You might be surprised to learn that during my many visits to New Orleans, I’ve spent very little time in the pursuit of street art. That’s partly because there isn’t any street art in the French Quarter, nor should there be, and what little there is in other neighborhoods had, until very recently, eluded me.
#onetimeinneworleans Artist:Bmike
The street art/mural movement has started to catch on and I was thrilled to discover, stumble upon, some pretty nice pieces while walking town. I know there is more, and that I’ve missed a number of wonderful pieces, but time was limited and I look forward to seeking them out the next time I’m in town. In the meantime, here’s what I did find…
Faubourg Marigny
Location: Brieux Carré Brewingn Company 2105 Decatur Street
Artist: Unknown
Artist: Unknown
Location: 2121 Chartres Street
Artist: Unknown
Artist: Unknown
Location: 2121 Chartres Street
Artist: Unknown
Artist: Unknown
Location: 1101 Elysian Fields Avenue (in the back)
Artist: Unknown
Artist: Unknown
Location: The Art Garage Marigny Street
Artist: MegZany
Artist: MegZany
Location: The Art Garage 2231 Saint Claude Avenue
Artist: Ramiro Diaz
Artist: Ramiro Diaz
Location: The Art Garage 2231 Saint Claude Avenue
Artist: Kate Hanrahan
Artist: Kate Harahan
Location: The Art Garage 2231 Saint Claude Avenue
Artist: Saul
Artist: Saul
Location: Saint Claude Avenue (Across the street from the Art Garage)
Artist: Henry Lipkis
Artist: Henry Lipkis
Location: Elysian Fields Avenue/Saint Claude Avenue Metro Station
Artist: Craig Cundiff
Location: 2200 Saint Claude Avenue
Artist(s): Multiple
Faubourg Marigny New Orleans
Bywater
Location: Studio BE 2910 Royal Street
Artist: BMike
The Bywater is home to Studio BE, a 35,000 square foot exhibition space, which features large scale works by New Orleans artist and filmmaker BMike. Be sure to walk around the entire building.
Bywater New OrleansArtist: BMike
StudioBE Artist: BMike
StudioBE Artist: BMike
Location: 732 Louisa Street
Artist: S & E Hirsh
Artist: S & E Hirsch
Location: 732 Louisa Street
Artist: Unknown
Location: 3221 Dauphine Street
Artist: @socialfatigue
Location: 601 Franklin Avenue
Artist: Unknown
Bywater New Orleans
Magazine Street
Location: 2855 Magazine Street
Artist: Unknown (Azwashere?)
Magazine Street
Have you found any street art in NOLA? If so, I’d love to hear about it.
Hello from rainy Los Angeles! Yes, I mean rainy. We’ve been having a proper winter this year, with temperatures dropping into the low 30s, and inches and inches of rain. While I wouldn’t want this weather to last months, I have been enjoying the excuse to hibernate at home, and as future travel plans are in the works I’m happily researching. We are considering visiting repeat destinations, and as you’ll see in my post this week, just because you’ve been somewhere before doesn’t mean you won’t discover something new.
Piety Street Bridge
Erin was our host last week, and her favorites were:
Welcome to Faraway Files, the travel link up hosted every Thursday by Erin from Oregon Girl around the World, Corey from Fifi + Hop, Hilary from Hilarystyle and Clare from Suitcases and Sandcastles.Faraway Files is a weekly file of the best travel ideas on the web. We want to dream of faraway places, make new travel plans and share our travel secrets. We hope you’ll link up and inspire us to travel to new places or revisit a place we thought we knew. We know that you can feel faraway even when close to home, so share your experiences of travels near and far wherever you are in the world.
Don’t forget to comment on the hosts’ posts as well as any others that catch your eye. The more links you read and share the more fun and successful our community will be, so please join in.
We’ll try to read and comment on every post and we’ll share them on social media too. Each week we’ll choose our favourites and highlight them on our blogs and social media channels using #FarawayFiles. How it works:
Link up one travel-related post and add the Faraway Files badge onto the post or your blog (code below) or link back to the hosts.
The link up will go live every Thursday at 8am, UK time, until midnight on Friday. It will alternate between Suitcases and Sandcastles, Fifi + Hop, HilaryStyle and Oregon Girl around the World. This week’s link up is right here.
Link ups work best if everyone shares so please comment on all of the marked hosts’ posts and at least one other.
Tweet us your posts (@suitandsand, @oregongirlworld @fifiandhop @hilarystyleme) using the hashtag #FarawayFiles and we’ll retweet to our followers.
Love Instagram? Share your favorite photos from your posts with us, tagging #FarawayFiles and we’ll add our favorites to our Faraway Files Instagram feed.
