Porches, Galleries, Verandas.. Where Do You Hang?
Porch sittin' (in my opinion) is one of the most New Orleanian things that one can do. Bonus points if you share it with your neighbor from time to time. I met both sets of neighbors that I love due to front porches and have had many dinners and drinks sharing time with both houses. I'm on my front porch so often that if you pull up my address on Google Maps, there I am. A little embarrassing, since it appears to be morning in the photo, but also not surprising. Thanks to my buddy Alex for pointing that one out to me.
I'm mostly here today to explain the difference between some of the different varieties that we've got around here.
Veranda- The ones who wrap around houses. Always roofed and fancy sounding. Sometimes it has a railing. The one at my aunt's house growing up did not. And we used to ride these dangerous toys called Flying Turtles right off the edge. I've got a photo of that exact porch from last Thanksgiving.
Galleries- According to some of my reading, the word "gallery" is sometimes used interchangeably with veranda, but the gallery does not have to be covered while the veranda always is. Sounds different to me though, so i'm doing a separate definition! Basically just a balcony. We've got what's called a Double Gallery house here. See below. Double balconies on the front.
Cantilevered- (to be cantilevered) I always think of the old Creole Townhouses when I think of a cantilevered balcony. French Quarter. I don't really understand how all of these are stable, but they've been making them for hundreds of years, so I guess they've got it figured out. Uses the house as the support with no railings or beams underneath. The porch featured below has likely held many folks during Mardi Gras and grand parties in it's past life, so I'm sure it's fine. I just get my (sometimes extreme) cautiousness from my Grammy is all.
Regular ol' Porch- A porch is exactly what you'd imagine. The thing you hang out on in the front of your house on the ground level. Always has a solid foundation that is masonry work (just a definition for stonework- your cement, etc.) and may have a wooden platform on top of that. We've got a lot of wooden and concrete porches around here and they all do just fine. One of my favorite porches in my neighborhood is listed below. Cute, huh?
Hopefully this was helpful to clear up any confusion about what we've got going on around here. No matter which one you're hanging on, I can almost guarantee it'll be a nice time.
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