The Journey Home

This morning REALLY early (6:30 AM) we met to leave New Orleans. (Okay, that's not really that early.) There was a light fog throughout the city, which I hadn't seen before, but it was not so thick as to make driving difficult. We dropped of the rental vans, checked into the airport, and boarded our planes without incident. Although we're all tired from a day of travels, everything went smoothy the whole way back.

Overall, I think the trip was a great success. We helped a lot of people and learned a lot about New Orleans. Everyone got along well and had fun! I'm going to miss a lot of things about Nawlins - beignets, the crush of people, the sights and smells, the history, the openness of the people... but I'm happy to be back home in Washington. I think New Orleans has left a mark on all of us, and we'll be drawn back to that city to visit again someday. The complexity of New Orleans cannot be described; you have to experience the city to understand it, although I'm sure I have much more to learn about this place. I'm glad to have had a chance to live in this amazing place and help the wonderful people who call New Orleans home.

Well, I'm pretty tired after a long day of travel, and so I'm going to have a late dinner and take a long nap!

Your friendly trip leader,

EM

Our Last Day in Nawlins

Early this morning, half the group went to Mississippi to enjoy a day at the beach. Although we had a service project scheduled, it had to be canceled because the toxicity of the water in the bayou was too high for us to work on restoration. Students who went the the beach either enjoyed a relaxing day on the sand or explored the ecosystem of the shore. Everyone came back looking like lobsters despite sunscreen, so it must have been a lovely sunny day!

At 11, I took a group of students to lunch at a local diner and then drove through the Lower 9th Ward. It was surprising how much damage still remained in this area from Katrina. Many houses to the North were extremely damaged still or demolished, although there were many families rebuilding. To the Northwest, there are a number of energy efficient homes constructed through a foundation started by Brad Pitt, and they were very beautiful! The drive was very educational.

Students who remained in the French Quarter took the afternoon to explore the area in small groups. In the evening, after the lobster people returned, a large group went to Bubba Gump's for Tamera's 22nd birthday. The food was good and everyone had a lot of fun! After this, a group of students went to an upscale cabaret to watch the dancing. Everyone who went said the show was very good!

Your friendly trip leader,

EM

St. Patty's Day!

Today we didn't have any required service projects planned, although a small group of students opted to return to Clarence's home to continue work. Although his home is unfinished, our students really helped a lot!

Students were free to do whatever they wished today, but I'll highlight some of the planned activities students could participate in. 

At 10, I led a tour to the Voodoo Museum in the French Quarter and Saint Louis Cemetery #1. We learned a lot about voodoo practices at the museum including that basically every popular belief about voodoo is wrong. Voodoo is a merging of Catholic and traditional west African beliefs and focuses on positive energy. Voodoo dolls, for instance, are meant for making positive wishes by the person they are attuned to rather than cursing and harming people. After the museum, we went to the oldest cemetery in New Orleans: Saint Louis #1. This cemetery was opened in 1789 after the New Orleans fire of 1788 in which more than half the city burned. One of the most interesting graves in the cemetery is that of Marie Laveau, the Voodoo Queen of New Orleans.

After the tour, a group of people joined Amber and I at the Acme Oyster House, which is a world famous eatery! Everyone thought the food was delicious. After lunch, Amber led a group of students on a tour to the Garden District via streetcar where they got to see some of the beautiful mansions of the city. They even stumbled into a St. Patty's day block party while on their tour!

In the evening, 30 of us went to dinner at the world famous fine-dining establishment Brennan's. We enjoyed a four course meal in the Red Room. The Red Room is said to be haunted by a man who killed his wife and her lover and then committed suicide in the room in the 1700s! His picture hangs in the room and it is said that his expression changes! Brennan's is also the restaurant that invented the dessert Bananas Foster, which was very good.

After dinner, everyone spit up to enjoy the evening. I joined a group of people who went to Lafitte's Blacksmith Shop, which is currently a pub said to be haunted by Jean Lafitte himself! (He's the pirate I mentioned before.) The pub is the second oldest building in the Mississippi Valley and has mostly original fixtures, so it was exciting to see.

