New Orleans

Founded in 1718 by French colonists on the Mississippi, and a consolidated city-parish coextensive with Orleans Parish. It is known for its music, its Creole cooking, its dialects and its festivals, Mardi Gras above all; the historic heart is the French Quarter, with French and Spanish Creole architecture and the nightlife along Bourbon Street. It is the most populous city in Louisiana, the second-most in the Deep South after Atlanta, and a major port and commercial hub for the whole Gulf Coast.