As I sit here in my apartment at 3 a.m., almost four weeks removed from my New Orleans sojourn, I still can't get the human experiences out of my head.
New Orleans has always had the reputation of being an eccentric, often dangerous city. The eccentricity is a huge part of its charm. Dangerous? It can be if you don't know what you're doing down there, but for the most part you need not worry about that.
The locals are amazing. They were nice before Hurricane Katrina. They are still nice after.
They want you to know that they appreciate you being there, they appreciate you trying to rebuild the city's economy while they rebuild the city's heart and soul every day.
Even the street hustlers who approach you not knowing you're hip to their scams. Right outside the hotel, I stood back and watched as a collar-popped, backward-Hurley-cap-wearing cool guy let a hustler "shine his shoes" - he asks where you got the shoes, then bends down, applies a watery soap substance, rubs it off, then says, "You got them on (insert the name of the street) in New Orleans, Louisiana. Now give me $20 for the shine."
I laughed as the cool guy fell for it. What is he going to do? Tell this total stranger, who happens to be a street hustler, "No, I'm not giving you any money".... seriously?
I doubt it.
Then the hustler approached me. Before he could finish his opening pitch, I interjected, "Naw, man. You ain't getting me." I smiled and laughed as I said it, and he respectfully acknowledged my street wisdom with a an "All right," a laugh, and a smile.
That may seem simple, but it's little interactions like that I love about New Orleans. Another local working at a hotel on Decatur Street randomly asked me where I was from as I walked by him. We exchanged pleasantries as I told him I make it to New Orleans every year. You could tell he was proud of his hometown and glad to see other people enjoying it.
A local working outside the Oceana Grill helped me decide what to eat, coming back inside to check on me and see if I like his suggestion.
There are so many small moments and human encounters like that that make the trip each year that much more enjoyable. Everyone you meet is cordial and inviting.
The interaction I had that set itself apart from all others was the waitress at the CoCo Club.
I'm not the kind of guy to just strike up conversations with random girls, especially those who are (A) working, and (B) very attractive. I figured, hey, I'm in New Orleans, what's it matter?
I'm thankful I took the chance to get to know her a little. It's proof to somebody like me that you can meet amazing people, particularly of the opposite sex, in the last places you'd imagine meeting them. I found out where she was from, where she went to college, and what she was doing in New Orleans, discovering we had things in common and genuinely enjoyed each other's company.
What really did it for me was that she had move to New Orleans only two months earlier. I asked her why. She said when she was young she visited New Orleans many times and always told herself she would live there. The time came two months ago that she just decided to move to New Orleans, fulfilling her long-ago promise to herself.
That impresses me still. There are so many times when I wish I had the strength, or carefree attitude, or whatever it is to just make a decision like that and live with it. That made me really respect her and increased my affinity for her even more.
Unfortunately, I didn't get to have a proper goodbye, and chances are I'll never see her again. But I know I won't forget that human encounter; it's just another example of the blessings I receive every time I visit New Orleans, a city full of wonderful people.
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