Your friendly trip leader,

EM

Pictured above:

Garden district home

Jessica, Denise, and Jessica at Brennan's

History

Today was another wonderful and exciting day filled with service and New Orleans adventure. In the morning, students could pick from three projects: the home renovation in the Irish Channel with Charlie and Brandon, Project Green Light with Amber, Marina, and Vanessa, or gardening and yard cleanup for a disabled individual with Erin. All the projects went smoothly and everyone seemed to enjoy the work we've done. On my project, we helped a disabled individual, Mae, whose home was flooded and destroyed by Katrina. She has been slowly but surely putting her home and life back together, and we were happy to help her work on this project. When we were done, she hugged us all and told us, "I'm so grateful for volunteers. 70% of all the rebuilding here has been done by volunteers. I don't know what New Orleans would do without you." I think this really made us all feel accomplished and useful. Mae was so happy to have our help, she bought us pizza for lunch! She was a wonderful lady, and we were all glad we could help her piece her home and yard back together.

After my project, we had trouble getting back to our hotel because a bunch of streets were blocked off for a movie filming with Brad Pitt! We didn't see any of the actors, but it was both exciting and frustrating at the same time.

In the afternoon, students had the option of going on a tour of the St. Louis Cathedral, the Ursuline Convent, and St. Louis Cemetery #1. Before the tour a group went to The Gumbo Shop which had both an inside seating area as well as a courtyard. The food was really good, the staff was very nice, and it was a fun meal! The first church on the site of the cathedral was built in 1727 and the cathedral was erected in 1850. The church stood in front of the town square for many years, and so is an important historic location in New Orleans. The Ursuline convent was built in 1744 and is the oldest building in the Mississippi valley. The Ursuline nuns were the first teachers and doctors in the region, and they also started an orphanage. The St. Louis #1 cemetery is the oldest cemetery in New Orleans dating to as early as 1789 (it replaced the older St. Peter Cemetery which no longer exists). Unfortunately, the convent was closed for a special event and the cemetery was also closed! I'm running a voodoo tour tomorrow, though, so we'll visit the cemetery then.

In the evening, 21 of us went to La Bayou, a seafood restaurant, for dinner. Everyone thought it was delicious! A number of people tried gator and said it tasted like chewy chicken. After dinner, everyone went on their own ways (in groups, of course), and enjoyed the sights and sounds of New Orleans. 

Your friendly trip leader,

EM

Photos from top:

St. Louis Cathedral

Denise, Amber, and Michelle at La Bayou

Service, Swamps, and Steamboats

Wow, today was such a busy day! This morning, students could pick from four service projects:  Project Green Light, a Irish Channel home renovation, or an urban garden construction. Amber, Marina, and Vanessa all took groups to work on Project Green light which brings energy efficient light bulbs to people in need. Charlie and Brandon took groups to help Clarence work on his house that he has been rebuilding since Katrina destroyed his home. I took a group of students to Saint Brother Andre's garden just outside of the French Quarter where we helped Paul, the master gardener, weed and plant in this community garden.

After our service projects in the morning, we all headed to the Jean Lafitte Swamp (named after the pirate from the ghost tour!) for our swamp tour! My car got a little lost on our way to the tour (don't worry-I gave us an hour to get there and we were the first ones to the tour), and Caitlin spotted a group of Mardi Gras Indians dancing under the overpass! We immediately stopped and went to watch the performance, which was extremely exciting. (Visit http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P3PEAXQg-ug to learn more)

The swamp tour location was very interesting. There were a number of tour boats availalbe and there was a nutria, a 90 lb alligator turtle, and a baby gator in cages for visitors to see up close. Once everyone arrived, we had lunch on the boat and began our way down the canals. The alligators, turtles, spanish moss, and other lush plant and animal life was amazing. Our tour guide even brought out a baby gator for all of us to hold! The tour office is raising the gator until its large enough to be released into the wild without having to worry about it being eaten by other gators.

After the swamp tour, we all returned to the hotel for showers and a rest before our riverboat jazz cruise in the evening. The boat was very beautiful and very large! For dinner, there were a variety of options, and once we ate, the boat took off down the Mississippi for over an hour. We were able to wander the ship and watch New Orleans slowly pass us by as we traveled down the river. The cruise let us of around 10 PM and we were all free to go explore (in groups, of course) or return to the hotel.

Your friendly trip leader,

EM

Pictures from top:

Service in the Irish Channel with Tristan, Tim, and Cailee

Amber holding a baby gator on the Swamp Tour

The Creole Queen - our jazz dinner cruise ship!

Ghoooooost Tour!

Tonight a big group of students and leaders went on a French Quarter ghost tour. We heard the story of the Lalaurie Mansion where medical experiments were performed on slaves and Jean Laffite's Blacksmith's shop who was a famous pirate. The tours ended early enough for participants to enjoy desserts or a second dinner in the French Quarter. What an exciting night!

