To elaborate on my last post . . .
When Nicole and I started dating, she refered to her hometown as "Jokeville." When I first visited, I didn't understand. It's got a charming downtown with nice restaurants, coffeehouses, bars, and public library, seemingly the foundation a pleasant civic life. But having lived here a while, I get it.
Oakville is a nice town, once distinct from the greater Toronto area. Historically, it was once an end point in the Underground Railroad, as escaping slaves were smuggled to a local church in coffins. But now it's a suburb where Canadian yuppies go to raise kids or retire. In short, it's got no soul. None.
What I find really surprising is my absolute lack of desire to go to the nice restaurants or bars just blocks away from me. It's really illuminated my experience in New Orleans. That is, in New Orleans, I loved going to bars and restaurants in large part, because in doing so, I was connecting to something, the city's rich culture. It was a point of pride for me that, prior to leaving, when I walked in the Balcony Bar I was invariably greeted by several people who knew me by name.
I realize Toronto's culture will not be as rich as New Orleans', but I'm hoping there will be something there I want to be a part of.
2 comments:
I'll be interested to read future reports on this issue. There is no place like New Orleans and no place like home.
I wouldn't say that Seattle got any hint of how rich New Orleans culture is. What I would say is that they got some idealized hint of the diverse personalities of New Orleans ... from a post-Katrina perspective. "The Breach" was a play I saw last Saturday at the Seattle Repertory Theatre. As evident from the title, it's a play about the flooding of New Orleans due to the levee breach. Three scenarios were played out. The first portrayed three people stranded on a rooftop. The second was about a journalist who was investigating the suspicion that levees were blown apart by explosives, and the third portrayed a handicapped bar owner who stayed behind and was caught in the flood. All in all an emotionally charged and thought provoking play with water as a prop. Check out www.seattlerep.org.
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