Morning Run

Every morning (actually, like every other morning/week) I go on a run. My chosen path follows Royal St. all the way down to Franklin St., where I turn and run two blocks to Burgundy, where I turn and run back to St. Philip's St. I end up running in a giant rectangle that spans the Quarter and Marigny. The first time I went running on it, I was so out of breath/shape that I couldn't pay any attention to my surroundings. The second time, however, I managed to catch a couple glimpses of my environment.

Since I've been here, I've always thought that Marigny was the relatively small area between Esplanade (the street that demarcates the separation between the Quarter and Marigny) and Elysian Fields, another broad boulevard. I had only crossed Elysian Fields once, on the segway tour, and didn't really think much of it. Turns out, however, that Marigny is actually much larger than I had assumed. The area beyond Elysian Fields is significantly bigger than the area after Esplanade. My first run I was a little bit nervous. I don't really like venturing into unknown neighborhoods in unfamiliar cities by myself, but I figured that since I was running, nobody would bother me.

I was pleasantly surprised. Marigny is a really cute place. I actually think I might like it better than the Quarter. I love the Quarter, but it's crawling with tourists. Asides from Royal and Chartres, both of which have tourist elements, most of the streets are either very touristy, or residential. All of the residential buildings are house-type buildings, and many of them are very brightly colored, which you can't find in the Quarter because of the strict policies of the Vieux Carré Commission. There are cafes and small businesses all over the place, that pop up in between houses. In general, Marigny seems more relaxed. This is where the Caribbean influence really shows through.

The other day, after my run, Carolyn and I decided to walk around in the Bywater, which I hadn't really been to. The Bywater is the neighborhood in between Marigny and the 9th Ward. Bywater is a lot like Marigny, but even more Caribbean and relaxed feeling. It's really tempting to think that Bywater is rundown, but in my opinion, that adds to the feel. We didn't spend all that much time there, but it was enough to get a feel for the place. We stopped at the fascinating bargain store, so full of stuff that it was verging on overwhelming. The only way I can describe it, is if a hoarder just decided to open a thrift store and sell all of the things that they had hoarded over the years. There were so many weird and bizarre things in there, like the punch-bowl set that my mom has, plus a set of china made by the same company as some of my mom's china, old beds, porcelain dolls, voodoo dolls, and "Aztec" pottery jars. While we were in the store, a fresh produce vendor drove by in his truck shouting out the names of the fruits and veggies that he was selling that day.

I'm putting in some pictures, which I've stolen from Carolyn (because my computer is in the shop).