Tag Archives: New Orleans

Louisiana Children’s Museum

story and photos by Kayte Deioma

The Little Sav-a-CenterThe great thing about exploring children’s museums around the country and around the world is that I get to see how each city puts their own flavor on the play and learn experience. Designed for ages one to eleven, theLouisiana Children’s Museum in New Orleans has some universal favorites like the Kids’ Café where youngsters can cook up pretend food and serve it to their friends or parents. There’s the ever-popular Little Sav-a-Center where kids can shop, run the cash register or stock the shelves. There is also the requisite opportunity to dress up as a fire fighter or police officer and learn about safety issues.

Loading cargo at the Little Port of New OrleansWhat makes the Louisiana Children’s Museum unique to its home town is the Little Port of New Orleans, where little stevedores can use a gantry crane to load and unload cargo from a barge. Captains can pilot a tow boat down the Mississippi. Ship’s mates can whip up a pretend meal in a cruise ship galley. An interactive wall map lights up to show the different routes that cargo travels to and from the Port of New Orleans.

Mr. BonesOther exhibits include Body Works, addressing physical fitness and how the body works. You can ride a bike with Mr. Bones, a skeleton that pedals along with you and demonstrates how your bones move when you ride. Measure your height in a magic doorway. Climb a rock wall. Test your balance on the balancing board. Lift 500 pounds with a lever, or lift yourself up with a pulley.

Toddlers have their own special First Adventures play area upstairs. Bigger kids can learn about angles playing air hockey, and learn how mass and shape affect speed by throwing different kinds of balls in the Speed Zone.

Traveling exhibits bring additional learning opportunities, as do daily presentations, demonstrations, science workshops and performances in the 225-seat Times-Picayune Theatre.

The plasma ballThe Louisiana Children’s Museum
420 Julia Street
New Orleans, LA
(504) 523-1357
www.lcm.org

The Louisiana Children’s Museum is included in the discount New Orleans  Pass

Read reviews of the Louisiana Children’s Museum on TripAdvisor

Jean Lafitte National Historic Park in the French Quarter

story and photos by Kayte Deioma

The Jean Lafitte National Historic Park and Preserveconsists of parks, preserves, bayous, swamps, historic sites and cultural centers all across southern Louisiana. In New Orleans, the National Historic Park has a French Quarter Visitor Center tucked in a courtyard off Decatur Street. If you want an in depth look at New Orleans and Louisiana history, go to the Cabildo on Jackson Square, but for an easily digestible overview of the city and its music, the Jean Lafitte NHP French Quarter Visitor Center is the place to go.

The Visitor Center presents an overview of what you will find at all six of the Jean Lafitte NHP centers including Chalmette Battlefield and the Barataria Preserve in the New Orleans area, and the Acadian Cultural Center, Prairie Acadian Cultural Center and Wetlands Acadian Cultural Center across the Mississippi delta.

Traditional exhibits include background on the Native Americans of Louisiana, slave life, and the contribution of privateer and slave trader Jean Lafitte at the Battle of New Orleans, as well as the legend of Voodoo priestess Marie Laveau. Wall panels and audio recordings elucidate the development of the unique dialect of New Orleans, influenced by African slaves, and French, Irish, Italian and German immigrants, with some Native American place names thrown in for good measure.

Pull up a chair and stay for a while at a multimedia presentation on the history of jazz. Put on a headset and watch and listen to some historic performances. A selection of instruments used in jazz, Cajun and Zydeco music are suspended from a column above the video console. There’s a brass trumpet, and saxophone, a guitar, a fiddle, and an accordion. The most unique instrument on display is the “frottoir” or rubboard, a molded, over-the-shoulder Louisiana invention which replaced the standard wood-frame washboard in Cajun and Zydeco music in 1946.

A few feet away you can take a seat on a bench to watch another video on a larger screen. The selection varies. After Hurricane Katrina, a new exhibit was added on the storm flooding and how the loss of wetlands contributed to the problem. Park Rangers are on hand to answer your questions.

