We waited, and we watched while our city was transformed for the 2013 Super Bowl; and we wondered whether it would all be worth it. YES, it was! So exciting that Super Bowl XLVII, between the San Francisco 49ers and the Baltimore Ravens, happened right here, where we don’t just know how to throw a party, we live a party. For our tenth ever Super Bowl, now at the renamed and renovated Mercedes-Benz Superdome, we postponed a few Carnival parades, but the Super Bowl’s magic took over. The weather was beautiful, and the whole town was scrubbed, shiny, and dressed up in its best clothes. Is New Orleans “back?” Yep, big time! It was enough to make us cry during the game. What about those commercials?
Beyoncé’s halftime show was, as they say in showbiz, electrifying (and speaking of electricity—well, never mind about that!) Even better than that, though, was the love the NFL and sponsors showed to New Orleans by hosting four days of free local music at Verizon Super Bowl Boulevard (Woldenberg Park, on the Mississippi River). The economy got a boost, musicians got exposure, and we all could go to the party even if we weren’t in the Dome. Fireworks, too—it seemed like the 1984 World’s Fair fireworks shows on steroids, truly lighting up the sky all over the French Quarter, Marigny and Central Business District. And don’t forget a couple of Louisiana boys were out there playing ball on Sunday- Baltimore safety Ed Reed and the receiver/return specialist Jacoby Jones both hail from these parts. But Louisiana had 61 NFL players at the start of the 2012 season- more per capita than any other state. We do football well, too.
We were all awed, overwhelmed, and very proud that our city, whose future was in doubt after the 2005 flooding and devastation, received so much favorable attention around the world. We think we did a good job (hey, everybody played better after the power went out for a few minutes!). We know all of our visitors had a good time. We certainly did.
