I live about 10 blocks from the Mississippi River. Most of you may not know that New Orleans and South Louisiana is a major entry point into the US. It is the number one port in the US for bulk cargo. This means things like steel, coffee, oil products, chickens, wheat, corn and much more. It is a major employer for the region. Upriver and downriver is a large concentration of refinery's that service the midwest and east coast. The levee separates the river from the nearby neighborhoods. Its a great place to look for driftwood that may have come from St. Paul or St. Louis. We are south of Pennsacola Fla. and about an hour and change fron Cancun, Mexico. A little geography lesson.
My significant other is a merchant marine and he spent many years on a tanker, the Overseas Vivian, which ran Jacksonville, to New Orleans to Houston. He loved stopping in New Orleans. We even vacationed there for a bit after one trip. We had a great time. He's since moved on to the box boats running from the west coast to Hong Kong and he misses his stops in New Orleans.
We also near a port town, Portsmouth, NH. Definitely not as big as New Orleans, and no refineries, but there are several terminal stops for petroleum and bulk products. Truly is an interesting business shipping. Oh the sailor stories I could tell!