There are a couple other reasons why you might want to visit the Jean Lafitte National Historic Park French Quarter Visitor Center. It’s a good place to find public restrooms if you’re wandering the French Quarter. They also offer free 90-minute French Quarter tours daily at 9:30 am. Tickets are distributed to the first 25 people who show up for tickets after the Center opens at 9. There is a schedule of additional presentations and programs on the website.

Jean Lafitte National Historic Park
French Quarter Visitor Center
419 Decatur Street
New Orleans, LA
504-589-2636 ext. 1
Open daily 9:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m.
Closed December 25 and Mardi Gras
http://www.nps.gov/jela/index.htm

 

New Orleans Hotels and Restaurants

If You Go…

New Orleans Flights:

Find flight to New Orleans

New Orleans Hotels:

Bienville House Hotel
320 Decatur Street
New Orleans, LA 70130
(504) 529-2345
1 (800) 535-9603

Harrah’s New Orleans
228 Poydras Street
New Orleans, LA 70130
(504) 533-6000

International House Hotel
221 Camp Street
New Orleans, LA 70130
1 (800) 633-5570

Hotel Monteleone
214 Rue Royale
New Orleans, LA 70130
(504) 523-3341

Sheraton Hotel
500 Canal Street
New Orleans, LA 70130
(504) 525-2500

Windsor Court Hotel
300 Gravier Street
New Orleans, LA 70130
1 (888) 596-0955

Search for New Orleans Hotels on TripAdvisor

New Orleans Restaurants:

$ – entrees under $10
$$ – entrees $10-$20
$$$ – entrees $20-$30
$$$$ – entrees over $30

Antoine’s $$$-$$$$
713 St. Louis Street
New Orleans , LA 70130
Phone: (504) 581-4422
Lagniappe: Historic New Orleans establishment

Arnaud’s $$$-$$$$
813 Bienville Street
New Orleans , LA 70112
Phone: (504) 523-0611
Lagniappe: One of my favorite dining experiences. Save room for dessert & check out the Mardi Gras exhibit.

Brennan’s $$$-$$$$
417 Royal St
New Orleans, 70130
(504) 525-9711
Lagniappe: Original home of Bananas Foster

Café Beignet $-$$
311 Bourbon Street
New Orleans , LA
334B Royal Street
New Orleans, Louisiana
Phone: (504) 524-5530
Lagniappe: Try the catfish po’ boy

Café du Monde $
800 Decatur Street
New Orleans , LA 70116
Lagniappe: A must for New Orleans chicory cafe au lait and beignet and people watching!

Coop’s Place $-$$
1109 Decatur St .
New Orleans , LA 70116
Phone: (504) 525-9053
Lagniappe: Try the smoked duck quesadilla

Gumbo Shop $-$$
630 St. Peter Street
New Orleans , LA
Phone: (504) 525-1486
Lagniappe: Gumbo, of course, and the bread pudding

Galtoire’s $$-$$$
209 Bourbon Street
New Orleans , LA 70130
Phone: (504) 525-2021
Lagniappe: Best bread pudding, the original Sazarac

Criollo Restaurant at the Hotel Monteleone $$$
214 Rue Royale
New Orleans , LA 70130
Phone: (504) 523-3341
Lagniappe: Leave the diet at home. It’s all good.

Mother’s $-$$
401 Poydras Street
New Orleans , LA 70139
Phone: (504) 523-.2917
Lagniappe: People travel cross country for the Debris Po’boy

New Orleans Grill at the Windsor Court $$$
300 Gravier Street
New Orleans , LA 70130
Phone:  1 (888) 596-0955

Restaurant August $$$-$$$$
301 Tchoupitoulas Street
New Orleans , LA 70130
Phone: (504) 299-9777

Tujague’s $$$
823 Decatur Street
New Orleans , LA
Phone: (504) 525.8676
Lagniappe: six course, table d’hote menu

Upperline $$$
1413 Upperline St
New Orleans, LA 70115
Phone: (504) 891-9822
Lagniappe: Worth the trip Uptown for the Lamb Shank braised in red wine

For more information, visit the New Orleans Convention and Visitor’s Bureau Website