Tomorrow we cross into Texas, so I thought this would be a good time to sum up my last week in the great (but very hot and humid) state of Louisiana.
We left New Orleans last Sunday and biked into Baton Rouge. We stayed at a church gym for two nights, and that was really fun. They had basketball hoops and balls and almost our whole group played countless games of knock out (a high paced bball shooting game - so fun). We built in White Castle, a town outside of Baton Rouge on Monday. I was part of Team Truss (a group of girls who picked up all the trusses and put them on the top of the house to be nailed in. It was really hard actually, but really fun. After all the Trusses were lifted to the roof I got to get up on the roof and nail them in. I like working on the roof a lot even though it can be a little scary at times. It was nice to be working with a branch of Habitat again at a more organized build site.
On Tuesday we biked out of Baton Rouge and made our way to Melville. The morning on the way out of Baton Rouge was great! We got coffee, biked around town a bit and went to the State Capital Building (which was a beautiful sky scraper). We got to go up to the tower and look down onto the Mississippi river. Melville was a really small town, and we stayed in the civic center there. We stopped on the way in to get 1 dollar sno balls, which are essentially snow with sugary flavored syrup on it - so good after 60 miles in the heat on a really scary busy road (there was actually a point we a cop escorted us over a 4 nile bridge because there was no shoulder and he, a cyclist as well, had actualy gotten hit on it before).
After Melville we went to Alexandria. The ride into Alexandria was much calmer, but I am learning to hate some of LA pavement jobs. The road we were on was really bumpy. We stopped at a small side of the road store on the way and had coffee and talked to the owner a bit. She was really nice and it was crazy how she knew every other person who came into the store while we were there. There seems to be something really cozy about small town life.
On Thursday we biked into Natitoches (spelling?) - its pronounced Nackitash but is spelled realy oddly. Natitoches is where Steel Magnolias was set and filmed - I havent seen that movie but now I realy want to. Its a pretty cool small and historic town founded originally in 1714 (2 years before New Orleans making it the oldest permenant settlement in the Louisiana Purchase) by a French Canadian making his way from Mobile Alabama to Mexico.
It was first a fort on the Red River. When we were on our way into town we stopwd at a life size replication of the fort which was pretty cool. The ride that day was excellent on a well paved road with some rolling hills and beautiful scenery. We had lunch at Magnolia Plantations, and although the main plantation home wasn't open we did get to see the slave homes and the cotton gin.
Today we biked a short 34 miles (the shortest day of the trip by far) into Pelican LA. Pelican is pretty much a camp town which none of the locals on Natitoches have ever heard of. The ride was okay but SO HOT because we spent the morning hanging out in Natitoches and didn,t get on the road until 11:30 or so.
One every important note: my odometer for the trip hit 1000 miles on the way into Alexandria!! Exciting.
I'll try to update more regularly in Texas, but BnB life is so busy that it is really hard to keep up!
Friday, June 25, 2010
Saturday, June 19, 2010
Last Night in the Big Easy
Tomorrow morning (wake up is at 5am) we are leaving New Orleans and heading out on an 81 mile ride to Baton Rouge LA. It is sad to leave here, but I'm excited to get back on the saddle.
New Orleans has made a huge impression on most of our group, people keep saying they would love to live here and I agree. We had some issues when we first arrived since our host didn't have a kitchen or air conditioning and was in an area of town that a lot of the group felt uncomfortable staying. We ended up moving to a house run by the organization we were building with, and then after they couldn't host us anymore we moved to someone's home.
The house we are staying in was built in the mid to late 1800s and has all the original stain glass windows - its beautiful. More importantly, the people we are staying with are amazingly generous and nice (seriously, who lets 33 young adults stay in their home for 4 nights?). They even made us an awesome dinner tonight. They love this city so much, and they want to help anyone who comes here to help the city the love.
New Orleans still needs so much help. There are still so many abandoned houses, and you can tell that its just a fraction of the city it once was. Biking in and seeing all the empty foundations and demolished neighborhoods was definately an eye opener. The city has improved a lot since Katrina struck in 2005, but it still has a long way to go.
