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One of my favorite cities to visit in the US is New Orleans. So, when my sister who lives in San Juan, Puerto Rico, told me she was going to run in New Orleans Marathon, I immediately jumped at the chance to visit the city. My husband and I spent the majority of our 5-day stay immersing ourselves in the city.

New Orleans is one of the most popular tourist destinations in the United States for a reason. Nicknamed, the “Big Easy” its unique and vibrant culture and fascinating history draws visitors in from around the country. The residents share a cultural memory that blends legacies from Europe, West Africa, Native America and many other cultures to create the unique atmosphere difficult to find anywhere else. Fortunately, it’s all on display for visitors to enjoy any time throughout the year.

The Rock ‘n’ Roll New Orleans Marathon is one of the major events leading-up to Mardi Gras and its many parades throughout the city. Though we missed the Fat Tuesday celebrations it was easy to feel the early excitement. Like us, many people travel to this great city to enjoy its culture, food, jazz music and points of interests. We were not disappointed.

Our stay at the La Pension Hotel was excellent. It’s a small cute boutique hotel located in the French Quarter that offers a touch of romance and unique character only minutes away from iconic Bourbon Street, the waterfront, excellent restaurants entertainment venues and points of interests. We found the accommodations well-suited for our getaway.

One of the first things we did was to take a private 4-hour tour of the city. It provided us an appreciable understanding about present-day New Orleans and its history from an expert guide that a visitor might not otherwise learn. We visited many of the city’s iconic points of interests, including its cultural and historical areas, major Mardi Gras parade routes, Lake Pontchartrain, entertainment and major sports venues. Our guide also retraced the destructive path of Hurricane Katrin in August 2005 and shared many incredible stories of personal valor and community recovery efforts. 

We also attended the Jazz Playhouse one evening. It’s a small venue located in the French Quarter on Bourbon Street. There’s not a bad seat in the house. The jazz vocalist performing the evening we attended was Germaine Bazzle. We hoped to hear distinctive and soulful jazz and we were not disappointed. She was amazing. Afterwards, we googled her name and found she is a local jazz icon, describing as “under-recognized nationally and jazz treasure.” For us, it was a very fortuitous choice.

NewThe highlight of our visit was perhaps the WWII Museum. It’s the top tourist attraction in the city. It masterfully brings to life WWII, arguably the most significant event of the 20^th Century, and chronicles its terrors and triumphs for purposes of education. It houses multiple expansive galleries filled with military war equipment, weapons, uniforms, artifacts, and much more. We are a retired military family, so it was not surprising we spent the better part of a day touring the museum, starting with the film Beyond All Boundaries narrated by Tom Hanks, walking through the European War and Pacific War galleries. The film is a “must see.” The sound effects put viewers on the front line. The seats vibrate and rattle as tanks crash though obstacles, jolt back and forth as flak shells burst around American bombers over Germany, and small white bubbles (resembling snowflakes) fall from the ceiling as American forces counterattack in the snow against German forces in the Battle of the Bulge. The film ends with US Army soldiers evacuating an elderly Holocaust survivor from a captured concentration camp on an army field stretcher because he is too frail and weak to stand or walk. With tears in his eyes he is seen grasping his hands in prayer and repeatedly murmuring “thank you, thank you, thank you” to the American soldiers carrying him from his prison.  For us, the film underscores the pride and spirit we’ve always had for our military and country. We found the museum experience and education priceless.