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Sightseeing Activities in
New Orleans!
A swamp tour with
Dr. Paul Wagner adds a bit of wildlife to the wild life of New Orleans.
With so much to do at night, it may come as
a bit of a surprise to some that New Orleans offers a feast of activities
during the day, as well.
Walking around the French Quarter and along the Mississippi
River is something that, experienced at the proper Southern pace, can
take up several hours on several days. The Quarter has shops ranging
from elegant art galleries to small voodoo stores to the Jimmy Buffett
Margaritaville store. There are many excellent restaurants, air-conditioned
bars for heat relief or cocktails on the go, the French Market and,
of course Jackson Square and Cafe du Monde for beignets and strong coffee.
This is a city made for tours. There are walking tours, boat
tours and horse-and-carriage tours. Within this are city tours, guided
walking tours, cemetery tours and haunted hours tours.
Ride the street cars along the riverfront or pass by the historic
houses on St. Charles Ave. The St. Charles line has a stop at Tulane
University, making it an easy way to tour the campus. There are also
several restaurants and bars where locals hang out, so many of the latter
that we've put together a street
car pub crawl. The street car fare is $1.25 each way –
exact change required – or $5 for an all-day pass. The street car
runs until 11 p.m., on weekdays, midnight on weekends.
Where is it Mardi
Gras every day in New Orleans?
It's not Mardi Gras every day in New Orleans, but it is
at Blaine Kern's Mardi Gras World. See the actual parade floats up close
and, if it's close enough to Mardi
Gras, watch workers put on the final touches before the floats
hit the streets. The one-hour tour ($17) includes the props, building
of the floats and finished floats. Blaine Kern's Mardi Gras World is
open every day except Fat Tuesday. The venue has moved from across the river to a much more convenient location along the New Orleans waterfront at the Crescent City Connection. Tours run 9:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. (504) 361-7821. www.mardigrasworld.com
 One
of the city's best attractions is The National D-Day Museum (945 Magazine
Street). What makes this such a captivating museum is not just the story
it tells of the World's greatest invasion and the sacrifices involved,
but the many short movies and personal recorded accounts from the combatants
of the battles and events. Originally devoted exclusively to the Allies'
invasion of Normandy in June, 1944, it now boasts a wing dedicated to
the many D-Days of the Pacific Theater. For $10, this is one of this
country's best museum values. Allow 3 to 3 1/2 hours (www.ddaymuseum.org).
For wildlife – a good change of pace from the wild life of the
city – tours of the Louisiana swamps get you up close to
alligators, turtles and birds, plus puts you among tall grass and moss-covered
cypress trees in the swamps and bayous of Cajun Country.
There are several from which to choose and we highly recommend Dr.
Paul Wagner's Honey Island Tours (985-641-1769). It claims to be
the tour the locals take and the guides certainly are local. PubClub.com
had Capt'n Paul at the helm of our excursion and it was like having
him give us a tour of his own house. In a way, it probably was. He seemed
to know every tree branch and picked out well-hidden turtles and gators
the way some people seem to always find that last beer hidden at the
back of the refrigerator at a party.
 One
of the tour's more interesting aspects is not the sunning alligators
– Capt'n Paul refers to anything under 8 feet as a "cute little
gator" – but the swampside shacks that true Ragin' Cajuns
use for weekends of partying and fishing. The "houses" are
just as one would imagine – wooden, sitting right at water's edge
and seemingly ready to collapse into a cute little' gator's waiting
jaws.
This excursion – unique to New Orleans – is worth leaving
the city. There are two tours daily and each takes about half a day.
It costs $20 and another $20 for transportation from downtown, which
includes ongoing commentary from a New Orleans native driver.
Other activities outside the city include tours of plantation houses
and airboat rides through the bayous.
Also on the water, albeit from a much cozier perch far removed from
the alligators, are the paddlewheel boats that plow down the
Mississippi. The most recognizable of these is the Nachez, the
only steamboat, which offers jazz and sunset cruises.
New Orleans also has a zoo and an aquarium. Brochures
on these and other activities are widely available around town and in
the lobby of the hotels.
 Next
Stop: New Orleans Dining and Restaurant Guide!
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