All the people we've met are so strong and willing to help us. I think, like John and Elaine (the couple letting us stay in their house), that most people from New Orleans have so much pride and love for this city that they will do anything for people who are here to help.
Aside from building during the day, I've spent my time seeing the sites of the city. The night we arrived a good portion of the group went out to Bourbon Street - that was an experience. Then on our day off we walked around the French Quarter and looked in the shops and ate beignets at Cafe Du Monde. I also saw three nights of live music. We went to Snug Harbor and saw a singer named Charmaine with a jazz band - which was excellent. Then I saw Passion Pit (as I already mentioned in the last entry). Last but not least I saw Kermit Ruffins and his jazz band on Thursday night. Kermit Rufins is an amazing trumpet player who also plays himself on the HBO show Treme.
Needless to say I had an amazing and eye opening experience here. I'm excited to continue with the journey, but leaving New Orleans definitely feels like crossing a major milestone.
New Orleans has made a huge impression on most of our group, people keep saying they would love to live here and I agree. We had some issues when we first arrived since our host didn't have a kitchen or air conditioning and was in an area of town that a lot of the group felt uncomfortable staying. We ended up moving to a house run by the organization we were building with, and then after they couldn't host us anymore we moved to someone's home.
The house we are staying in was built in the mid to late 1800s and has all the original stain glass windows - its beautiful. More importantly, the people we are staying with are amazingly generous and nice (seriously, who lets 33 young adults stay in their home for 4 nights?). They even made us an awesome dinner tonight. They love this city so much, and they want to help anyone who comes here to help the city the love.
New Orleans still needs so much help. There are still so many abandoned houses, and you can tell that its just a fraction of the city it once was. Biking in and seeing all the empty foundations and demolished neighborhoods was definately an eye opener. The city has improved a lot since Katrina struck in 2005, but it still has a long way to go.
All the people we've met are so strong and willing to help us. I think, like John and Elaine (the couple letting us stay in their house), that most people from New Orleans have so much pride and love for this city that they will do anything for people who are here to help.
Aside from building during the day, I've spent my time seeing the sites of the city. The night we arrived a good portion of the group went out to Bourbon Street - that was an experience. Then on our day off we walked around the French Quarter and looked in the shops and ate beignets at Cafe Du Monde. I also saw three nights of live music. We went to Snug Harbor and saw a singer named Charmaine with a jazz band - which was excellent. Then I saw Passion Pit (as I already mentioned in the last entry). Last but not least I saw Kermit Ruffins and his jazz band on Thursday night. Kermit Rufins is an amazing trumpet player who also plays himself on the HBO show Treme.
Needless to say I had an amazing and eye opening experience here. I'm excited to continue with the journey, but leaving New Orleans definitely feels like crossing a major milestone.
Thursday, June 17, 2010
New Orleans Continued
At the group meetings we always have to say both our high and our low for the week, and this week I have two. The most fun I had was last night seeing Passion Pit at the House of Blues. I don't really know the band that well, but it was one of the best concerts I've ever been too. They had an excellent stage presence, and the energy in the crowd was awesome. The House of Blues itself was also great on its own.
On a more serious note, my other high would be building in New Orleans. I think that it is this experience, maybe not as enjoyable as a concert, that will stick with me and help me better understand this city. Today we worked at the same build site in the eastern part of the city that we've been working at all week.
Our group is split into 3 smaller groups of about 10. The other two groups have had trouble finding places with enough work for them to do. It isn't that there is no stuff that needs to be done, but that with the Episcopal Dioceses of New Orleans the home owners have to provide all the materials needed to fix the house, and instruct the volunteers (to some extent) on what to do. The other houses our group was supposed to be working on I think the homeowners are just at a loss of what needs to be done and what materials need to be provided in order for any progress to be made.
