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New Orleans: streetcars and a sunset ferry ride

A day of streetcars and walking ended on the Mississippi with a sunset and a call to my son.

David Schweickart · New Orleans · September 26–27, 2026 · 15 photographs

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White cathedral with three spires beyond a green square, carriages and pedestrians.
Jackson Square and the cathedral on Sunday morning. September 27, 2026.

There is a break in my pictures from the Mississippi River that evening. Two freighters were passing, the sun was setting behind New Orleans, and I stopped taking photographs because I wanted my son to see it. I called him from the ferry. My colleague got a video. I shared that part of the evening live.

Finding our way through the city

I was traveling with a colleague from Brazil, and we had spent the day finding our way around the city. The woman at the hotel desk had helped us get started with public transit. The previous night had involved late buses and eventually a ride back to the hotel.

People walking along a New Orleans street beneath balconies, flags and illuminated signs at night.
The first evening in New Orleans. September 26, 2026.

By Sunday, we were comfortable enough with the system to move the car farther out when we saw the parking prices near Jackson Square.

We walked through the French Quarter and around the market, stopping for buildings, signs and monuments that caught our attention.

Covered market aisle with food counters, hanging lamps and people passing through.
The market: food counters, hanging lights and a steady flow of people.
Gov. Nicholls and North Rampart street signs in front of a green building and ornate balcony ironwork.
Street signs and balcony ironwork at Gov. Nicholls and North Rampart.
Gold-colored equestrian statue of Joan of Arc with a raised banner and stone pedestal.
The Joan of Arc statue, one of the monuments along the morning walk.
Cafe du Monde green awning above a crowded seating area and sidewalk.
Café du Monde, photographed from the sidewalk.
White and red City of New Orleans riverboat with black smokestacks beside the waterfront walkway.
The City of New Orleans riverboat at the waterfront earlier in the day.

The city through open windows

We rode streetcars with the windows open. Along St. Charles, I filmed the houses passing by.

Red and yellow streetcar numbered 2012 on tracks, with Canal and Cemeteries destination signs.
A Canal streetcar in the midday sun.

Lunch at Superior Seafood

At Superior Seafood, I had bacon-wrapped shrimp stuffed with andouille and white cheddar, with potatoes and green beans. I even photographed a bite opened up to show the filling.

Three browned shrimp portions with green beans and a pale side on a white oval plate.
The shrimp plate at Superior Seafood, with potatoes and green beans.

Afternoon views

White riverboat moored along a waterfront, seen across the river.
The riverboat and waterfront seen across the river during the afternoon.
Pink courthouse with a clock tower, arched windows, flags and a bench at its entrance.
The courthouse in Algiers, photographed during the afternoon.
Green park pond with an arched footbridge, trees and a path along the water.
A pond and footbridge on the afternoon walk.
Bronze statue of a musician holding a trumpet above circular stone steps.
A trumpet in hand: a musician’s statue in the park.

The crossing at sunset

For the evening ferry, we picked up drinks and a snack on Canal Street. We missed one departure by a minute. The next crossing took us out as the light was changing, with the skyline behind the river traffic. Freighters were moving through the view, and there were paddle-wheel boats nearby. The timing felt extraordinarily lucky.

Steel truss bridge across a broad river with a red ship beneath it at dusk.
A passing ship beneath the bridge as the evening light changed.

Sharing the view with home

Earlier in the day, I had shown my family the streetcar over a video call. They were at home on the couch while I was moving through New Orleans. When another freighter came through during the sunset crossing, I called again so my son could see the boats and the light for himself. Those calls were the highlight I named that night, before I started describing everything else.

Warm sunset over the river.
The New Orleans skyline across the Mississippi at sunset. September 27, 2026.

The ride back

We got off on the other side, joined the line and boarded for the return. The upper level had filled, so we sat downstairs close to the water. I took more photographs through the windows as we crossed back.

Meeting the same strangers twice

Before lunch, we met a man who offered advice about the city and its restaurants. He was heading the other direction to a Saints game with his wife. We talked for a few minutes, then went our separate ways.

Hours later, after we had traveled around the city and watched the sunset, he and his wife got onto our streetcar. He ended up standing right in front of us. We recognized each other and spent the next few stops talking and laughing. I wished I had remembered his name.

I have plenty of pictures from that day. The gap belongs in the story too. For a few minutes, I had something in front of me that I wanted to share more than I wanted to photograph.

← TravelThe stops on the road to New Orleans →

The day, from the streets to the river

  • Finding our way: hotel advice, the French Quarter and the market, then streetcars with the windows open.
  • Lunch: the andouille-and-cheddar-stuffed shrimp at Superior Seafood, with potatoes and green beans.
  • A chance reunion: meeting the same Saints-bound couple again on a streetcar hours after our first conversation.
  • The evening crossing: picking up drinks and a snack, missing one departure, then catching the changing light on the next ferry.
  • Coming back: sitting downstairs, close to the water, after the upper level filled.

The city photographs and river photographs belong to different parts of that sequence. The call home belongs to it too, even though I put my camera down for it. That is why the trip needs both an account and a larger collection of pictures.

One city, several ways of seeing it

The streetcar, the walk and the ferry each gave the day a different frame. From the streetcar, houses moved past the open windows. On foot, there was time for balcony ironwork, a street sign or a monument. From the river, the buildings became a skyline and the passing ships took up more of the view.

That change of distance helps explain why the crossing belongs at the end of this account. The day had moved through individual streets and stops; the ferry brought a much wider scene into view. The calls home connected those two experiences, first the streetcar and later the river. The part without a photograph was still one of the clearest moments in the spoken account.