2 of my favorite holiday events:
Reveillon, a Creole Dining Tradition
Participating Restaurants
Throughout December (dates vary)
Creole families of yesteryear celebrated this traditional dining custom twice during the holiday season – on Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve. Today’s Reveillon has been expanded to include various dates during December so that everyone can share in this special holiday meal. Menus have been adapted to combine ageless Creole cuisine along with more contemporary New Orleans dishes, but the spirit of the past remains. Reveillon menus and featured dates for participating restaurants may be found here
St. Louis Cathedral Christmas Concert
St. Louis Cathedral, Jackson Square at Chartres Street Free.
The 2011 Concert Schedule
Thursday, December 1 — Ellis Marsalis
Sunday, December 4 –Tom McDermott and Connie Jones
Monday, December 5 — Friendly Travelers
Tuesday, December 6 — Ronnie Kole
Sunday, December 11 — Rachel Van Voorhies
Monday, December 12 — Philip Manuel & the Shades of Praise
Tuesday, December 13 — The Faubourg Quartet
Wednesday, December 14 — The Preservation Hall Allstars Present a Creole Christmas
Sunday, December 18 — St. Louis Basilica annual Christmas Concert ( at 5 p.m.)
Monday December 19 — Dan Vappie
Tuesday, December 20 — Irvan Mayfield
Wednesday, December 21 — St. Peter Claver Gospel Choir
and more events here:
Events
French Quarter block by block 
I was born in New Orleans but spent most of my life away in Vegas. We were part of the gambling exodus in the early fifties.. One year I think around mardi gras time I was in the quarter and some trees along Bourbon or Royal, it was along time ago, were as fragrant as Gardenias as I recall. I never got an accurate name for them but the streets were full of the smell. So what kind of trees were they and why were they blooming in that cold late winter weather?. Someone told me they bloom twice a year if that helps. But you hear a lot of stories. Another girl told me they bloom along with jasmine. On warmer nights she slept with her windows open so her bedroom was filled with perfume. Man, what kind of tree was that?. . .
Sounds like sweet olive shrubs, which have an amazing smell of sweet, really almost lemony smell in February and March. The Quarter used to be full of them…