Photos by Brandon Robert

Honorning the Dalai Lama's inaugural visit to New Orleans, the Drepung Loseling Monks came along to spread awareness about Tibetan culture, which exists primarily in India and Nepal. Scroll down for pictures of the sand mandala they began on May 14, on display now in the Convention Center.

After Sunday’s tragic mass mother’s day shooting in the 7th Ward, New Orleans could use a peaceful reminder.  This weekend, the city is in luck.  Taking a break from the mountains of Tibet, the high lama himself, His Holiness the Dalai Lama, takes a seat at the Convention Center to share ideas of compassion, equanimity and non-violence in his debut trip to the Crescent City.

by Mary Kilpatrick

Two women took the phrase, “Get a room,” a little too literally on Valentine’s Day. The criminals obtained a master key to the Hyatt Place Convention Center Hotel (881 Convention Center Blvd.) on Feb. 14, and around 7:55 p.m., began stealing hotel guests’ laptops, according to NOPD.

It’s yucky outside, but New Orleanians never let weather stop them from having a good time. Today, there’s Super Bowl lagniappe for locals, plus live music from Oak Street to St. Claude. On this day in 1835, President Andrew Jackson made history when he became the victim of the first assassination attempt against an American president and survived two bullets. Now, more to do this wet Wednesday.

This Sunday, Elephant 6 fans can see Of Montreal, parents can bring their young musicians to Tip’s for a free workshop with Johnny Vidacovich, and fan kids can nerd out all day at Comic Con. Happy Birthday Brit! B. Spears was born in Kentwood, Louisiana on December 2, 1981.

It’s Monday in the Big Easy, and Halloween is fast approaching. Don’t let the chill in the air stop you from enjoying all the local music gigs happening around the city, and don’t miss the four time Grammy nominated singer/songwriter Jewel in town at the Convention Center. On this day in 1998, No Limit Records Founder and New Orleans native Master P (Percy Miller) was featured on the cover of Rolling Stone Magazine.

by Emma Boyce

Registered Venezuelan voters will rush to the Convention Center on Saturday to cast their absentee ballot for the upcoming Venezuelan election between current President Hugo Chavez and newcomer Henrique Capriles.  Chavez, who describes his policies as anti-imperialist and anti-capitalist, has held the position since 1999 and has aligned himself closely the communist government of Fidel Castro.

If you happened to miss Wizard World’s Comic Con New Orleans this past weekend, then you missed Scooby Doo, Yoda, and Bubbles (from the Power Puff Girls) all in the same room.

July 1, when the Battle of Gettysburg began (1863), when SOS was adapted as the international distress signal (1908), when The Communist Party in China was founded (1921), when ZIP codes were introduced for U.S. mail (1963), when Sony introduced the Walkman, when the MPAA introduced the PG-13 rating (1984), when Sydney Pollack (1934) and Missy Elliott (1971) were born, and when Harriet Beecher Stowe (1896) and Argentina’s 29th and 41st president Juan Perón (1974) died. So let’s hear it for The Way We Were, Uncle Tom’s Cabin, and obsolete technology:

Almost twenty years ago, Brooklyn’s Lisa Price decided the array of hair and body care products on the market just wouldn’t do. So what did she do? She made some herself. Working out of her kitchen, Price started Carol’s Daughter, a beauty product line made up of purely natural ingredients. The company catalog is now sold nation-wide in stores ranging from Dillard’s to Sephora to the Home Shopping Network; this weekend, for the eighth year in a row, the Carol’s Daughter Weekend Boutique returns to the French Quarter.