Ascension's New Orleans Tour

In honor of Ascension's first birthday, I've put together this little Ascension scavenger hunt--seeing New Orleans through Cheyenne's eyes. I had so much fun revisiting all the places that I've written about for years now. I swear, that city has some sort of calling on my heart. I can't put my finger on it...

1. Mother's 
Of course, our first stop was at Mother's on the corner of Poydras and Tchoupitoulas St. for the one the only Ferdi Special, fully dressed. Oh yeah. It was heavenly. And after wolfing down that sandwich, I leaned back in my chair and took it all in--the waitresses having a ball, everyone else enjoying their food, people trying to go out the wrong door. It was great!

2. Ms. Rose's House
I don't think I ever gave a super concrete description of Ms. Rose's house, but when I passed this one on Iberville St., I just knew that this was her house. She and Mason wouldn't live anywhere else.

3. Garden District - Kara's Home 
We ventured into the garden district (partly because we'd been told about this pretty great bakery Sucré which I'm unofficially adding to the tour) to wander around the beautiful houses, and I ended up finding the perfect Kara house. So you can just see all the crap that went on in that house...well, here it is!

4. Street Cars
Of course we had to ride on the streetcars. It's completely apart of the New Orleans experience, though not necessarily the speediest way to get around town. This one is my favorite because it's just so pretty and goes straight to the French Quarter from the River Walk.

5. The Cemetery 
Alright, so here's the scoop on St. Louis Cemetery No. 1. Apparently, a bunch of delinquents decided to vandalize Marie Laveau's (the Voodoo Queen) cemetery, so the city has now decided to charge $27 dollars in order to keep these delinquents out while also pocketing major bucks. As much as I love this cemetery, there was no way I was about to shell out $27 for that. So we did a loop around the outskirts, looking at the tops of the tombs (even the gates have plexiglass on them so you can't get good pictures) then went to Lafayette Cemetery No. 1 in the garden district. This one is free and beautiful, surrounded by lovely homes and old magnolia trees. You basically get the gist of the above ground cemetery here, and who knows, maybe it'll make an appearance in the third book.

6. The Club 
I had a definite purpose while walking around the French Quarter--to find The Club. And I think I found the perfect doorway that opens up to that room of horrors!

7. Jackson Square 
In the center of the French Quarter, here's where one of the first scenes in the city is placed, when Cheyenne and new friends Anne, Mason, and begrudgingly Eli watch a performance of Romeo and Juliet!

8. National World War II Museum 
You all know what happens here--swing dancing/a bunch of other drama! This is the area that they clear out for the dancing. But we also went through most of the museum, and boy, it's pretty fantastic!  Definitely put it on your to - do list. Then just around the corner from the museum is the alley where Cheyenne and Eli had their first kiss. It's just the right amount of secluded and creepy all at the same time.

And that's all folks! More will be added in book 2, and there are obviously places that I missed. But give me some credit. I was only there for two days; Cheyenne had months to cover all that ground.

Thank you to every single person who has supported Ascension, me, and Cheyenne throughout this long, lovely journey! We couldn't have gotten to our first birthday without you!!

Celebrating,
     HER