<p>How is New Orleans? By that I mean, is it safe? How is the atmosphere of the city? Is there a bus system? Is the city itself expensive? Is NO more like Baltimore or Portland? By those two I mean ghetto and boring or small and arty. I've never been to NO and I will probably visit to see the TU campus and I'd just like to know some more.</p>
<p>Well, it is currently ranked the highest murder rate in the country... but if you know not to go wandering around in the sketchy streets at 3am you should be more than fine. I won't lie, I've definitely felt unsafe at times, but I've also felt unsafe in several cities...
There is a bus system, I personally would not step foot anywhere near it. The street cars actually started up again the other day (first time since Katrina), but they're not running all the way down to Tulane yet- they should be by this spring though. And once that gets going, you can take the street cars around the garden district (the st. charles line) and into the french quarter. For things like jazz fest, there's typically a shuttle that leaves from the convention center and brings you to the entrance by city park.
The city can be expensive- it depends on what you're buying though. In general, it's pretty cheap compared to most cities.
I wouldn't compare it to either Baltimore or Portland. NO is just NO. You've got the ghetto/sketch areas, and then you've got some artsy places. NO really is a place of it's own though- you'd have to visit and see for yourself. Definitely not boring at all though... not sure how it could be with all the fests (voodoo/jazz fest anyone?) and just the general atmosphere of the city.
As for me, I'm sick of the corruption in politics that have been going on for decades... but I still love the city with all of my heart.</p>
<p>The main street that all the frats and most of the bars are on really doesn't have problems with people getting mugged or anything. I've never felt uncomfortable on it. Tulane is in the nicest part of New Orleans, so there isn't a huge problem with crime relative to the rest of the city. Most of the stories you hear about people getting trouble is when they wander off by themselves to some obscure place. If you stick in groups you probably won't have any issues around campus.</p>