I’ve written quite a lot about New Orleans, so you might be thinking: What else is there? Believe me there is so much more, 7 visits later I am still discovering new things, not only in NOLA’s more well known neighborhoods like The French Quarter and Garden District, but in other less touristy areas of the Crescent City as well.
Chartres Street French Quarter New Orleans
In recent years, areas outside the French Quarter are being revitalized, and it’s been great to see the transformations taking place. We will always love The Quarter, but we also love branching out to explore other neighborhoods as well.
Piety Street Bridge Bywater
Bywater
Our new favorite area to explore is the Bywater, a neighborhood filled with colorful historic homes, many of which have been fixed up, trendy new restaurants, bars, parks and shops. A new life is being injected into this up and coming neighborhood and we’re excited to discover something different each time we visit.
Bywater
Bywater
Bywater
Bywater Favorites:
Crescent Park
Crescent Park is a recreational area, which runs along the Mississippi River for 1.4 miles between Elysian Fields Avenue to Mazant Street. The park includes 20 acres of landscaping with paths for walking, jogging, and biking, picnic areas, and a dog run.
Piety Street Bridge
I was most excited to visit the Piety Street Bridge, otherwise known as the Rusty Rainbow, which crosses the tracks from the Bywater to the Mississippi River. Walk across and you’ll be treated to breathtaking views of New Orleans and of course it’s unique shape makes it perfectly Instagrammable.
Piety Street Bridge
Piety Street Bridge
Bywater view
The Piety Street Bridge is located where Chartres Street meet Piety Street in the Bywater. There is no river access from Crescent Park.
Bao & Noodle
We stumbled across Bao & Noodle a few years ago, and loved it so much it’s now on our permanent list. Although it’s not your standard NOLA fare, the food is delicious, and a nice break from the norm.
Bao & Noodle
Bao & Noodle
Bao & Noodle
Bao & Noodle
Bao & Noodle is located at 2700 Chartres Street and is open Tuesday – Saturday 11:30 am-2:00pm Lunch and 5:00pm-10:00pm Dinner.
Studio BE
The Bywater is home to Studio BE, a 35,000 square foot exhibition space, which features large scale works by New Orleans artist and filmmaker BMike. Our visit didn’t coincide with the studios’s opening hours, but it’s on my list for next year’s visit, and we really enjoyed the brightly colored exterior of the studio buildings.
Studio BE Artist: BMikeArtist: BMike
We found this unique lending library while wandering around the Bywater.
Lending library Nola style!
Bywater
Bywater Neighborhood NOLA
Elliot made a friend!
Architect Place
Faubourg Marigny
The Faubourg Marigny, or the Marigny as it’s often referred to, is within easy walking distance from the French Quarter. It is somewhat less touristy, but hurry because it’s catching on quick, this lively neighborhood is popular with locals and tourists alike.
Marigny Mardi Gras House New Orleans
The Marigny’s main street is Frenchmen, and you’ll find plenty of food, an art market, and fun shops, but the biggest draw is the music. There are Jazz clubs aplenty on Frenchmen Street, and I highly recommend spending at least part of one evening taking in the local sound and culture.
Dat Dog Frenchmen Street
Marigny Favorites:
The Palace Art Market (formerly the Frenchmen Art Market)
We love visiting the family friendly Palace Art Market. The Market takes place in evenings and features over 80 local artisans. If you have younger kids, they’ll love the opportunity to draw on the “floor” of the market’s outdoor living room while you stroll around that admire the art.
The Palace Art Market
The Palace Art Market is located on Frenchmen Street, and is open 7 nights a week Sunday – Wednesday 7:00 pm – 12:00 am, Thursday – Saturday 7:00 pm – 1:00 am and Saturday 1:00 pm – 5:00 pm.
Dat Dog
Dat Dog is a fun casual place to grab a bite. It’s always on our list as the food is great, and so is the service. If you’re not a beef eater, don’t worry they have lots of other options, including alligator and duck. Some of the more unusual toppings are: blackberry sauce, andouille sausage, and crawfish Étouffée.
Even the hamburgers are hot dog shaped at Dat Dog
Dat Dog is located on Frenchmen Street. The hours are Sunday – Wednesday: 11:00 am – midnight, Thursday: 11:00 am – 1:00 am, and Friday and Saturday: 11:00 am – 3:00 am.
The Spotted Cat
No trip to NOLA would be complete without music. You’ll find locals and tourists alike at The Spotted Cat a quintessential NOLA music venue. Check the website for a listing of what’s on, but if traveling with your family do keep in mind that this is a cash only 21 and over venue.
The Spotted Cat is located at 623 Frenchmen Street and is open Monday to Friday: 2:00 pm – 2:00 am and Saturday & Sunday: 2:00 pm – 2:00 am.
