New Orleans :)

We are finally in New Orleans! We have gone through 4 states (5 for some of the people who ventured off to find the Georgia state line) in just a few days. We have increased the miles by a lot and went really quickly through the rest of Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, and then into Louisiana.

Coming into New Orleans I had a lot of excitement but was not sure what to expect. I had no idea the condition that some parts of the city would be in even three year after Hurricane Katrina. Entire neighborhoods are still abandoned and boarded up. Others are trying to rebuild homes while the families live in FEMA trailers that have been there for years now. It is hard seeing spray paint postings on the walls for pets that were found dead or not found at all and seeing entire homes in a crumbled mess with no signs of reconstruction in the near future.

On the positive side the majority of the major city areas are back to life and as fun as ever. Experiencing Bourbon St, Canal St, Cafe du Monde and others areas has been great. Several of us have already gotten a lot of beads and seen all the neon lights out at night. But besides the nightlife some of the best stuff has been the food. Gumbo...mmm, mmm, mmm! We have had some amazing food provided for us and eating at local fares is great.

For the rest of the week we are working on renovating/rebuilding a families' home that houses four generations from 8 months to 70+ years old. It has been a lot of hard work but we have already seen amazing progress.

Hopefully I will be able to blog at the end of the week to finish the New Orleans experience :)

Maegan