Nawlins, my journey from here to there

NOLA 2010 trip will forever hold a special place in my heart. While this was the first time for me in Nawlins, it's not the first for me in the South. Growing up in Atlanta, in the 90s, when the city was a lot less developed and thriving as it is now, the feel was of small, country, family, and hospitality. Nawlins was a return to that feeling. Friendly faces, though unfamiliar, never seemed strange to me or foreign. From the smallest physical mannerisms to the southern drawl that returns me back to my younger years, I felt home.

With all that as backdrop, it's probably not surprising to hear me say that my experience was extremely positive. We arrived in NOLA on Saturday and immediately recognized the airport lobby, which I attribute to Spike Lee's documentary about Katrina called "When the Levees Broke" (highly recommend watching). I met up with 5 other students awaiting our ride, chatting briefly, eager for my upcoming week.

The most memorable billboard on our way to the hostel was "putting the hot back in mama."

To be honest, I was a little hesitant about the hostel; never stayed in one, didn't want to watch the movie, was a little sketched out about it. When we got there, I saw the bunkie beds that we were to sleep in for a week, I laughed, I cried, I had to get over it.

After dropping off our bags, we were ready to hit Bourbon Street. My group from the airport, the last to arrive in NOLA, grabbed a cab and ended up at Pat O'Briens, which, while perhaps not the best spot for food, had delicious hurricanes that quenched our thirst. Let the drankin begin!

One thing that I enjoyed about the first two days in NOLA was the free time to hang out and enjoy the sun and the city. 6 of us branched from the large group and hung out by the Mississippi River (in the French Quarters), soaking up the rays listening to music on Mitesh's Blackberry. I skidded rocks in the river and was happy.

After a quick group picture, we hopped into the rental vans for the Lower 9th Ward (L9). The L9 is made up of predominantly the African American community. The streets reminded me of East Oakland but some what eerie given the fact that we saw only 3 groups of people outside. The houses were, after 5 years, still boarded up. The X's that marked the work of relief workers remained etched on the side of the walls, reminding us of the reality and horrid devastation that was Katrina.

Wayne met us in front of his house, the house that he and his brother crawled out of through the roof to escape the flooded waters. He spoke passionately about the events that led to being trapped by the water and the heroic feats they performed to reach drier grounds. Close to tears, Wayne walked us to the side of his house and pointed to a black rock that laid against the side fence and stated "this was never suppose to be here." Apparently the rock, due to the strength of flood, got picked up from the bridge, which was miles away, and floated to the side of his house.

From there we went down to the Brad Pitt houses and saw some college age students building houses for the Make It Right Foundation. I found it strange that while both foundations professed to provide these houses to the victims of Katrina, it's been 5 years and I didn't see any community folks living or hanging out there. There were, however, a crew of folks with sick bikes riding around the strip where Wayne used to live. But none were by the newly built houses. It leaves me with the lingering question of who then do these houses help?

We saw a FEMA trailer and in front of it was a memorial.

Anyway, while visiting the L9 was intense, I was happy to end the day with delicious crawfish and kickin back with folks from the trip and Wayne came through too. Good times, would not give it up for the world.