The Episcopal Dioceses of New Orleans used to provide every build site with a instructor and they had a warehouse of materials, but because of budget restraints they've had to cut both of these aspects of the program. These cuts greatly reduce the productivity of the program. It doesn't matter how many able bodied volunteers you have if you don't have the materials of the instruction needed to complete the task at hand. Its just another issue that affects the affordable housing crisis since the people who are utilizing this organization to help them fix their homes do not have the money to supply all the best tools and materials, and also more often then not don't have the knowledge of construction that is needed to refurbish a home.
Yesterday the owner of the home we're working on, Jeffrey, came by to work with us a bit a see what materials we needed. He is a really nice guy who looks like he's probably in his late 20s or early 30s. He grow up in the lower ninth ward of New Orleans, which is a fairly economically deprived area. He said his dad died when he was 11, and then he was raised by his grandmother (who he claims is the best cook in New Orleans).
His story behind why he has asked the Episcopal Dioceses of New Orleans for help is a really sad but hopeful one. He was living with his family in the lower ninth ward until 2005. They had decided to save up and move to the east side of the city to be in a safer neighborhood after one of their twin sons what shot and killed in the lower ninth ward. The boy was only 3, and the shooting was apparently a stray bullet.
Ten days after moving into the house that he owns now, hurricane Katrina hit. Jeffrey and his family left the night before the storm with basically just the clothes on their backs. Because they had only lived in the house for 10 days, the insurance would not pay for any of the damage on their house (I think he said it required the live in the house for 30 days). His family ended up settling in Texas, and he said that he never planned on returning to the city.
However his grandmother hated Texas, and she moved back. He said that she moved into her same house in the lower ninth ward, and that there are still only 3 occupied houses on her block which used to be in a very full and energetic neighborhood. His grandmother was diagnosed with a terminal form of cancer about a year ago, and so his family returned to help look after here (he has a 9 year old son and a 3 year old daughter). Upon returning to the city, he starting trying to fix up the house.
He said that he hated asking for help, but with his and his wife's limited income, paying rent on an apartment, mortgage on a house and being in school (he is getting his bachelors degree in elementary education) he just couldn't fix the house himself or afford to pay someone to do it. It is really a sad, but inspiring story. He has faced so much tragedy in his life, but he still puts on a happy face and works so hard to get what he and his family need. He is so happy that we're here helping him, and we are happy to be here as well.
On a more serious note, my other high would be building in New Orleans. I think that it is this experience, maybe not as enjoyable as a concert, that will stick with me and help me better understand this city. Today we worked at the same build site in the eastern part of the city that we've been working at all week.
Our group is split into 3 smaller groups of about 10. The other two groups have had trouble finding places with enough work for them to do. It isn't that there is no stuff that needs to be done, but that with the Episcopal Dioceses of New Orleans the home owners have to provide all the materials needed to fix the house, and instruct the volunteers (to some extent) on what to do. The other houses our group was supposed to be working on I think the homeowners are just at a loss of what needs to be done and what materials need to be provided in order for any progress to be made.
The Episcopal Dioceses of New Orleans used to provide every build site with a instructor and they had a warehouse of materials, but because of budget restraints they've had to cut both of these aspects of the program. These cuts greatly reduce the productivity of the program. It doesn't matter how many able bodied volunteers you have if you don't have the materials of the instruction needed to complete the task at hand. Its just another issue that affects the affordable housing crisis since the people who are utilizing this organization to help them fix their homes do not have the money to supply all the best tools and materials, and also more often then not don't have the knowledge of construction that is needed to refurbish a home.
Yesterday the owner of the home we're working on, Jeffrey, came by to work with us a bit a see what materials we needed. He is a really nice guy who looks like he's probably in his late 20s or early 30s. He grow up in the lower ninth ward of New Orleans, which is a fairly economically deprived area. He said his dad died when he was 11, and then he was raised by his grandmother (who he claims is the best cook in New Orleans).
His story behind why he has asked the Episcopal Dioceses of New Orleans for help is a really sad but hopeful one. He was living with his family in the lower ninth ward until 2005. They had decided to save up and move to the east side of the city to be in a safer neighborhood after one of their twin sons what shot and killed in the lower ninth ward. The boy was only 3, and the shooting was apparently a stray bullet.
