| One
of New Orleans' many nicknames is "the
Crescent City ," because of the way it nestles between the
southern shore of Lake Pontchartrain and a dramatic horseshoe bend
in the
Mississippi River. This unique location makes the city's layout
confusing, with
streets curving to follow the river, and shooting off at odd angles
to head inland. Compass points are of little use here - locals
refer instead to lakeside (towards the lake) and riverside (towards
the
river), and, using Canal Street as the dividing line, uptown (or
upriver) and
downtown (downriver).
Most
visitors spend most time in the battered, charming old French
Quarter (or Vieux Carré ), site of the original settlement. On
its fringes, the funky Faubourg Marigny creeps northeast from Esplanade
Avenue, while the Quarter's lakeside boundary, Rampart Street
,
marks the beginning of the historic, run-down African-American
neighborhood of Tremé . On the other side of the Quarter,
across Canal Street , the CBD (Central Business District),
bounded by the river and I-10, spreads upriver to the Pontchartrain
Expressway.
Dominated by offices, hotels and banks, it also incorporates
the revitalizing Warehouse District and, towards the lake,
the gargantuan
Superdome . A ferry ride across the river from the foot of
Canal Street takes you to the suburban west bank and the residential
district of old Algiers. Hostels in New Orleans |
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