CEMETERY/VOODOO WALKING HISTORY TOUR

IT WAS ALREADY FRIDAY....WOW!  OUR TIME HERE WAS COMING TO AN END. WE WERE LEAVING MONDAY. THIS WOULD BE OUR LAST DAY AT THE FRENCH QUARTERS. WE WERE GOING ON THE CEMETERY/VOODOO HISTORY WALKING TOUR.

 THIS IS A  TOUR OF THE MORTUARY CHURCH, LATER CALLED  OUR LADY OF GUADALUPE CHURCH, ST. LOUIS CEMETERY #1.  MARIE LAVEAU'S TOMB,AND CONGO SQUARE. THERE WERE QUITE A FEW PEOPLE  ON THIS TOUR. I STAYED TOWARD THE FRONT SO I  COULD HEAR WHAT THE GUIDE WAS SAYING.

WE WOULD STOP ALONG THE WAY AND HE WOULD TELL US TIDBITS OF THE CITY'S HISTORY.  

THE FIRST STOP WOULD BE THE  CHURCH. 

 AT LEAST 41,000 PEOPLE DIED FROM YELLOW FEVER. IT TOOK  A LONG TIME FOR THEM TO FIGURE OUT THAT IT WAS CAUSED BY MOSQUITOS.

AND THEN ON TO THE CEMETARY........LOCATED DIRECTLY BEHIND THE CHURCH.

THE GUIDE EXPLAINED THAT  NEW ORLEANS IS BELOW SEA LEVEL, ONE REASON FOR THE ABOVE GROUND BURIALS. 

 THIS ONE IS A FAMILY STYLE TOMB. NOTICE ALL THE NAMES ON THE FRONT. IT HAS TWO SHELVES  WITH A CHAMBER BELOW CALLED THE  CAVEAU.THE  BODY IS PLACED  IN A WOODEN BOX, ON ONE OF THE SHELVES. IN  THE NEW ORLEANS HEAT,  THE TOMB WILL REACH 300 OR SO DEGREES  AROUND THE CLOCK.  IF NEEDED, IT CAN BE  OPENED  AFTER A YEAR AND A DAY. THE REMAINDER OF THE FIRST BODY IS SCRAPED AND FALLS DOWN IN THE CAVEAU, WHERE THE BONES MINGLE. 

SOME OF THE TOMBS ARE  VERY LARGE AND ORNATE, AND SADLY MOST HAVE BEEN VANDALIZED.

NICHOLAS CAGE HAS A TOMB HERE......A PYRAMID!!

IT SAYS OMNIA AB UNO, WHICH MEANS EVERYTHING FROM ONE.

WE HAD TO WAIT TO SEE THE VOODOO QUEEN, MARIE 

LAVEAU'S TOMB.SHE WAS A LOUISIANA CREOLE  PRACTIONER OF VOODOO.  HERS' IS ONE OF THE MORE POPULAR TOMBS.

WALKING THROUGH THE TOMBS, I NOTICED THE  INSCRIPTION ON THIS TOMB.

OUR LAST STOP WAS  CONGO SQUARE .  CONGO SQUARE IS IN THE SOUTHERN CORNER OF LOUIS ARMSTRONG PARK.

CONGO SQUARE, IS AN OPEN SPACE WHERE SLAVES AND FREE BLACKS GATHERED THROUGHOUT THE 19TH CENTURY FOR MEETINGS, OPEN MARKETS AND THE AFRICAN DANCE AND DRUMMING CELEBRATIONS THAT PLAYED A SUBSTANTIAL ROLE IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF JAZZ.

AND THAT WAS THE END OF THE TOUR.......WE STARTED WALKING BACK TO THE TRUCK ......I THOUGHT THIS WAS THE CUTEST  HOUSE!!

AND MUSICIANS GETTING SET UP TO PLAY FOR THE DAY.

WE DIDN'T KNOW WHAT WE WERE HUNGRY FOR , SO WE HEADED  HOME  FOR  LEFTOVERS. WE WERE SO GLAD WE HAD DONE THE TWO WALKING TOURS....SO MUCH HISTORY!! IT STARTED RAINING DURING THE NIGHT AND RAINED UNTIL ABOUT NOON ON SATURDAY. FINALLY ON  SUNDAY IT STARTED CLEARING UP. WE GOT THE TRUCK AND RV WASHED AND READY TO GO TO ALABAMA!