Magazine Street
Not exactly off the Beaten Path, Magazine Street is the path. Running for six miles between Canal Street and Leake Avenue, it is a treasure trove of shops, restaurants, and bars. Many of the establishments are one of a kind. You’re guaranteed to find something of interest, along the way.
Magazine Street
Because of its length many people choose to take a cab directly to specific locations, but if you have the time and inclination to walk you’ll have the opportunity to experience many of NOLA’s great neighborhoods including, the Central Business District, the Warehouse District, the Garden District, and Uptown. We chose to split our time and walked different sections of the street over the course of a few days.
Magazine Street
Magazine Street Favorites:
Derby Pottery & Tile
If you’ve been to NOLA before you may have noticed that embedded into every street corner there are tiles spelling out the street’s name. They’ve become an icon of the city and we were delighted to visit the shop where they’re made.
We found out you can order your own custom NOLA tiles spelling out whatever your heart may desire.
Derby Pottery & Tile is located at 2029 Magazine Street check the website for opening hours.
Dirty Coast
A t-shirt shop of a different sort. Dirty Coast is where the locals shop, but visitors are definitely welcome. If you’re looking for something to bring home that feels more authentic this is the place.
Dirty Coast T-shirt
District Donuts
We discovered District: Donuts, sliders and Brew while walking on Magazine Street a few years ago. They’re not beignets, but its become a tradition all the same. These guys really know how to make a donut, and their sliders and brew (coffee) are pretty great too.
King Cake Donut
District Donuts
Holiday King Cake Donut
District Donuts
District Donuts is located at 2209 Magazine Street and is open everyday from 7:00 am to 9:00 pm.
Sucre
We love to stop and get a sweet treat at Sucré where they have everything from giant ice cream sundaes to petite French macarons.
Sucre is located at 3025 Magazine Street and is open Sunday – Thursday 9:00 am – 10:00 pm and Friday – Saturday 9:00 am – 11:00 pm.
You may have heard of Cochon, which is a fine dining restaurant, but did you know they have a casual restaurant and wine bar just next door? The food is delicious, affordable and no reservations are required.
Cochon Butcher
Cochon Butcher
Cochon is located at 930 Tchoupitoulas Street and is open Monday – Thursday 10:00 am – 10 :00 pm and Friday and Saturday from 10:00 am to 11:00 pm. Cochon Butcher does NOT except reservations.
The French Quarter
While its true that we’ve wandered the streets of the French Quarter for hours on end there are still many places we have yet to visit to discover.
Rainy afternoon on Royal Street
French Truck Coffee
Self proclaimed coffee snobs, who are never content with the coffee in our hotel, we were delighted to find that French Truck Coffee has a location in The Quarter, and we found ourselves there multiple times throughout the visit.
French Truck Coffee
French Truck Coffee
French Truck Coffee is located at 217 Chartres Street and is open Monday – Friday 7:00 am – 6:00 pm and Saturday and Sunday 8:00 am to 6:00 pm.
Red Truck Clubhouse & Red Truck Gallery
I’m not going to lie, it was the sight of this sparkling ceiling (this photo does not do it justice), peeking out from the partially opened doorway that drew us into the Red Truck Clubhouse, but it was the mouthwatering smell of the pizza that persuaded us to stay, and we were not disappointed.
Red Truck Clubhouse
While we were eating we discovered that the Red Truck Clubhouse is part of the Red Truck Art Gallery, which is located over on Royal Street. The gallery was closed for the evening, but these tiny replicas of everyday objects were in the window. What is about tiny things that makes them so cute? Have you ever seen an adorable dumpster before? Well, now you have!
Red Truck Clubhouse
Red Truck Gallery
The Red Truck Clubhouse is located at 740 North Rampart Street and is open 12:00 pm – 2:00 am everyday. The restaurant/art bar is located just across the Armstrong Park Arch, which is in itself is worth a visit. The Red Truck Gallery is located at 940 Royal Street and is open everyday.
Armstrong Park is located in the Treme, a neighborhood we have yet to explore, which means we will just have to go back…
Have you visited New Orleans? Do you have some off the beaten path favorites? If so, I’d love to hear about them.
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Take me with you!
Would you like directions to all these fabulous places? Why not take me with you! You can download this and other fun hilarystyle articles using the GPSmyCity app!
As much as I love to be on the road exploring, and contrary to how it might look if you follow me on Instagram, I’m not always traveling, in fact more often than not, I’m home, which if you don’t already know is beautiful sunny Los Angeles, California.
I love you California
However, I do have other non-travel related interests, and thought it might be fun to share some of them with all of you, after all this blog is about travel, fashion and FUN.
