my long drive down to New Orleans. It is a song, like most I gather, about wronged love, dreams foiled and hope at the end of the storm. One line sticks with me most, “Like a heartbeat drives you mad in the stillness of remembering what you had and what you lost.” I don’t feel my heartstrings tugging over a wronged relationship, but rather my heart beats for the road. It drives me almost mad as I search for reasons to be on the road, the zaniest of roadside attractions. These roads come into my travels, I have them for a time Continue Reading
Scottsdale, Arizona Wishes You Were Here
The saunters of the world convene in Scottsdale for the weekend. These saunters adorn mostly baseball gear, looking to kill time in between spring training games with perhaps a little turquoise jewelry or a pony ride. The atmosphere is decidedly carnival on this stretch, but little hints of kitsch are acceptable in small doses, including this character. Old Town Scottsdale welcomes you, lasso and all. Amidst all of the jewelry shops and art galleries is a suburb of Phoenix in the middle of the Sonoran Desert. With Phoenix to the west and the McDowell Mountains to the east, this town in the Continue Reading
Four Days and Four Nights in Vienna
I wasn’t supposed to be in Vienna and yet I think I was. A city I only briefly visited in college with a school group, from that first meeting, I knew I wanted more. On my recent trip through Eastern Europe, the plan was to head to Romania. However with sub zero temperatures, national road closures and snow, I decided to forgo being a world news story and find the story instead in Vienna. Vienna is utterly effortless. It is a city so grand, so royal, and at the same time, it is unpretentious and kind. For a big city, Vienna is unhurried, appreciated with ever bite of schnitzel and Sacher Continue Reading
Prague, Czech Republic Wishes You Were Here
Most of Prague is out in the elements, including the pickpockets. Exposed for the entire world to see, when high temperatures reach 7° Celsius, spotting those pickpockets on the Charles Bridge becomes a favorite pastime. Linking Prague’s neighborhoods of Staré Mesto and Malá Strana, the Charles Bridge has its own, built in pickpocket control, countless statues. The shadows created by the statues draw crowds on the 510-meter long pedestrian bridge crossing the Vitava River. Its construction hails from the 14th century. As legend would have it, it is supposedly so sturdy because the builders Continue Reading