Wednesday, June 25, 2008

First impressions

Hey folks,
Herman here. So overwhelmed with anticipation about what to expect in New Orleans. Ended up having extreme contrasting experiences between the first night and the first day of work. Obviously Bourbon St is one of the main places to check out but the next day in the upper ninth ward erases the party mood of the previous night. I’m sure you’ve already seen some pictures but they don’t capture the impact of being on site constructing a new house next to one that’s been gutted and abandoned. Then we arrive home to recycle the experiences all over again. But what has stuck is that I learned the value of a honest days work, carpentry work that is.
What I do find amazing is that there are families who have come to work together. Mother, father, and children all sharing this intense experience. I imagine that gives them such a deep bond that is so non traditional. Our site has a father and son team, and parents working with their two children. That’s so great.
This is such a tourist town. I wish I could take one tenth of the people from Bourbon St., bring them over to the ninth ward, and give them a hammer and nails.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Hi, Herman,

You explain so eloquently your experience that readers of this blog are able to get a small window into the emotional experience that this trip seems to be creating for each of you.

Thanks for sharing.