Memories of New Orleans: Down by the Mississippi

As New Orleans prepares for another hurricane season Derrick Mendis recalls how his boyhood dreams came true in this Crescent City...

A visit to New Orleans was a boyhood dream of mine because I was a jazz-fan. I had heard of New Orleans as the home of jazz, the city which gave birth to jazz in the early 1900's. This is where the famous Louis Armstrong with his golden trumpet and gravelly voice made his name as the undisputed "King of Jazz". Songs like 'Hello Dolly', 'When the Saints go marching' and 'Mack the Knife' sung by him, still echo in my ears.

Another reason why New Orleans attracted me, was the fact that two well-known American authors, Tennessee Williams and William Faulkner had lived there. An avid reader in my schooldays, I had enjoyed Faulkner's "The Sound and the Fury" "A Fable", "The Mansion"; and Williams', "Streetcar named Desire", "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof" and "Suddenly last Summer". Their writings must have certainly been inspired by the multi-faceted gem, called New Orleans.

My dream came true in 1987 when I was a Jesuit priest working in the diocese of Badulla, under the late Bishop Edmund Fernando, OMI. He needed funds to develop the diocesan apostolates. In response to his appeal, the Archbishop of New Orleans invited a priest from the Badulla presbyterium to preach in his parish churches on Saturdays and Sundays.

Dream city

The second collection at mass, would be for Badulla. When Bishop Edmund offered me this assignment, I grabbed the golden opportunity with eager bands. The Jesuit provincial of New Orleans generously offered me free board and lodgings at the Jesuit House of Studies situated across the road bordering the Loyola University.

Since my preaching assignment was only on weekends, I had ample time to visit places of interest and stroll along the streets of New Orleans, imbibing the sights and sounds of my dream city.

New Orleans, situated on the banks of the mighty Mississippi, was in many ways, very different from other American cities. There was something special and unique about it, a charm of its own, like Quebec City when compared to the other cities of Canada the quaint charm of an old European town.

Founded by the French Governor of Louisiana, and named after the Duke of Orleans, regent of France, New Orleans is popularly known as the 'Crescent City', because it lies along a broad, sweeping curve of the Mississippi.

This largest city in the State of Louisiana is not only a tourist attraction but also one of the busiest ports in the US, second only to New York. Its location beside the Mississippi has helped to make it a great shipping centre, with many ocean-going ships and river-barges calling at this port.

In the evenings I would take a street-car and visit the famous French Quarter. Street-cars reminded me of the tram cars that used to run through the streets of Colombo, when I was a boy.

However, the street cars of New Orleans were far better maintained, less noisy and more comfortable than our tram cars. To amble along the streets of New Orleans was an unforgettable experience. The streets were closed to traffic in the evenings.

I remember an old black guy seated on a stool on the sidewalk playing his saxophone to the accompaniment of a battery-operated tape-recorder providing the background music. A group of young black teenagers, gave a splendid performance of break-dancing on the street, to the beat of loud, blaring heavy-metal music.

I stood fascinated by their acrobatic gyrations, perfect timing and choreography, the suppleness of their bodies, their boundless energy and stamina. I could watch them for hours, but had to move on since the hotels, bars and restaurants had jazz bands providing lively music with their wind instruments harmonizing and improvising in full swing.

It was a rare treat to sit in these hotels, sipping a mug of beer, mesmerized by the live music.

Other attractions

There were other attractions too - jugglers, mime-artistes and stunt-men. The mime-artistes with their faces painted ghostly white would assume a statuesque posture for hours, without the slightest movement, without literally batting an eyelid.

Some children would watch them for some time and pinch them to see if they were alive. These street-artistes seem to display their talents not for money but for sheer joy.

The musicians and performers of New Orleans exuded a joie-de-vivre seldom seen in other cities where life is one mad rush and everybody is in a mighty hurry.

People say that if you go to Delhi you must visit the Taj Mahal for your soul and Moti-Mahal (famous for its naan and tandoori) for your body. Similarly, If you go to New Orleans you must enjoy the jazz for your soul and Cajun cuisine for your body.

I was intrigued by the word 'Cajun' until someone told me that Cajun is a corruption of 'Arcadian', and refers to those French Canadians in the North, who were exiled to Louisiana in the South by the British who captured Canada from the French. Cajun food can truly tickle a Lankan palate, and that's saying a mouthful.

We Lankans who are used to chillies and condiments, find most Western foods rather bland. But Cajun food was different. I relished the spicy, pungent Cajun preparations.

A stone's throw from the Jesuit House of Studies was the famous Audobon Park, named after the renowned artist and naturalist, John James Audobon who made his home there for several years. This extensive park, covering an area of about 300 acres, was an ideal place to relax. It has a prominent statue of Audobon and its own zoo and aquarium.

A stream runs through this park with wild ducks and geese swimming and sporting, and children feeding them with buns and cookies. I was happy when some anglers on the bank, told me that no permit or licence was needed to fish there.

Armed with a fishing-rod, a few sandwiches and cans of beer, I would sit under a tree and fish to my heart's content. Apart from the odd catfish, most of the fish I caught were flat, colourful sunfish similar to our 'ran korali', I thoroughly enjoy fishing, but not scaling, clearing and cooking what I catch.

So I would present my catch, 60-70 fish to some fellow angler. Once a tall black lady fishing with sophisticated fishing gear, but who caught nothing, was pleasantly surprised when I offered her my entire catch. "God bless your kind soul, my dear", she said.

The people of New Orleans are a motley hotch-potch of diverse ethnic groups. The majority are poor blacks, descendants of the slaves who were brought in the early 1700's.

There are the wealthy whites, descendants of the English, Irish and Germans. Creoles are of Latin stock - French and Spanish.

The disparity between the affluent whites and poor blacks was strikingly evident. Racial segregation had been rampant. I heard that black children were admitted to all-white, public elementary schools only in the 1960's.

It is not surprising that New Orleans has its darker side of crime and violence. Poverty, unemployment, slums and shanties, poor facilities for sanitation, health-care and education, create an ideal breeding ground for racial tension, and a high rate of violence and crime.

"Killer Katrina"

When I read about the horrible hurricane "Killer Katrina" which devastated New Orleans I felt very sad. When I heard that 90% of New Orleans homes (mostly wooden structures) were destroyed by a 9m wall of water, that 80% of the city was submerged, that the death toll was around 10,000 and the survivors were without food, water, electricity and phones, that 1000s were languishing in refugee-camps in a state of stress, shock and trauma, I was stricken with grief.

It is indeed a pity, a shame, that the world's wealthiest, most powerful country with all its resources, failed to respond promptly and efficiently to this apocalyptic "Killer Katrina" catastrophe. The silver lining to this dark grey cloud is the fact that help was offered by over 50 countries, including our Sri Lanka which donated its window's mite.

It will take years and cost billions of dollars to rebuild New Orleans. Can New Orleans a city throbbing with music, bubbling with gaiety and the joy of living, be resurrected to its former state? Before everything else, the State will have to draw off the highly contaminated flood-waters mixed with petrol, industrial chemicals and human waste. Some politicians propose that New Orleans be re-located to higher ground.

I pray that the city-planners would do their utmost to recapture the seductive charm, the magic, the soul of New Orleans. I hope that the rebuilt city's air will be filled with strains of lively music, and the appetizing smells of "jambalaya, crawfish-pie and fillet gumbo".

Until it ceases to beat, my heart will cherish happy memories of this beautiful, easygoing, fun-loving Crescent City.