New Orleans

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CHAPTER 6 . SHOPPING
into a jumble of shops, cafes, delicatessens, restaurants, and entertainment.
Keep in mind that many shops in the Brewery close at 5:30 or
6pm, before the Brewery itself. Open daily from 10am to 6pm.
JULIA STREET From Camp Street down to the river on Julia
Street, you’ll find some of the city’s best contemporary-art galleries
(many are listed below, under “Art Galleries”). Some of the works
are a bit pricey, but there are good deals to be had if you’re collecting
and fine art to be seen if you’re not.
MAGAZINE STREET This is the Garden District’s premier shopping
street. More than 140 shops (some of which are listed below)
line the street in 19th-century brick storefronts and quaint cottagelike
buildings. Among the offerings are antiques, art galleries, boutiques,
crafts, and dolls. The most promising section goes, roughly,
from the 3500 to 4200 blocks (from about Aline St. to Milan St.,
with the odd block or so of nothing). Other good groupings can be
found in the 1800 to 2100, 2800 to 3300, and 5400 to 5700 blocks.
Be sure to pick up a copy of Visit Magazine Street: For a Shopper’s
Dream, a free guide and map to most (if not all) of the stores on the
6 miles of Magazine Street, which is available all along the street.
RIVERBEND To reach this district (in the Carrollton area), ride
the St. Charles Avenue streetcar (or the shuttle bus temporarily running
in its place) to stop no. 44, then walk down Maple Street 1
block to Dublin Park, the site of an old public market that was once
lined with open stalls. Nowadays a variety of renovated shops
inhabit the old general store, a produce warehouse made of barge
board, and the town surveyor’s raised-cottage home.
RIVERWALK MARKETPLACE A mall is a mall is a mall, unless
it has picture windows offering a Mississippi River panorama. Even
though you almost certainly have a mall at home, this one, at 1 Poydras
St., is worth visiting. Besides, if you packed wrong and need
T-shirts instead of sweaters or vice versa, this is the closest Gap to
the Quarter. Note that the best river views are in the upper section
of the mall closest to the convention center. Open daily from 10am
to 6pm. Validated parking with any purchase of $10 or more.
2 Shopping A to Z
ANTIQUES
Aesthetics & Antiques The shop calls itself a “Baby
Boomer’s Gumbo,” which seems to translate as all the stuff that’s too
good, quirky, or collectible to let go at a yard sale. Prices are already