New Orleans

Ever since Hurricane Katrina devastated the Gulf Coast, laborers and volunteers have been working hard to rebuild and revive the "Big Easy." Rest assured, New Orleans is well on its way to returning as one of the nation's cultural capitals.

Mardi Gras is the undisputed face of New Orleans. And every year when March rolls around, the world anxiously awaits reports of the unfettered and raucous celebrations that invade Bourbon Street in observance of Fat Tuesday. An unbridled celebration of indulgence and life - it is a crowning moment of this city's impassioned spirit.

But Mardi Gras is just one feather in her colorful, plume-filled cap. Edged on all sides by bodies of water (the Mississippi River to the east, south and west and Lake Pontchartrain to the north) and saturated throughout with bogs and bayous, New Orleans is as thick with culture as its air is with moisture. By day, she is a city of motion and vitality. But by the soft moonlight of night, she is a seductive world of mists, shadows, melodies and magic.

The New Orleans most familiar to outsiders is the French Quarter. The oldest part of the city (and home of the infamous Bourbon Street), the French Quarter is made up of 70 blocks between Canal Street, Rampart Street, Esplanade Avenue and the Mississippi River. It was the original settlement of New Orleans and remains the city's biggest draw. From carousing on Bourbon Street to antiquing on Royal Street and to the mix of hopping clubs, tacky souvenir shops, delectable restaurants, beautiful homes, charming B&Bs, luxury hotels and historical sites that dot the land in between, the French Quarter is as varied in options as it is in heritage and architecture. With its French, Spanish and American influences, the Quarter is a time warp of the Deep South antebellum period and the sleek sophistication of the 21st Century.

For the culture-seeker, New Orleans has art centers and museums aplenty. The Contemporary Arts Center offers an impressive visual arts gallery and performing arts facility. The Louisiana State Museum's campus of five separate historic buildings features dedicated exhibits, including a jazz museum, a permanent Mardi Gras exhibit, a period pieces showroom and a Louisiana folk art collection. But for a little more native flair, the Musee Conti Wax Museum (costumed wax figures based on New Orleans history and legends) and the New Orleans Historic Voodoo Museum (complete with love potions and voodoo dolls, pays homage to New Orleans voodoo queen Marie Laveau) capture interesting snapshots of the city's memoirs.

Nature-lovers will be delighted with this city as well. With an extraordinarily unique landscape, New Orleans has a handful of one-of-a-kind natural treasures. The Moonwalk, for example, stretches along the Mississippi River for the entire length of the French Quarter - offering its guests mystical tranquility and a phenomenal view. Audubon Park is a popular spot for picnicking, biking, jogging, golfing or playing tennis. At City Park, you can do much of the same, or you can enjoy its botanical gardens, restored carousel and Storyland amusement area for kids. Check out Woldenberg Riverfront Park for spectacular landscaping shaded by oak trees and blooming with magnolias. Audubon Zoo is ranked as one of the top five zoos in the country, and the Aquarium of the Americas features exotic sea life from the Gulf of Mexico, the Caribbean Reef, the Amazon River Basin and the Mississippi River Delta.