Your trip coordinator,

Charlie

Beignets and Team Building

Because Enterprise was not open last night, this morning the trip leaders all woke up bright and early to go get them! Our taxi driver pointed out a number of interesting locations and was generally very friendly. So far everyone I've met in New Orleans has been very helpful and kind. It's nice to meet so many friendly people!

After picking up our vehicles, a large group of us all went down the street to Cafe Beignet to try - surprise - beignets. They were delicious, and we were all happy to eat some good food. It was extremely crowded at the cafe, so I think we picked the right place to taste our pastries. We sat in the patio, which was beautiful and offered a wonderful position for people watching on Royal St. After breakfast, we headed back for our first meeting in New Orleans!

Around 11, we met as a large group to walk down to the river and do some team-building activities in the park. We played a few name games and did some get to know you exercises before discussing the plans for the day. After our morning meeting, a number of students and leaders headed down the the French Market along the river for lunch.

At 2, everyone interested in doing one of two optional community service projects met in the hotel lobby. The first project, a trip to help an elderly gentleman work on his house that he has been rebuilding after Katrina, went off without a hitch. Unfortunately, there was some confusion between us and the community partner for our other project, so we'll be working with them on Wednesday instead of today. I'm glad we'll still be able to help out even though there was a slight mix-up. 

Later we have the option to eat dinner at the Crescent City Brewery, go on a ghost tour of the French Quarter, or just spend time exploring the city. I'll post more later to let you know about all the fun we will have this evening!

Your friendly trip leader,

EM

Pictures from top:

1. Left to right: Erin, Vanessa, Brandon, Jessica, and Amanda

2. Beignets from the Cafe Beignet website!

Into the Big Easy

Both the Seattle and Spokane flights got in just fine, but we ran into a little hitch with our transportation when we found that Enterprise, our van rental company, was no longer open past midnight! Well, we flagged down some airport shuttles and were able to get to our hotel as planned. Hooray!

The French Quarter is beautiful and strange all at once. There are balconies on almost ever building, the streets are very narrow, and everything is so colorful! We drove past Bourbon Street on the way to the hotel, and I think we were all surprised to see how many people were still awake and walking outside on a Sunday evening.

Our hotel, the Holiday Inn French Quarter, is pretty nice. I thought the beds were very comfortable!

Your friendly trip leader,

EM

Travel Day!

We Spokane flyers are currently hanging out in the Las Vegas airport enjoying a little lag-time between flights. The flight out of Spokane went well; everything was on-time and the flight itself was pretty smooth. Everyone seemed happy to land, though - especially Charlie and Brandon (they're a little afraid of air travel). Apparently it's sunny in New Orleans right now but rainy in Pullman - Lucky us!

While flying Southwest to New Orleans, we were surprised to see the in-flight snack option was called "Plane Crackers" and were in the shape of little 747s! Cute!

Well, while we wait, I'd like to say the Las Vegas airport is so strange! There are slot machines in ever terminal, although the shops and restaurants are what you would expect in any airport. I guess this shouldn't have surprised me (this is Las Vegas after all), but it was still a strange sight to behold. 

Well, I'm going to get back to our dinner in the airport!

Your friendly trip leader,

EM

 

Pictures from top:

1. Tamera and Marina on the plane from Spokane to Las Vegas

2. Erin holding a "Plane Cracker"

3. Charlie, Vanessa, and Jessica in the Las Vegas airport

T-Minus 15 Hours to Take-Off

Well, tomorrow's the big day! All our i's are dotted and all our t's are crossed, so now we just have to meet at our airports (Spokane and Seattle) and enjoy the ride! I know I'm getting excited (and a little nervous), so I bet the rest of the trip participants and leaders are feeling the excitement too.

Here's hoping everyone gets enough rest tonight and all our travels go smoothy tomorrow. 

Your friendly blogging trip leader,

EM

T-Minus Two Days and Counting

Well, we're getting close to go-time! Our projects and activities are all ready, the trip leaders are all trained, and the students have completed all their mountains of paperwork. Everything's almost ready to go!

On Tuesday and Wednesday this week, we had our last required pre-trip meetings. At the meetings, ASWSU handed out t-shirts to anyone who ordered one, and we provided free ASB (Alternative Spring Break) water bottles to everyone along with hurricane relief t-shirts. Everyone seems very excited for the trip, and us trip leaders can't wait to get going!

I've included our general itinerary below for anyone who is interested in seeing what exactly we'll be doing in the Big Easy.

For more information on the trip, visit http://cce.wsu.edu/neworleans.

See you in New Olreans, everyone!

EM