Living Easy in the Big Easy

All I've ever known in my 21 years is American Suburbia. I've never lived in a huge city and never near a very big one, either. My travels have taken my from Mt. Pleasant, S.C., to Montgomery, Ala., to Ocean Springs, Miss., and a couple of other brief stops before settling back in Ocean Springs. Baton Rouge is the state capital of Louisiana, but it's also a college town and not really considered a metropolitan area. This is my first experience living in one of America's big cities, even if it's not one of the biggest.

I've lived in the vicinity of New Orleans since 1998 when we moved to the Gulf Coast—Ocean Springs is just over an hour's drive away. Yet I never really ventured over, because I was younger and without a car. I did get the chance, however, to come see the Saints beat the Atlanta Falcons in 2000, which was incidentally the game that clinched the team's first division title and playoff appearance since the early 90s. People were singing, dancing and shouting in the streets, cars were honking and there was a general hysteria around the city as my family and I made our way to the Audubon Aquarium, and I wanted to join in, so I pumped my fist in the air and got acknowledgement from the crazed fans. I didn't really understand then the passion the city had for the team, or the general attitude of the city overall, but I'd come to appreciate it years later.

After graduating high school, I had much more invested in New Orleans. By then, I was a true blue Saints fan, had friends going to school in the city and was myself going to LSU, knowing I would likely make several ventures into the city for games, entertainment and my first New Orleans Mardi Gras that February. Then Hurricane Katrina hit, and I watched as the city suffered. It was somewhat uniting, because even though I and my family personally didn't suffer much, just damage to an empty house for sale on the market, my hometown and friends from both college and home were suffering. I felt a bond with New Orleanians I knew at school, and that helped me appreciate the city and its rebounding efforts that much more.

Now, while parts of the city and outlying areas are still in dire need of assistance and repair, the heart of the city is beating. This city is alive. The people are alive. There's not an overwhelming sense of doom and gloom. There's a subtle optimism here that I appreciate and enjoy. And each small part of the city is unique. In a big city, there are so many secluded spots and places that are able to retain their own individual cultures. This is evident in neighborhoods like the French Quarter, the Marigny, Mid City, etc. I love experiences these areas, the parks, the hole-in-the-wall bars and pubs, the spots that are famous to New Orleanians like Port of Call and Lafayette Square. And I also enjoy the big city life. I love the skyline as I approach on the Interstate. I love downtown's tall buildings and small streets. I love driving down Canal, going to hotel events and walking down the busy streets. The more I experience, the more I feel like I'm somewhat at home.

I think another reason I love New Orleans is because it reminds me of Charleston, S.C. I consider Ocean Springs my hometown, because much of who I am today and my best friends came from there. But Charleston is where I grew up, where I played as a child and where much of my extended family lives, and I have very fond memories of the area. That city has its own distinct Southern charm, a history that rivals most cities in America and a culture about it that is at once both inviting and mysterious. The cobblestone streets, the Battery, Rainbow Row, the beaches, the churches, the restaurants—they're all vehicles of historic expression, culture and knowledge. New Orleans is the same way, and I think it reminds me of Charleston on some level.

My initial opinion of New Orleans was negatively stereotypical and unfounded—I thought it was a dirty, dangerous city that I wouldn't mind visiting once in awhile but certainly did not want to study, work or live in. After regular visits to and experiences in the city, that all went away. I'm still glad I chose to go to LSU and absolutely love Baton Rouge, but I'm grateful for the opportunity to live and work in New Orleans for these three months and am enjoying myself thoroughly.