Christmas new orleans style (United States)
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Christmas new orleans style (United States)
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Category: North America & West Indies / Carribean islands - United States
This is a press release selected by our editorial committee and published online for free on 2008-10-16
Celebrate the Holiday Season All Month Long in the Big Easy
Warm up your holiday season in New
Orleans throughout December with fine dining, holiday concerts, bonfire celebrations, theatrical performances, and cooking demonstrations. Mixing traditional Christmas celebrations with a Big Easy twist, this month-long
event offers visitors plenty of holiday cheer.
Restaurants roll out some of their finest menus during the month of December for “Reveillon” dinners. During the mid-1800s, Creole families in New Orleans celebrated Reveillon (French for “awakening”)
twice during the holidays, once on Christmas Eve then again on New Year’s Eve. The tradition carries on today in such restaurants as Commander’s Palace, Arnaud’s, Muriel’s Jackson Square, Brennan’s, and Tujague’s. Reveillon menus include specialties like fried green tomatoes, turtle soup, sautéed fish meuniere, braised lamb shank, boiled brisket, shrimp remoulade, bread pudding, and cheesecake.
Those looking to learn to do a little cooking for themselves during the holidays can do so at various cooking demonstrations. Some of the city’s popular chefs teach guests how to prepare dishes such as butternut squash
bisque, scallops and fresh corn grits, jumbo lump crab cakes and four pepper corn crusted salmon.
Local choirs and New Orleans artists herald in the season with concerts of Christmas carols and gospel favorites in the historic St. Louis Cathedral. Over in City Park, the signature New Orleans tradition Celebration in the Oaks features a walking tour through gardens filled with breath-taking lighting displays, a 14,000 square-foot elevated historic train display,antique carousel rides, performances by local schoolchildren and visits with Santa.
Other events include tours of homes in holiday dress, art exhibitions, holiday book signings, and bonfire cruises. There is also a Louisiana living history project that brings the holidays to life with characters from the past. Usually held a week before Christmas, Caroling in Jackson Square is the biggest caroling event in the city and attracts more than a
1,000 carolers.
Visitors can linger longer in New Orleans with discounted “Papa Noel” room rates at many participating hotels throughout the city.
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