Charlemagne's Hometown

The French Quarter in New Orleans has always captivated me. It's a juxtaposition of old and new, a constant dynamic between antiquated tradition and modernization. In the wake of Hurricane Katrina, I have found this to be even more true when speaking to those that continue to live and work in New Orleans. The struggle is clearly evident to keep this city alive while maintaining its culture. I most recently visited in December with my best friend. Click to see some of my photos:

Charlemagne's Hometown

The fortune teller told me nothing
that I wouldn't have found out on my own.

She read my palm and took my money.
She looked at me with eyes of stone.

She said the odds are long and stacked against us.
Still we try for what we must,
to keep from leaving our senses, long forgotten in the dust.

Like the bones of some saint beneath the church floor,
who must have died from lack of light,
the color snapshots I sent you all came out in black and white.

Won't you fly across that ocean, take a train on down?
'Cause the night's growing lonesome in Charlemagne's hometown.

- James McMurtry