I LA
So, what, beyond all things travel related, constitutes fun Hilary style? I’ve got many irons in the fire, so to speak, but currently I’ve been spending a lot of time creating in the kitchen (mainly cookies and cakes), and with Valentine’s Day just around the corner, it seems like the perfect time to share some of my sweeter creations.
Lunar New Year
Cookies
I’ve always loved to bake, but my newest baking obsession is cookies. Mainly French macarons and sugar cookies decorated with royal icing. The later being a nice mix of baking and art.
POP!
I’m enjoying this so much, that I admit to being a bit behind in some other areas, as I can’t seem to stop decorating. Though I haven’t heard any complaints from the family.
Lunar New Year Cookies
These cute little sweeties seemed like the perfect treats to bring to the Lunar New Year party we attended.
Lunar New Year
Birthday Cookies
Baking the cookies onto lollypop sticks seemed like a fun idea, and thankfully it worked out beautifully. I will definitely be doing this again. Not to mention eating them off the stick was particularly satisfying.
Cookie Pops
Thinking it would be fun to “dress” the cookies as their recipients I had no idea that they would actually be wearing matching outfits. A photo was absolutely in order, as I couldn’t have planned this better if I tried.
Cookie Bouquet
The happy cookie recipients
Destination Cookies
I love travel and I love cookies, so baking cookies related to some of my favorite travel destinations makes sense. Here’s an attempt at some USA/California themed treats. I think I still need some work here, but thankfully my brother-in-law has volunteered to eat all my practice cookies. He lives in Seattle, so I’ll be shipping these his way just in time for…
California Dreaming
Valentine’s Day Cookies
This is my younger son’s last year of elementary school, and also our last year exchanging class Valentine’s. This is a bittersweet milestone, as moving on and up is a positive, but we’ll miss these fun elementary traditions and are going to go all out with heart cookies for everyone!
Rainbow Heart Cookies
Rainbow Heart Cookies
Love Love Love
We had friends over for a cookie decorating party and everyone loved the speech bubble cookie. I’ve seen a lot of fun Valentine pun cookies around, but I’m going with “I love you soy much”, which I thought up on my own!
I Love Cookies
Donut Love
I love you soy much
French Macarons
Learning to make French Macarons was a fun and delicious challenge. I don’t know that I’ve mastered it quite yet, but I have learned that they are delicious whether they look pretty or not!
Cranberry Orange Macaron
If you’re a beginner macaron baker, consider flavoring the filling as opposed to the shells, which can be finicky even when using the most basic recipe. Displayed here are pumpkin shells with a cheesecake pumpkin butter filling, chocolate with chocolate hazelnut ganache, vanilla peppermint with crushed peppermint, orange cranberry, orange chocolate and vanilla with a vanilla and chocolate ganache center.
Pumpkin Cheesecake
Chocolate Ganache
Vanilla Peppermint
Cranberry Orange Macaron
Orange Chocolate
Vanilla Chocolate Ganache
Did you know that macarons can be frozen for up to 5 months? Pre-baked shells can be thawed and then filled with buttercream, chocolate or curd as needed. I got this cute little stand/carry case for $11 on Amazon, which comes in handy if you want to bring your creations with you.
I hope you’ve enjoyed this sweet detour from my usual musings about art and travel, and if so you might like to follow my cookie adventures on my new cookiestagram @cookiesareeverything, which is just getting started.
I’ll be back to travel next week sharing some off the beaten path fun from our most recent visit to New Orleans, and stay tuned for more baking fun…
My family spends a lot of time at the beach, but that doesn’t stop us from wanting more, and in fact when considering travel destinations coastal or waterside places are usually higher on the list. My personal favorite beach activity is sunset viewing, I love watching as the last moments of the day slip under the sea, often in a vibrant explosion of reds, pinks, oranges and yellows.
Santa Monica Beach
Of course when visiting destinations to the East the process is reversed, which is how I found myself on the beach in Fort Lauderdale at literally the crack of dawn. Watching as the sun rose up out of the ocean…
Harbor Beach Fort Lauderdale
These peaceful mornings at the beach were a great way to start my days during my time in South Florida where the majority of my time was spent pursing and viewing as much art as I could fit into three short days.
Fort Lauderdale FloridaFort Lauderdale FloridaHarbor Beach Fort Lauderdale
Lifeguard towers are a favorite photo subject of mine, so the next morning I ventured a little further in the hopes of finding some…
South Beach ParkSouth Beach Park
Do you have a happy place? A favorite subject you seek out to photograph when traveling? What are your favorite ways to find peaceful moments when life gets busy?
Harbor Beach
You might be interested in reading about some of my other South Florida adventures: