I’m not really sure how frequently I will be posting on the blog. I think I need to let the rhythm of the location dictate the writing and photography. I will say that nomading so far has been pretty awesome. We are basically making a new home every month or so. And with every iteration, we get better and quicker in our settling. We don’t hesitate to make the house we are staying our home, rearranging items as necessary. We quickly assess the grocery options, the gym options, the neighborhood’s walkability and offerings. This one is pretty exciting. Part of this nomading experience involves finding balance between living ‘normal lives’ (for us that means shopping, cooking, eating at home mid-week, working, studying, working out/swimming, early to bed and early to rise) with enjoying and appreciating that which this city can provide, especially those things that we can’t get elsewhere. For us in New Orleans that means music and food, history and architecture.

New Orleans in these first few days has offered glimpses of a fascinating interior beneath a unique exterior that is elegant in its decay, decadent in its simplicity. It is honest, gritty, resilient and oh so real. The people are — so far — delightfully approachable and charming. The city too is approachable and charming. No other place makes me feel like such a magpie, distracted by shiny beads, everywhere, in every color. The sidewalks are heaving, and broken. The roads are rough and neglected. The neighborhoods are distinct and filled with pride and pretty elements, from wrought iron to gas lamps. The antebellum mansions, the shotgun houses, the above ground cemeteries, the Mississippi. Always the Mississippi.

We are fortunate enough to have chosen a home to rent that is very close to the Mississippi. While we can’t see it as there is a very high, very thick wall and a very busy railroad between the road and the river, we can hear the barges’ horns, and hear them chugging up and down the river. Between the boats and the trains, we have some very romantic sounds drifting into our days. Like I said, charming. So, a few days in, here a few images of what’s caught my attention and imagination.