Dan & Julie enjoy sunshine & music in New Orleans

Listening to music in Jackson Square

Dan and Julie are back from a mini-vacation in New Orleans, where they spent most of their time listening to live music. They were there for the French Quarter Festival - four days filled with music on stages set up in parks and on the streets.

The Preservation Brass playing in Jackson Square

An amazing 190 acts performed at 23 locations around the French Quarter. "We only caught about 10 of the festival performances in the three full days we had," says Dan, "but we saw plenty of other music day and night."

Singer Aaron Neville and his band at Woldenberg Riverfront Park

"We spent two evenings checking out bands in clubs along Frenchmen Street, plus the various bands playing out on the street. We took in a show at the famous Preservation Hall. And we saw more musicians in the streets at every turn.

Meschiya Lake and the Little Big Horns

"In all we must have caught at least 25 bands, not counting the ones whose music was spilling out into the streets as we walked by various bars."

Music and dancing in the streets

Although they spent most of their time in the Quarter, Dan and Julie also took a quick ferry ride across the river and back to get another view of the city...

...and took a street car out to the Garden District to look at some of the old mansions and an example of New Orleans' above-ground cemeteries.

And they enjoyed some fine (and pricey!) meals at restaurants including Tableau, Bourbon House, Court of Two Sisters and Borgne.

It was Dan's first visit to the city, and Julie's first in a long time. The biggest stroke of luck was the weather - sunny with temperatures in the low 70s and pleasant breezes every day, making for a very enjoyable stay.

Dan will probably post more pictures soon, so check back!

A band plays amid the statues of jazz greats in Legends Park