If you like your AirBnB in NOLA to actually be a communal experience that immediately connects you to the city‘s fascinating music and food scene, look no further.
We loved our week at Obeah and will remember it as life-changing for our son (for the record - I am German-born and usually don’t go for American hyperbole and superlatives) and we are all still processing.
Let me talk about the home first: a gorgeous, newly remodeled house with 4 guest rooms, high ceilings, an open floor plan, an unbelievable communal table made of reclaimed wood and a beautiful garden makes you feel relaxed right away. Add the warmth and welcoming nature of Lyle and his right hand Dana, Lyle‘s incredible breakfasts, and Lyle’s wonderful dog Bubba, and you almost don’t want to leave the house at all.
We booked a weeklong stay for spring break a few months ago and I had told Lyle that our son, who has played saxophone for over 7 years, would turn 15 the day after our arrival. I also told him that we were trying to find a few jam sessions for him to join. Lyle then offered to connect us to a top-notch local sax player and his band so we could hire them to play a concert with our son - and he offered his garden as a venue. We excitedly agreed and were looking forward to the event.
A couple of days before our arrival, Lyle told me that he had another local musician and chef host a food & music event at the B&B the day of our arrival and asked if we wanted to join. During the music program the musicians offered our son to join and he played several songs with them. Two sax players spent an hour with him afterwards, gave him their numbers, and offered to get together with him to show him some tricks while we here - and they did when he contacted them.
On his birthday, Lyle made a wonderful shrimp boil after the concert and another Grammy-winning jazz musician showed up by chance and played Happy Birthday for our son - the day before he played the National Anthem at the NCAA final game. The following day, he put us on the guest list at Preservation Hall and we got to sit on the stage with the band.
At the morning of our departure another musician joined for breakfast and afterwards she invited our son to accompany her during her impromptu morning concert - they ended up playing for almost an hour.
Over the course of the week we connected with several of the musicians and are already planning our next visit to NOLA and visits by a couple of the musicians to our hometown in the summer.
All this magic only happened due to Lyle‘s vision for the B&B, his deep love for music and cultural exchange and his ability to bring people together and we are grateful for all these experiences, none of which we could have ever imagined.
Go stay with Lyle & Dana - you will cherish every minute of it.