New Orleans Day 2

I have eaten myself sick. I love it! Dad and I could not even finish our dinner (he got a shrimp po boy and i had a catfish po boy) last night.

After dinner we walked up and down Bourbon Street just taking in the sights. If you enjoy people watching, well Bourbon Street is the place for you! Wow. It is so strange to walk down the street and see t-shirt shops with families buying things and then right next door is a strip club. And, these are not just your ordinary strip clubs either (not that I would know an ordinary strip club from an extraordinary one). No, they offer entertainment for both men and women. We are talking equal opportunity here. Anyway, it was interesting.

Later in the evening we walked up to the Mississippi River (just 2 blocks from our hotel) and sat on the banks of the River and watched fireworks celebrating Independence Day. The fireworks were launched from barges floating right in front of where we were sitting. So, we got to see the amazing fireworks display and hear and feel the blast of the fireworks too. It was nice.

This morning we got up and drove out to the Lake District to visit Mt. Carmel Academy where my mom went to high school. We were given a personal tour by the Principal, Sister Camille Anne. She has been the principal for 27 years. This school has become her life. She let us view a DVD that documented the school before, during and after Katrina. You could tell immediately that the hurricane and its damage is still very fresh for her. She showed us buildings that had been severely damaged and were now mostly rebuilt. They still have a ton of work to do. Dad made a donation in memory of mom from the family. You know, considering the amount of money they need, it was not much but you could tell Sister appreciated it so much. If you have time, please visit Campaign for Your Cause and vote for Mt. Carmel Academy. If they win, they will receive $50,000 for their school. You can only vote once a day and voting ends July 13th! Sister hugged us as we left and asked us to pray for the school.

Driving along to get to the school was completely amazing. The school is located in a area of the city that was a fairly wealthy neighborhood. It seemed like as you drove down the street, every other house was still abandoned. You could see waterlines on the houses where the water had sat above the first floor for about 3 weeks after the storm. It looked like a run down abandoned old city that had been left for dead. Every now and then you would come across a house that had been completely redone; new paint, carefully manicured grass, beautiful landscaping. But, it was sitting next door to an overgrown lawn, abandoned house.

After we left the school we went out to Lake Pontchartrain to see the lake and the flood walls. The area had once been a high class, high rent, upscale place. The houses were just devastated. There were restaurants that had been there 4 years earlier when my parents last visited that had been completely destroyed. All that was left were the pilings standing in the lake. I was able to take some pictures of the levees that had broken during the storm and caused much of the water damage.

We then drove to St. Anthony of Padua Catholic Church. The couple we met the evening before led us to believe that the neighborhood was really awful. We were pleasantly surprised to see the Church still standing and looking absolutely beautiful. I lit a candle for my mom and my grandmother. I was also able to get some great photos. We went over to the Parish office and met the Priest who was busy standing on a ladder trying to fix something in the ceiling. I guess the work has to be done by someone, right? He was very nice and appreciated the donation dad made in Mom and Grandma Preston's name.

After the church, we drove around the block to S. Bernadotte Street where my mother grew up. The neighborhood was in much better shape than we had imagined and had been led to believe by others. The houses were run down but the neighborhood was not really in the greatest shape before the hurricane. 217 S. Bernadotte St. was still there. The house was definitely being lived in but the residents were very different from when my mother and her family lived there. There were many Voodoo statues on the porch. I will just leave it at that.

We then drove back to the Quarter, parked the car and walked down Dauphine Street to the place where my mother lived after she finished nursing school. It was a neat little apartment just a block from the French Market. How cool would that have been: 23 years old, no worries, living in the French Quarter.

I was close enough to smell beignets so we had to stop in at Cafe duMonde and eat more. SO, SO, yummy. I did buy a box of the mix but you know, it just won't be the same.

We stopped into St. Louis Cathedral where I lit more candles and we sat and waited out a rain storm. I am now sitting inside the hotel room with the french doors of our room wide open. The courtyard is in view and I am enjoying just sitting here watching the rain. Dad is snoring behind me so it is not 100% peaceful. :)

More eating will be on the agenda for the day. I will write more later.



Julie