French Quarter Jazz Funeral

The girls and I were having our supper in the French Quarter last night. We ate at a restaurant right on the corner of Jackson Square, Stanley’s. Tabs was most thrilled to order a peanut butter chocolate chip milkshake. After supper, the girls and I had just walked onto the street corner when we were serenaded by a jazz band followed by a parade of dancing people who filled the entire street, some with drinks in hand (it is legal in the French Quarter to walk around with an open alcoholic beverage to drink as you go)! It was a magical site to behold. A few dancers were waving a photocopied picture of an older Jazz musician in their hands. The parade danced through Jackson Square and all the way to the Mississippi River where they threw the ashes of the deceased into the river. It really was the best funeral procession I’ve ever witnessed. The girls and I decided that we all want Jazz Funerals when our time comes. What a magical way to celebrate a life–a street band, parade and dance. The pictures are courtesy of Tabitha and her iPod.