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Actually atlanta (city proper) is 132 square miles....n.o. (city proper) is 180 square miles....meaning the city of new orleans IS bigger than the city of atlanta. What makes atl seem bigger is that it is a little more developed with a loop around the city and other smaller cities within the 285 loop....if/when n.o. gets our loop, you'll feel the size of the city from a different standpoint...its quite big.
Actually atlanta (city proper) is 132 square miles....n.o. (city proper) is 180 square miles....meaning the city of new orleans IS bigger than the city of atlanta. What makes atl seem bigger is that it is a little more developed with a loop around the city and other smaller cities within the 285 loop....if/when n.o. gets our loop, you'll feel the size of the city from a different standpoint...its quite big.
I'd saw Atlanta feels bigger because it's more spralwed out and the skyline is larger. On the pedestrian scale, New Orleans feels bigger.
Actually atlanta (city proper) is 132 square miles....n.o. (city proper) is 180 square miles....meaning the city of new orleans IS bigger than the city of atlanta. What makes atl seem bigger is that it is a little more developed with a loop around the city and other smaller cities within the 285 loop....if/when n.o. gets our loop, you'll feel the size of the city from a different standpoint...its quite big.
I think what makes a city "feel" big can mostly be attributed to its metro size. Atlanta is over 5 million while New Orleans barely cracks 1 million. Atlanta is nearly 5 times the size of New Orleans, and by comparing the two down towns it's pretty evident.
Yeah but when you're on those two feet, New Orleans feels larger.
The downtown/midtown stretch feels larger than New orleans core...I can be at on Peachtree at 4th street in midtown and look both ways north and south and seed a continuous line of highrises and skyscapers. You don't get that same feeling in New Orleans.
I have lived in both cities and other cities including NYC and Philly.
Here is my take on New Orleans:
Roads suck - these are the worse roads I've seen in my life and very dark at night. But I live in uptown where the roads are super bumpy.
Schools suck - prepare to shell out a lot of $$ for private school
People are awesome - the best people I've ever met. Friendly in a festive way, not in a "smile and laugh at everything you say" way. Not pretentious either. Are all about a good time. And not suffocatingly conservative like the rest of the south.
Nightlife is great - the best city for it. NYC, Atlanta, etc., are all lame in comaprison. This is a fun, unpretentitious city that values drinking and having a good time. Plus I have never seen a fight here - people know how to party and keep their cool.
Douche-factor is very low - this city has the lowest percentage of diouchebags I've ever seen.
Ease of living is the best - the hassle factor in New Olreans compared to other large cities is very low. Getting to and from places is very quick. Plus it's a very bikeable and even walkable city - though biking is best becaue the city is a little too spread out for walking. And lots of parks.
Tons of nasty bugs - lots of HUGE roaches on sidewalks, front porches, and occasionally in the home in the warmer months. These suckers are everywhere.
Weather is great (aside from hurrricanes) - love the 70/80 degree days in the winter. Doesn't get much colder than the 40s, and those days are rare. I wish teh city was sunnier but it's not too bad - gets cloudy in afternoon because of afternoon showers.
Culture - lots of it. Galleries, more festivals than you can count, live music, and professional sports. But it's the festivals that really stand out.
Shopping - not terribly impressed. But then again I did live in NYC for a long time, so I'm a bit spoiled.
Housing sucks - the places in uptown are overpriced for what you get. Most of the houses are very old and have crap amenities. There is not a lot of modern apartmernts/housing available in the city.
Economic offerings are not great - feels small and jobs are on the crappy side. Places like Atlanta and NYC trounce New Orleans. There is no comparison. Those cities have a huge professional class.
Food is great - this is a food town. People are very proud of the food here. If you like raw oysters, seafood in general, and spicy food, you'll love New Orleans. However, the variety is a little lacking.
New Orleans is NOT the South - it just happens to be located in the South. It has pretty much nothing in common with Atlanta, Birmingham, Charlotte, Nashville, etc. It's Catholic. It's not socially conservative. A lot of its white population is Italian, Jewish, etc., not WASPy. It's a dense city, not a huge sprawling suburb like the other southern cities. And no Southern accents.
Crime is very concentrated in the bad areas no one goes to anyway - this city isn't like Detroit or Camden. Much of the city is virtually crime free and beautiful - Uptown, parts of Mid-City, Warehouse District, the Quarter (if you're not an idiot and wander down a dark desloate street by yourself at 2 am), Marigny, and Bywater. And the non-murder crimes are very low - I have never seen a fight or anything. This city isn't some lawless dystopia like Detroit or Flint, MI. I have had zero reasons to go to the "bad" areas of N.O., which means I've been exposed to zero crime.
New Orleans has a "run down" feel (with the exception of the Quarter) - I'm sorry but much of the city doesn't look new and clean like other cities. So much of the housing and apartments look old and has-been. Yeah uptown has some nice houses, but other than that and the Quarter, it's a bit of an eyesore unless you like that Caribbean shack look.
As for Atlanta . . . to me it felt like a big soulless suburb. Boring and too much hassle getting around. It's just like Charlotte or any other Southern city. But larger.
Last edited by jojo2222; 08-16-2013 at 09:59 AM..
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