Wedding Blog
In the new issue of Martha Stewart Weddings, I came across a full-spread ad encouraging brides-to-be to say “I Do” in the wonderful (but hurting) city of New Orleans.
St. Louis Cathedral, photo via http://neworleansdailyphoto.blogspot.com/
French Quarter, photo found here
New Orleans is like a second home to me. My mom’s two sisters live there, along with four of my cousins, and I have probably been there at least twenty times in my twenty-seven years. I have spent many Christmases there, explored the French Quarter countless times, and sampled plenty of delectable food. It is a city that holds a dear place in my heart, and like everyone else I was devastated by the news of the affect that Hurricane Katrina had on the city and its people.Mr. Cupcake and I went to New Orleans last May to visit my family and attend JazzFest. While we were there we saw firsthand much of the devastation in the city — but I’m sure what we saw was only a small fraction of the damage. However, we also witnessed the amazing spirit of New Orleans, the spirit that is New Orleans.
We saw a city that was once full of life and is struggling to get back to where it used to be. Many locals willingly struck up conversations about where they were when Katrina struck, how long they were gone, and why they came back.
As soon as I came across the ad for New Orleans in MSW, I went to foreverneworleans.com to see what it was all about. Not only are they working to bring tourism back to New Orleans, but there is a whole page devoted to tying the knot in the Crescent City. The New Orleans Metropolitan Convention & Visitors Bureau is offering plenty of assistance in helping you find your dream wedding venue in this romantic Southern city.
If it weren’t too far for most of our friends and family to travel and if we had been considering a destination wedding, perhaps we would have considered a destination wedding in NOLA to introduce everyone we know to this spectacular city that is still in dire need of help. Although we’ll be staying right here in Pennsylvania for our wedding, we’ll continue to visit New Orleans often to support the city (we are hoping to make the journey to JazzFest at least every other year).
Have you considered planning your wedding around contributing to an important cause? For any of you planning weddings in NOLA, are you doing anything in particular to make sure that your wedding has a positive impact on the regrowth of the city?
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Share this post: Forever New Orleans
Hey! MY WEDDING WILL BE IN NEW ORLEANS! I’ve set my wedding date for Valentine’s Day 2009 in New Orleans (my hometown). It’s the perfect time because being Asian, I fall just after the Chinese New Year and best of all, I’m also getting married a week or two before FAT TUESDAY! My OOT guests will be thrilled since they don’t have to come for “just a wedding”, but instead, they can actually make a vacation out of it and go to the parades! The city will be buzzing with activity EVERYWHERE and there will be so much to do that I’m positive my OOT guests will have so much fun.
My fiance and I moved back to the South after living up in the Northeast for so long. Many of our friends up there have never been to New Orleans, but have always wanted to go for the parades.
Weddingbee should consider covering a New Orleans Wedding! The city has so much charm and YES, it has it’s bad parts, too, but if you grew up there like I did, you know how helpful people really are.
And yes, I am totally going with the fleur de lys theme and black, gold/champagne are my wedding colors!
Hi, I just posted and suddenly, it said the post didn’t exist! Imagine that!
Anyway, to recap: MY WEDDING IS GOING TO BE IN NEW ORLEANS! We’ve set the date for Valentine’s Day of 2009 which is perfect because it falls just after Chinese New Year and is a week or two before FAT TUESDAY (Mardi Gras)… and oh yeah… it’s VALENTINE’S DAY!!
I’m running with the fleur de lys theme and best of all… my colors are black and gold/champagne.
I honestly can’t wait to get married in my hometown!
Hmmm I’m confused. How come sometimes these posts get moved back up top? I could have sworn that I saw this yesterday or something.
My fiance loves NOLA so much–he got to go there for an American Chemical Society conference back int 2003 and absolutely fell in love with the place (and jazz too, after hearing so much of it live). Every since he told me about his time there, I’ve been dying to go–watching the NOLA episode of Anthony Bourdain’s No Reservations has only increased my desire to visit there, so I think we’re going to make a trip next October for our anniversary.
Thank you Miss Cupcake for highlighting NOLA. It’s such a wonderful place and I will getting married there!!! I can’t wait.
The wedding industry is in full swing with many wonderful venues and vendors to choose from. The food, the music, the ambiance… I could go on:) New Orleanians know how to have a good time!
I am also getting married in New Orleans. Our wedding is set for this December.
We have a good deal of OOT guest so, I am encouraging them to see and do a lot of things with New Orleans flair, while they are in the city, in order to really help the economy!!!
We are doing a lot of traditional New Orleans traditions…getting married at the St. Louis Cathedral (pictured above) with a second-line band escorting all of the guest to the reception site overlooking the great Mississippi River!!!
I can’t wait and I hope that through our guest staying and spending some time in the city it will help in some way with the rebuilding and restoring process!!
From the words of the Iconic Harry Connick Jr., “Lets’ kick the tires and light the fires” to this wonderful post I can say NOLA is a gem. I used to live there before Katrina but now live in Houston and can vouch for all that was you’ve said. I lived on the bank of the Miss. River near the airport in Kenner.
Thanks for highlighting this, Miss Sundae. I’m planning a mini-destination wedding in New Orleans for this December.
We’ll be doing a lot of local traditions like the second-line parade and cake pulls, but really the biggest thing for me and my partner is having folks we love help rebuild the city with us. We’re planning on doing a day of volunteering with Habitat for Humanity, and hope a lot of our guests will do it with us! I look at it as the price they pay for an awesome party and free food and booze 
oops, i meant Miss Cupcake!
lol! my FI just got back form that very same conference this past Saturday! he took oodles of pics and i am salivating. We hope to return together one day.
I would love to visit New Orleans someday… it’s a shame what’s happened to their tourist industry. Maybe I’ll plan a trip there next summer (we try to go somewhere we’ve never been every year) for some good ol’ soul and spice. 
We couldn’t have our wedding there, but my husband and I are planning on attending the Essence Music Festival next year for our first anniversary. I have always wanted to go but can’t ever seem to make it, and now that the festival is back in NOLA, I think it would be a good place to celebrate w/out us breaking the bank and help tourism at the same time. Good food, great atmosphere, and great music! We can’t wait!
Hi,
I am a NOLA bride, and I just want to say that I am so happy you have highlighted my city. I will be getting married in New Orleans (my hometown) on March 28, 2009. We are so excited about getting married in the city I grew up in and my fiance has adopted as his own.
My younger sister was married here yesterday in a ceremony filled with New Orleans tradition and I plan on incorperating many of them into my ceremony as well.
Our new life together will begin in a city celebrating a rebirth as well.
Oh yeah and if you are looking fora NOLA bee I am available!
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Mrs. Cupcake, Philadelphia
Age and Occupation: 27, Graphic Designer
Fiance's Age and Occupation: 29, Construction Project Manager
Engagement Date: February 10, 2007
Wedding Date: September, 2008
Blogging Since: December 7, 2007
Venue: The Desmond Hotel in Malvern, PA
About Me: Mr. Cupcake and I hit it off at a Halloween party and immediately began a long-distance relationship. After two years, he moved to my neck of the woods, and a year and a half after that, he proposed at the “place we fell in love.” I am a true perfectionist who enjoys designing and creating more work for myself, so wedding planning is my perfect outlet. Mr. Cupcake and I are both old souls, and we hope to weave that aspect of our personalities into our wedding day.
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