Not to turn this into a N.O. vs Austin hi-jack...but imaterry started it...
New Orleans is amazing. Funny thing, but the first time I visited Austin was on the same trip that I first visited New Orleans. We drove the whole Gulf Coast from Tampa to Austin. We had a pretty direct comparison of the two cities, since it was so fresh in our minds. Of course these things are totally subjective...
The food in New Orleans if off the chain totally. But man, after 4 days of eating that rich, creamy, deep-fried culinary jewelry, all I wanted was salad and water for one whole week! No wonder that city ranks low in health
The music is indeed "spilling out into the streets", but remember Austin has nothing as concentrated as the French Quarter. It has sections like that but the French Quarter is one of the most unique places in the United States. So to compare it to anywhere else - even NYC - is problematic. The things that have plagued N.O. (even before Katrina) were: poverty, race relations, safety, and general maintenance. But we love it. There's no other place like it in the States.
Obviously, we thought enough of Austin to move here so...I think the fact that they're about 8 hrs away is awesome. And don't forget, a lot of N.O. musicians have come here, which is great in terms of musical diversity. The great thing about this region of the country(south/southwest) is that the regions still have their own brand of sound. While we can get all the music we want online or at any record store, getting it first hand is still the best and traveling around you can feel the impact the land and culture has on the music. Even though we're becoming a bland land of chains and strip malls, there's still some color left.
BTW, there was someone posting on this forum recently relocated from N.O.(romesq maybe?). I'm sure she would have something important to add to this thread.
Welcome to City-Data.com forum! Make sure to register - it's free and very quick! You have to register before you can post and participate in our discussions with 700,000 other registered members. User profiles and some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your free account you will be able to customize many options, you will have the full access to over 15,000 posts/day about local topics and you will see fewer ads. 
Linear Mode