Ten days after moving into the house that he owns now, hurricane Katrina hit. Jeffrey and his family left the night before the storm with basically just the clothes on their backs. Because they had only lived in the house for 10 days, the insurance would not pay for any of the damage on their house (I think he said it required the live in the house for 30 days). His family ended up settling in Texas, and he said that he never planned on returning to the city.
However his grandmother hated Texas, and she moved back. He said that she moved into her same house in the lower ninth ward, and that there are still only 3 occupied houses on her block which used to be in a very full and energetic neighborhood. His grandmother was diagnosed with a terminal form of cancer about a year ago, and so his family returned to help look after here (he has a 9 year old son and a 3 year old daughter). Upon returning to the city, he starting trying to fix up the house.
He said that he hated asking for help, but with his and his wife's limited income, paying rent on an apartment, mortgage on a house and being in school (he is getting his bachelors degree in elementary education) he just couldn't fix the house himself or afford to pay someone to do it. It is really a sad, but inspiring story. He has faced so much tragedy in his life, but he still puts on a happy face and works so hard to get what he and his family need. He is so happy that we're here helping him, and we are happy to be here as well.
Wednesday, June 16, 2010
Welcome to New Orleans
I have been so busy lately (hence the lack of journal posts). Since I last updated we biked from Mobile Alabama to Long Beach Mississippi and then into New Orleans. To be honest I don't really remember the exact mileage, but I think it was about 75ish miles each day.
New Orleans is an amazing city. We have already built 3 out of the 6 days, and it has been a great experience. Here we are building with the Episcopal Diocese of New Orleans. They take the houses owned by the people and then help them fix them up. It runs very differently then Habitat but it still seems like a great organization, although it is underfunded and therefore the resources are limited.
I don't have time to update more now though since I'm heading to the house of blues to see Passion Pit.
New Orleans is an amazing city. We have already built 3 out of the 6 days, and it has been a great experience. Here we are building with the Episcopal Diocese of New Orleans. They take the houses owned by the people and then help them fix them up. It runs very differently then Habitat but it still seems like a great organization, although it is underfunded and therefore the resources are limited.
I don't have time to update more now though since I'm heading to the house of blues to see Passion Pit.
Tuesday, June 8, 2010
97 miles
Today I biked 97 miles. It was hot and very tiring but I finished with a smile on my face and a huge sense of achievement. Bike and Build is really one of the most physically and mentally challenging things I will probably ever do, but the support from the group is just so amazing that I don't think giving up crosses anybody's mind.
After first lunch (if the ride is over 90 miles and/or it is over 90 degrees out we get two lunches - today it was both) my group of 6 had only 1 hour and 20 minutes to go the 22 miles to the ferry that was leaving at 1:15pm. We booked it - keeping our speed at 19 - 21 mph the whole time and caught it just on time. Almost the whole rest of the group was already on the ferry (my group had had a few problems with losing things and flat tires) and when we got on they allgave us high fives and stuff. That hour and 20 minutes was the hardest I've pushed it on BnB (I usually go about 15 - 17mph) and it felt so amazing to make the ferry.
After we got off the ferry we still had 37 miles to ride, and it went by pretty quickly until we hit the rolling hills about 5 miles from the church who is hosting us. After riding 92 miles they were very challenging. It was a struggle, but we made it and when we got here we got a lot more high fives.
One guy on my trip, Justin, made an anouncement today about how awesome group is. He basically summed up my thoughts talking about all the support we give one another and how happy and motivated we all are even after a 97 mile day like today.
Tomorrow and Thursday we are building in Mobile, and I'm realy looking foreward to getting back to why we are here: affordable housing.
After first lunch (if the ride is over 90 miles and/or it is over 90 degrees out we get two lunches - today it was both) my group of 6 had only 1 hour and 20 minutes to go the 22 miles to the ferry that was leaving at 1:15pm. We booked it - keeping our speed at 19 - 21 mph the whole time and caught it just on time. Almost the whole rest of the group was already on the ferry (my group had had a few problems with losing things and flat tires) and when we got on they allgave us high fives and stuff. That hour and 20 minutes was the hardest I've pushed it on BnB (I usually go about 15 - 17mph) and it felt so amazing to make the ferry.
