Music and History of New Orleans

Outer Journey- Today I went on a outdoor tour of the city. Milton, our tour guide, was awesome. He seemed to know everything there was to know about the city. He was very passionate about the city and all its history as well as the music. Through out the tour he played us popular types of Jazz music. I only knew one song he played and that was to the Saints come marching in. Along with this song he played Java by Al Hirt. I really enjoyed this song because it had a great beat and its something I could find myself listening to on my own and even dancing to. I posted the song just below so you can get a little taste of Jazz style music. Almost all the music he played was very upbeat, and full of rhythm so its hard to not like it. The tour proceeded to the cemetery where we got to see some of the graves of some famous people throughout history. All around me were above ground tombs, some falling apart while others remained in semi perfect condition. The tomb of the voodoo queen Marie Laveau was also in this cemetery. She had three tombs total that we got to see. We were told that people mark three X's on her tomb in hopes of getting a wish, and they come back to circle an x if their wish came true. We also got to see Nicholas Cages tomb. His tomb is a big white pyramid, and in my opinion didn't really fit in with the style of the rest of the tombs, but it was cool looking. Were also told that some families pay for people to take care of their tombs after they pass.

Later on in the day we did a ghost tour! I was super excited for this like I mentioned in my first blog. I learned so much history on some of the darker sides of New Orleans. Its cool to hear some of these stories because its not necessarily something you'd read in a book or hear about in a museum. We started off in the French Quarter and where we were told about the many public executions that took place. I had the chills the entire time the tour guide was telling us the stories and it started to feel just a little uneasy being there at that moment. We were told a story about the restaurant that leaves a table reserved as well as prepares meals for a ghost. Over all I had a jammed packed day, but I loved every minute of it, and have way more knowledge on the history of New Orleans.

Inner Journey- After the ghost tour tonight I felt myself wanting to know even more haunted history. I believe in spirits, so this was something I was definitely interested in. The part of the tour that interested me the most was the story behind Madame Lalaurie. I was interested in her for two reasons, the first being she had a dark past and I have heard many different stories pertaining to what she did to her slaves. The second reason being that American Horror Story, a television show, had featured her in the season the Coven. I am a big American Horror Story fan so of course I paid extra attention to her story. I found it so gruesome what she had done to her slaves, and I really do believe that the spirits of some of her victims may have never left that house. Standing outside of the house I felt a rush of excitement and fear. I was of course hoping that I would be able to see something out of the ordinary, but I had no luck.

When we visited the cemetery we were told that lots of vandalism happens and people steal from the tombs. I really felt upset over this just because this is a place where the dead came to rest, and they should be respected. If one of my family members tombs had been written on or vandalized I would be heart broken so I can imagine how the family members of these people would feel. What I did like was that they have tombs that are open for people that are poor and can't afford for a burial. It really warms my heart that that they don't turn away anyone from getting properly buried just because they can't afford it.

I thought It was really interesting that all the graves were above ground. This is because the graves wouldn't stay in the ground due to flooding. I really like the detail and the structure of these tombs better than how they are back home. They make the tombs as if they were houses with gates and different levels. I think this is a really neat concept considering it is a home for the dead. I did find it strange however that they bury the bodies all together in one tomb. At home we have people buried in the same plot but not a whole family of bodies in one tomb. What creeped me out a little is they open up these tombs when they need to add another body to it. I also found it odd that they separated the Catholics from the non-Catholics. However what I have learned from this trip is the people from New Orleans were very Catholic and only Catholic so for someone to not be Catholic it had to be a big disgrace. I just feel as if they were definitely shaming these non Catholics by having a wall put up when maybe they should of just had a separate cemetery. But that's all I have for today! I'll be visiting my Aunt who lives here in Louisiana, tomorrow so stay tuned to hear about that!

Madame Lalaurie's house