Living in
New Orleans Just Like My Father
My experience in New Orleans was more
meaningful to me because I was able to experience my dad and grandparent’s
favorite American city. They both lived here in the 1970s for three years when
my grandmother was a diplomat for Colombia. My father attended the University
of New Orleans and studied hospitality while working at an Italian restaurant.
My dad is extremely excited that my sister and I were able to live here and
understand why he loves New Orleans so much, especially since he was the same
age that I am now. My goal during my stay in New Orleans was to visit all of
his favorite places so I could remind him of his time here.
The places that still exist today that my
dad still remembers are Impastato’s restaurant, Tipitina’s, and Lake Pontchartrain.
At each place he has different memories and I was able to create new memories
as well. XXX restaurant was the place where my dad spent the most time when he
lived in New Orleans. This is where he started his hospitality career and
learned about excellent customer service. It was so special when the owner
remembered who my father was and was able to share specific stories from 30
years ago. Hearing these stories helped me understand why this restaurant represents
so much to my dad.
I had always heard that Tipitina’s was a
very historic place to hear music. I was able to hear music with Latin roots
and dance a little bit of salsa that reminded me of Colombia. It’s incredible
that a bar with live music from so long ago is still so popular today. The
music culture in New Orleans opened my eyes to a lot of new genres of music.
Watching live music has changed my view of how meaningful music can be and how
it shapes a city’s culture. It was nice to see how the musicians truly enjoy
what they are doing; I hope to enjoy my work as much as they do.
My dad insisted I visit Lake Pontchartrain
since the day I got to New Orleans. This was the last place I went because I
don’t think it is as popular as it was back in the 1970s. I was very impressed
with the size and with all of the activities that people can do on the lake. My
experience on the lake was to watch a family friend at a sailing competition.
She is also from Colombia and happened to live in New Orleans at the same time
as my father as his roommate. She complemented the stories that the owner of
the Impastato’s restaurant told me, and I loved hearing more details about when
my dad was my age in New Orleans.
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