Spirits of New Orleans. Kala Ambrose

      Present-day New Orleans on Bourbon Street

      The energy of this land is so potent and powerful that it places a hold on each person who enters these swampy grounds and claims you as its own. This may explain in part why the city of New Orleans is so haunted with ghosts much older than its current residents.

      One never runs out of things to experience in NOLA (New Orleans, Louisiana). Recently, I returned to my roots in the great state of Louisiana and spent some time in my favorite place in the world: the French Quarter of New Orleans. Truly captivating, this city is a veritable feast for all five senses, as well as the sixth sense.

      The best way to describe how I feel in this city is charmed. New Orleans is many things to many people, but for me it is charming and embodies a spirit—a joy for living (joie de vivre)—that is expressed throughout the city.

      I remember the first time I returned to New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina. I had no idea how the vibe of the city would feel after having gone through such a horrific experience. My heart was thrilled to see that the great lady was holding her own with a state of grace, while still undergoing major renovations on the physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual levels.

      I traveled around parts of the city riding the streetcars, taking in each neighborhood, enjoying the stunning architecture, smelling honeysuckle and jasmine in the air, and chuckling at the sight of Mardi Gras beads hanging from the boughs of trees. As the streetcar delivered me near the French Market, the smell of beignets and coffee coming from Café du Monde lifted my spirit. Yes, I sighed with relief; New Orleans has been through the worst and still she stands—proud, strong, and vibrant.

      It is my sincere belief that New Orleans is charmed: charmed by the artists and musicians when their art and music spill into the streets touching the soul at the core, charmed by the chefs who tantalize our appetites in sweet rhapsody with their culinary delights, and charmed by the people who are kind, good natured, and some of the most loving and joyful people who I have ever had the pleasure of knowing.

      THE JOURNEY BEGINS

      As we begin this journey into the spirit and spirits of New Orleans, we will tread carefully into the cities of the dead and visit the land of magical Voodoo queens. Growing up in Louisiana, I assumed that people everywhere spoke about mojo, gris-gris, juju, and Voodoo and celebrated Mardi Gras and other joyous occasions, for the simple joy of being alive and around family and friends. Later, as I lived and traveled around the country, I soon discovered that Louisiana has a very unique style of living. There is no other place like it in the world. I’m of French, Scottish, Irish, and German origin, and my family has lived in almost every area of the state. My mother was a Cajun queen born in Lafayette; my great-grandmother lived in South Louisiana, where she supported her family by reading tea leaves and making folk remedies.

      I grew up attending Mardi Gras in New Orleans, where I was carried through the city on my father’s broad shoulders, free to stretch out my hands and catch beads as the floats passed by. He tirelessly carried me through these parades, carrying bags of beads, doubloons, and other items that I collected. At the age of 3, at a game with my parents, I first danced to the LSU fight song during halftime, to the delight of family and spectators, who remarked that even at this early age I had the rhythm and spirit of Louisiana in my soul. I was raised Catholic; went to school where I was taught by nuns; played along the Red River; went crabbing, fishing, and inner tubing; and grew up in a state where people celebrated the joy in everyday life. I can’t really remember a weekend growing up when my parents weren’t having a party of some kind, with family and friends dropping by and a huge variety of food being cooked and shared by everyone. Everyone I met was an honorary uncle or aunt, and no one stayed a stranger for long.

      I also grew up having psychic abilities, as well as the ability to see ghosts and communicate with the spirit world. I began having prophetic dreams at an early age and began communicating with beings that I first attributed to being my guardian angels. I spent the majority of my free time in the libraries getting my hands on every book I could find on the subjects of ancient mythology, ancient history, the ancient gods of Egypt, the oracles of Greece, Celtic traditions, comparative world history and religions, and ancient spiritual practices. I also loved to read ghost stories and legends. This passion for all of these topics began at the age of 5 or 6, and I have never looked back.