Big Easy #1

Homes of the Lower Ninth Ward
Though this neighborhood did flood (at a much lower level), it did not suffer the damage the next neighborhood did.  The top house still shows the marks of government agencies who came through following Katrina looking for survivors.  As it awaits some sort of remodeling to make it habitable, it has become a blighted house that is picked apart for its architectural highlights (gingerbread workings, posts and beams are all missing).  The blue and the yellow houses have been restored to habitable conditions while the bottom house appears to be in a near constant state of something else.   

Visiting the Lower Ninth Ward
Thrust into the spotlight during Katrina, this area we walked upon was flooded with upwards of 8-10 feet from the Industrial Canal breach.
Empty lots with stairs or foundations still belong to the owners though many have been taken over by the parish/city/state due to lack of taxes being paid.
The little white house was flooded to the roof, then repaired and is habitable.  For homeowners who lost all, government subsidies allow rebuilding (red & yellow homes), but with huge constraints on size, shape and materials used and ensuring the home is raised to allow future floodwaters to NOT destroy the home. 



The infamous Industrial Canal Wall
This wall broke apart by a barge or was breached by the storm surge allowing floodwaters to fill the Lower Ninth Ward.  For size comparison, Anika stands next to it, then atop it.  Meanwhile Frack, Ami and Frick view the wall from a different perspective since Frick is afraid of walls and heights.

17th Street Pumping Station
A new pumping station along the 17th Street canal (one that broke during Katrina), one of the many canals of the city.  A dozen big diesel engines power huge impellers (much like those we saw in CA) to suck the water out of the canal, and away from the city, and then pump it into Lake Pontchartrain.



The mighty Mississippi
Frick leading our group along the River Walk as we head for gumbo and jumbalaya,
but we ended up with burgers and pizza. Go figure...

The French (no really the Spanish) Quarter
Made it in time for some dinner and then a walking tour of the area.

 We finished our night with our guide Juawana hosting us for a ghost tour of the Quarter.  She had many scary and spooky stories to tell as well as the history of the area (Frick was quite nervous as he doesn't like scary things so he left with the daylight).  As New Orleans grew and the Parishes moved with them, cemeteries were consecrated (blessed) to bury the dead.  As the city grew larger, these same cemeteries were then de-consecrated (unblessed) so the land could be built upon.  As the cemeteries were de-consecrated, only the rich could afford to move their dead so buildings were built upon buried bodies which brought many of these ghost stories to life.