Farewell

Outer Journey:

It’s the final day, it came so quickly and I am not ready to say good-bye.  I woke up and already had everything packed up and laid out.  So, I was ready to grab some breakfast and head to Jackson Square one last time.  I spent my time walking around and revisiting my favorite places.  How do you even pick a favorite!?

After careful consideration, my favorite spot had to be Jackson Square.  It represents to me the heart of our trip.  This was our meeting place and where we spent much of our time exploring.  This was a great place to take in the sights, I loved walking around and looking at the street performers, the music, and the art.  Not only were streets alive with people but the scenery stole my heart.  I loved looking across the park and seeing the Andrew Jackson statue with the St. Louis Cathedral in the background.  If that wasn’t enough, the stores were adorable and great.  Each store I went into was welcoming and the workers were friendly and full of knowledge.

I will absolutely miss the city.  I am absolutely ready to be home, but New Orleans was amazing.  My plan is to come back either with my sister or my friends. Both have wanted to come here and my job was to let them know if it is worth the trip.  My answer: ABSOLUTELY!  I have been keeping my family and friends updated with pictures daily.  However, I tell them about the beautiful architecture, the live history, and culturally diverse people.  I’ve given them history facts (which by now I’m sure they are tired of hearing about).  Their favorite story is about Nicholas Cage is his bad luck that stemmed from purchasing Madame LaLaurie’s house and to correct his “juju” he had to build a pyramid shaped tomb in the cemetery and pay for perpetual care for the surrounding tombs.

Inner Journey:

My favorite part of the class was being able to take our e-travel guides and then see the city.  I really like that we did a project beforehand and then while in the city we were able to recognize the different things that were discussed.  

My favorite part of the trip would be the Katrina Museum.  Not only did I do my e-travel guide on Hurricane Katrina, but it was an emotional tribute. I really liked that they had a room with firsthand accounts and interviews.  Listening to the stories was overwhelming.  It really made me think how this wasn’t just a storm that was shown on the news, this was a disaster that displaced, in and even killed people.

I love New Orleans and the people who live there.  I have found that most residents of New Orleans are friendly, and love to share their city with anyone who visits.  The stores owners were knowledgeable about the history of their store.  Uber drivers were very willing to answer questions about Katrina or even as simple the best places to eat.  I felt most everyone was warm and welcoming.

I learned that my love for traveling has only been enhanced from this trip.  I love telling my family and friends about the details of my day. My sons are extremely interested in all the new foods that I have tried and what I am doing.  I had to facetime them one day to show them Jackson Square so they could feel included in my journey.  I learned that I love learning the history of the city I am in.  It really opens my eyes to the different ways people live.  I think learning history of other cities and seeing how others live can help shape my life better because I can have a better understanding of others.