Epilogue

It was an incredible trip.  Colleen said that it was the most restful vacations that she's ever taken.  (No running from one tourist trap to another, for example.) 

The trip was a hoot!  We saw and did things that we never expected. 

We meet some amazing people and made (I hope) some new life-long friends.  Many signed my impromptu "autograph book" that I made out of a scrap piece of flooring.

We've always known that we are fortunate, but it's sobering to see the curves that life has thrown some folks.  As Sister Frances said, everyone is entitled to decent housing, medical care and a good education. 

Would we go back?  Most assuredly.  Don't know when.  But who knows?  Maybe you'll accompany us on Nuns' Build IV?

Random Musings

Nuns are amazing people  And fun, too!

It’s not unusual to hear gunshots in St. Bernard either early in the morning or towards dusk.  (Hunting is popular out here.)

We were introduced to the satsuma, a type of orange that grows in the area.  They are sort of like a tangelo and are delicious.

Folks all over New Orleans are majorly crazy about their New Orleans Saints.  The team’s fleur-de-lis logo is slapped on everything imaginable.

We foolishly thought that we'd lose weight on this trip.  On the contrary.....

Horses don't like flash pictures.

I would gladly do endorsements for Goo-Gone.

New Orleans is apparently home to one of the largest concentrations of Sicilians in the US.

Many of the people of St. Bernard drive pickup trucks, big pickup trucks.

They also like dogs, any size and shape, although it appears big black dogs are the most popular.  Here’s one that decided to visit us one day.

It strange sensation to be driving along the river and noticing that the ship on the water is appreciably higher than the street that you're on.  That is, the street is 10-20 feet below the water level. 

We no longer have to factor in a trip to the Dollar General when nature calls.

80% of the buildings in New Orleans had a water line after the waters of Katrina receded.

The French Quarter may be the place to be, but New Orleans still has many scary neighborhoods.

It's highly probable that we will never eat another Lucky Dog.

Pralines are like pizza in Chicago. Everyone has their own recipe for making pralines and some taste better than others.

Returning home

Saturday, November 20^th (Afternoon)

As we left the museum, we encounted a bit of street theater.  A float of chanting Hare Krishna devotees.

We drove to the airport, returned the rental car, checked in and settled into the departure lounge to await our flight.  We ran into some of the St. Eulalia’s group that we first met on the trip in.  We swapped stories and were somewhat envious when we heard stories of installing insulation, mudding drywall, framing doors or just general demolition.

For our final meal in New Orleans, we each decided to have a Lucky Dog, as there was a concession in the airport.  These hot dog vendor carts are a local institution and can be found throughout the French Quarter. 

They've also been immortalized in A Confederacy of Dunces by John Kennedy Toole.  It's one of the funniest books I've ever read.

Without a doubt, the our Lucky Dogs were the worst meal we had in New Orleans.  In fact, they were probably the worst hot dogs we ever had in our lives.  Give us a good old Chicago Vienna Beef hot dog anyday!

The flight home was pretty smooth and uneventful, except for the last 15 minutes.  A little girl must have had problems with the air pressure and was wailing in pain.  We felt really sorry for her.  As we taxied to our gate, the Southwest flight attendant announced “We enjoyed serving most of you and hope that you enjoyed your flight.”

It was great to be back home, even though we has swapped sunny weather in the upper 60’s for overcast weather in the 40’s.

Katrina & beyond

Saturday, November 20^th (Late morning)

It was back to the French Quarter as we wanted to visit the Katrina & beyond exhibition at the Cabildo on Jackson Square.  Here’s a promotional video on the exhibit:

  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GceU02_RtEE&feature=mfu_in_order&list=UL

We spent over an hour wandering the displays.  The first thing that greets you is Muddy Waters piano, which is displayed just as it was found after Katrina. 

There are displays on the days before Katrina hit, eyewitness accounts of what occurred  during the storm, stories of survival in the weeks after the storm, histories about past storms, scientific displays on levies and floods, ending with video comments from survivors.

Very powerful and moving.  I know that I’m repeating myself, but it’s impossible to comprehend what occurred here five years ago.

"And now a word from our sponsors..."

Colleen & I are not very good about asking for donations.  However, if you feel like making a contribution, we suggest that you visit the St. Bernard Project webpage at

https://npo.networkforgood.org/Donate/Donate.aspx?npoSubscriptionId=1000309&code=sbpweb

Under Program Designation, select Rebuilding

Under Dedication, please type in Nuns’ Build III - Jarosz

As the Sisters would say, “Bless You”.

Hurricane Katrina

Hurricane Katrina of the 2005 Atlantic hurricane season was the costliest natural disaster, as well as one of the five deadliest hurricanes in the history of the US.  Among recorded Atlantic hurricanes, it was the sixth strongest overall. At least 1,836 people lost their lives in the actual hurricane and in the subsequent floods, making it the deadliest U.S. hurricane since 1926; total property damage was estimated at $81 billion.

Katrina made landfall on Aug. 29, 2005 on the Gulf Coast near New Orleans.  Levee failures and an enormous storm surge resulted in the flooding of much of the city.

Here is an informative video from the Times Picayune showing the progression of the flooding.  We were staying/working near the "30" by Chalmette in the lower right of the screen.

http://www.nola.com/katrina/graphics/flashflood.swf

It's been over five years since Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans, yet there are hundreds of families still living in temporary FEMA trailers.

The following facts about New Orleans are from the webite of the United Way of New Orleans. (http://rebuildnola.unitedway.org):

1. Today, New Orleans has only 89 percent of its pre-Katrina population.
2. Only 70 percent of the jobs based in New Orleans pre-Katrina exist in the present day.
3. The New Orleans area has returned to only 79 percent of its pre-Katrina commercial activity.
4. The cost of rental property in New Orleans has increased by 49 percent, while over 65,000 residential units remain vacant.
5. About 35,000 children attend 85 schools in New Orleans in 2010. Before Katrina, about 63,000 students attended 128 schools.
6. Before Hurricane Katrina, the New Orleans area had 17 hospitals with emergency rooms. Today it has 11.
7. As of May 2009, public transportation usage is at only 43 percent of pre-Katrina levels.
8. General cargo handled at the Port of New Orleans was down 19 percent in 2008.
9. Tax credits and other programs have helped rebuild nearly 70,000 housing units, yet 2,000 families remain in temporary housing.
10. 6,000 people are camping in more than 65,000 abandoned buildings in New Orleans.

Here is an excellent five minute video about Katrina made by a reporter from a local TV station in New Orleans.

http://bayoumedia.com/video/WWL_Katrina_16mgs.wmv 

For more information on Katrina, I recommend that you visit this fascinating site:

http://www.livescience.com/environment/hurricane-katrina-new-orleans-aftermath-infographic-100824.html 

The Most Important Meal of the Day

Saturday, November 20^th (Early Morning)

Morning ablutions, last-minute cramming of items in our suitcases, tossing the linens and towels in the washer/dryer and a final cleanup of la casa flotante. 

We had decided the night before to meet Sister Frances for breakfast before we left.  (Sister Jan elected to stay home.) 

We met at another local St. Bernard establishment, Penny’s Café.  It’s one of the town's hangouts, judging the comings and goings of the locals.  We obviously stuck out – Sister said that there aren’t many pale-skinned bald men in the parish.  None of us selected the crawfish omelette. 

After a lovely conversation rehashing over the week, it was time to go.  But not before insisting that Sister visit Chicago so that we could return the hospitality.