This is my first of three posts about my Vieux Carre Pied a’ Terre in New Orleans, French Quarter.
20+ years ago my husband and I decided it would be fun to spend a weekend as tourist in our own home town. Some big convention was that weekend and there wasn’t a hotel room to be had in the French Quarter. I complained and my husband said, “The only way you’re going to be assured of a place to stay in the Quarter is to rent or buy something.” Well, that was like the light turning green! Our criteria included 2 bedrooms, 2 baths, a balcony with a view and off street parking. We found a lovely 2 bedroom place with a big gallery located in the lower Quarter which is residential, not touristy. FYI, a gallery has upright supports from the sidewalk level while a balcony is supported only by trusses under the balcony floor which are attached to the building. What did we compromise on? It had only one bath and no parking. Here are some before and after pictures. Obviously, they are not staged and I took them for my own documentation of the process.
You can see the difference between the bare unoccupied unit that we purchased and the occupied one on the right
Plants really help to soften the façade but that Pepto Bismol color was retched. Angelina and Brad bought that white building to the left the year after we sold our condo.
The expansive gallery is 8 ft. deep and 20 ft. wide and was what sold us on the property.
A nice little marble topped table and 2 antique French bistro chairs-just the place to enjoy morning coffee and croissants. Or perhaps a chat with Angelina and Brad!
Departing tenants didn’t bother to dispose of their dead plant.
There, that’s better! Two sweet olives flank a topiary ligustrum and offer some screening from our neighbor.
Most homes in the Vieux Carre enjoy an interior courtyard — a little hidden paradise. Unfortunately, this one was wall to wall concrete except for the planter with the palm tree in the middle so container planting was the only option. Our unit is on the right with the ferns on the balcony.
The palm tree succumbed to a freeze one winter and was replaced by a fountain, which was a welcomed change.
Even the fountain had to do battle with the elements.
This is a Vieux Carre view toward the Mississippi River. The French Market is at the end of the street and you can just see part of a container ship above the green wharf building.
This Vieux Carre street view is toward Lake Pontchartrain with a mule-drawn tourist carriage approaching. We’d hear the drivers tell lots of historical untruths to the unsuspecting tourists!
Next week we’ll go inside.
– Lorre Lei
PS: You can read all our posts about New Orleans here.
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