Chill day!

Being a Sunday we took the day off!! We first took a tour of the lower ninth ward and looked at some houses that have not been gutted, some that have, and some that have been rebuilt. We were able to talk to a few residents, one that expressed how thankful she was that we were here. We looked at different levels of levees, drove by different grass root organizations, and stopped and met Al Bass and Louis Keller who we will be working with over the course of the next few days! Al and Louis are residents of the lower ninth ward and volunteer at the Carpenter's house.

After meeting Al and Louis we continued on to the french quarter were we ate lunch, walked around, shopped (we like to think of it as helping the economy), and had beignets at Cafe Du Monde. After the quarter and each having some pretty funny stores to share, we drove around the garden district... with a little longer tour since we got lost momentarily.

Then we headed back to the lower ninth ward to pick up Al and Louis. We then went to dinner at Charlies in St. Bernard... the food was AMAZING!!! Everyone loved their food and it was a very filling meal. Then we went back to the church and had a short reflection and getting our lovely purple team bandannas!

Despite our cold showers the first night (hot water heater wasn't on) and tonight the drain is clogged (meaning a lot of dirty people) everyone seems to be in high spirits. Currently most of the teams is playing a game, and a few are washing up... and I am obviously typing!

Tomorrow we will be helping get the Carpenter's house ready for Thanksgiving! Everyone is excited to start working and meet some residents to hear their stories. As the leader I am excited for everyone to find their "WOW" moment and to connect with New Orleans and its residents.

So.. bed time it is!!! Goodnight!

Finally Here!

Yesterday we got in around 8:30pm and ate a yummy dinner at Wendy's! We are staying at the Crescent City Baptist Church on mattresses that are laid out on the floor. Inside the church is really cool. They have a pole that shows the water line from how high the flood waters were. There is also a bible that they found that was open on Revelations. There is also a framed flag that was found after the storm.

Charles came on Saturday night to say hi! He talked to the group and just gave a little background, but we will get to talk to him more on Monday! Also on Saturday night a few of us went to buy food for the group, which hopefully get us through Wednesday!

Everyone wanted me to say hi to the families. Please write blogs back so that I can read them and share the love!!