Hence this Must-See Tour, which is clear, unbiased, and definitely not weighted in favor of, say, bookshops or small furry animals at all. There will be a map-quest-esque short version added when I get the chance to wrangle google maps, in case anyone wants to print out and more readily use this tour, but in the meantime, let's ramble.
We'll start on the St. Charles streetcar route, at around ten a.m., and wind our way through the uptown area.
Climb on wherever is convenient, and ride down to the Lowerline stop - and along the way, appreciate one of the prettiest facades in the city. Two blocks North you've got the Central City sector, home of the Jericho Roads Episcopal Housing Initiative - historically a working-class renter's neighborhood, now about one-third vacant and ranging from slab-gone to subsidized-city-housing to opening-house-next-week! within just a few blocks. Chatter with the other people on the streetcar - the drivers are awesome people, and you're going to be in VERY close contact with the other passengers, so you may as well get to know them as the streetcar clatters and jerks down the avenue.
(Note: if you start at the French Quarter/Canal Street end of St. Charles, you have an exciting choice of vistas - either Robert E. Lee on a gigantic phallic pedestal of intimidation, or a stylized mural of penguins! Aww, penguins.)
Climb off the streetcar at the intersection of Lowerline and St. Charles; head West one block to Cherokee St and then turn right down Cherokee. The Maple Street Bookshop is two blocks further and a left turn onto Maple St, number 7523. This store is tiny and crammed full of popular fiction, books by local authors, and an exceptional language and religion selection. The interior walls (also the windows, door, and any other flat surface) are plastered with posters for bands, art festivals, and author signings. There's a small room in the back with comfy chairs, a water cooler, and free wireless, too - perfect for rechecking your google map, if needed.
Hours are Monday - Saturday, 10am - 7pm
When you're done, walk back down Cherokee St, heading South and towards the river. You'll need to cross St. Charles - watch out for the streetcars! - and once you do, pay attention to the houses along the way - they start out as immaculate mansions, and then slide into well-maintained houses and apartment complexes, slightly shabbier rentals, and eventually row houses and shotguns needing a new paint job. As lawncare gets leaner, you'll start to meet more people. Down by the river, rather than the avenue, residents seem to live more of their lives outside on the front porch. Turning left on Prytania, and heading straight for Audobon Park, you'll see this reverse itself. But peeling paint or not, this sector of the city feels like pride - in houses, in gardens, in cars, and in families.
As for the corner of Prytania and Audobon Streets... it's one of the few places I've walked to in the city that felt truly quiet. The live oaks are enormous and drip with Spanish moss, and while the real estate is some of the most expensive in the city, you can still feel the community tying itself together.
One house is sponsoring a haiku corner, where neighbors and passers-by can add poems and sketches. The usual urban graffiti and anatomical inaccuracies aside, some of the poems are quite beautiful.
Continuing down Prytania St, past the Audubon and Walnut intersections, takes you through gateposts and into Audubon Park itself. Depending on who you ask (and where you're standing at the time), you'll hear either City Park (where we volunteered last week) or Audubon Park described as the heart of the city. To use an entirely arbitrary rubric, and my own observations, Audubon Park has more squirrels, so it wins out.
(Also, the City Park area just isn't terribly convenient to a walking tour, and there are no good bookshops in the vicinity. The New Orleans Museum of Art is fantastic, though. But I'm totally telling the truth about the squirrels.)
There's a walking/biking loop trail around the park - stroll counterclockwise, towards the back of the park, which borders on Magazine Street and the Audubon Zoo.
After enjoying the squirrels, ducks, egrets, attractive joggers and golden retrievers, the next option is to go to the Audubon Zoo. Zoo timing is tricky, and while I was able to see most everything in an hour and a half, planning for 2 or three hours is a good idea. (What with Maple Street Books and the twenty-odd blocks you'll have walked thus far, you may need to relax at the iMax for a while. Personally, I recommend the benches by the sea lion tank for a quick rest stop.) I recommend just getting snacks here - try the food court to the left of the Elephant fountain, and make friends with the free-ranging peacock while you're at it.
Of the exhibits, I particularly loved the Earthlab, which has educational modules on composting, trash, and recycling - which includes recycling all kinds of found objects for the zoo's critters to play with. (Apparently the primates on Monkey Island are fond of Mardi Gras beads and boas?!)
As for the other exhibits, definitely check out the white gators in the fantastic swamp sector for one of the best explanations of that genetic mutation and modern, popular show animal I've seen yet. Ethics aside, the white tigers in the Asian Domain are beautiful, and there are the classic staples of Asian and African elephants, giraffes, spotted cats, and otters to keep anyone awed and clicking away with cameras.
After the zoo, walk East along Magazine Street for about ten blocks. This is one of the best places to shop in the city - maybe not on par with the art galleries on Royal Street, or the convenience of the RiverWalk by the conference center complex, but Magazine Street hosts the best range of coffee shops, odd places to eat, jewelry stores, vintage clothes boutiques, and, of course, bookstores. If you can, stop by Fuel (4807 Magazine) or Bee Sweet Cupcakes (5706 Magazine) - you'll be glad you did.
The next official tour stop is Octavia Books - and to get there, you'll need to turn right (or South, if you've gotten turned around) down Octavia Street from Magazine St. (If you're lost, there's a Community Coffee one block up at the corner of Jefferson and Magazine - the baristas are lovely people, and will cheerfully get you turned around the right way.)
Octavia Books is a beautiful, open store with a fantastic selection. I got quite cheerfully lost in the children's section for about half an hour - it's amazing. There are posters advertising classic books and new releases, and a local history section that made me lament the limitations of my luggage - I'd continue about my library, etc., except the consonance is out of hand already.
Hours are Monday - Saturday, 10am - 6pm, and Sunday 12pm - 5pm.
The next stop is Domilise's, for a late lunch. Continue down Octavia Street for one block, and then turn left on Annunciation Street. Domalise's is four blocks down and to the right at the corner with Bellecastle St. They serve the best po' boys in town, and the gentleman tending bar willingly shares stories about the owners' family and long history in the area. Don't let the neighborhood or the building itself fool you - the restaurant may be less fancy on the outside than the places up on Magazine Street, but the sandwiches are fantastic. (There's a more eloquent review here.)
The last order of the tour is to return to the St. Charles streetcar line - which is as simple as heading North up Bellecastle Street. It's three blocks to Magazine Street, if you feel like more shopping, or another eight or so to St. Charles.
So there you have it - a walking (-intensive) tour in the Uptown area, hitting some of the must-see locations and social gradations in the city.
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