After we got off the ferry we still had 37 miles to ride, and it went by pretty quickly until we hit the rolling hills about 5 miles from the church who is hosting us. After riding 92 miles they were very challenging. It was a struggle, but we made it and when we got here we got a lot more high fives.
One guy on my trip, Justin, made an anouncement today about how awesome group is. He basically summed up my thoughts talking about all the support we give one another and how happy and motivated we all are even after a 97 mile day like today.
Tomorrow and Thursday we are building in Mobile, and I'm realy looking foreward to getting back to why we are here: affordable housing.
Monday, June 7, 2010
Defuniak Springs and Pensacola
Yesterday we rode about 66 miles into Defuniak Springs. I rode with three girls, Rae-Leigh, Annie and Jenny. It was a good group for me to ride with and we kept the pace at about 15 - 16 mph all day (which is right where I like to ride at).
We did have one minor (that could have been major) mishap though... At about mile 14 we missed a left turn. The left turn we were supposed to have taken was onto a road we would have ridden for about 20 miles before we would have reached lunch. So... we rode for a little over 20 miles never saw liunch and realized we were on the wrong road... oops.
Luckily we hadn't been traveling the complete wrong direction though (I like to think I would have noticed that). We called the van and they told us what road to take to get back on track. All in all we ended up cutting off about 1/2 mile from the normal route and we went over one of the most beautiful bridges of the trip. I think it was a nice, albeit accidental, re-route.
Defuniak Springs itself was an unremarkable and very southern town. We stayed in the community center, but it had no furniture and didn't seem like it got a lot of use.
Today we biked about 86 miles into Pensacola. My longest ride yet! I was sweep which meant I had to stay behind the group with the other sweep, V, and carry a spare tire, medical kit and spare tubes. If any riders have problems we can help them. It turns out that there were a lot of problems today and we spent about 10 hours on the road (not even close to all of it biking though). It was a long, but fun, day.
I enjoyed riding with V, and another rider Lizz, neither which I have had the chance to ride with for a long time before. The route went over this really pretty narrow island too. I heard on the news while waiting to use the bathroom at the gas station (I have used soooooo many gas staion bathrooms) that the oil had hit the beaches in Pensacola, but I didn't see any. It is supposed to hit Panama City, where I just got to go swimming in the gulf, by Wednesday.
The church we are staying at tonight is super nice and it has couches, a pool table, ping pong,
We did have one minor (that could have been major) mishap though... At about mile 14 we missed a left turn. The left turn we were supposed to have taken was onto a road we would have ridden for about 20 miles before we would have reached lunch. So... we rode for a little over 20 miles never saw liunch and realized we were on the wrong road... oops.
Luckily we hadn't been traveling the complete wrong direction though (I like to think I would have noticed that). We called the van and they told us what road to take to get back on track. All in all we ended up cutting off about 1/2 mile from the normal route and we went over one of the most beautiful bridges of the trip. I think it was a nice, albeit accidental, re-route.
Defuniak Springs itself was an unremarkable and very southern town. We stayed in the community center, but it had no furniture and didn't seem like it got a lot of use.
Today we biked about 86 miles into Pensacola. My longest ride yet! I was sweep which meant I had to stay behind the group with the other sweep, V, and carry a spare tire, medical kit and spare tubes. If any riders have problems we can help them. It turns out that there were a lot of problems today and we spent about 10 hours on the road (not even close to all of it biking though). It was a long, but fun, day.
I enjoyed riding with V, and another rider Lizz, neither which I have had the chance to ride with for a long time before. The route went over this really pretty narrow island too. I heard on the news while waiting to use the bathroom at the gas station (I have used soooooo many gas staion bathrooms) that the oil had hit the beaches in Pensacola, but I didn't see any. It is supposed to hit Panama City, where I just got to go swimming in the gulf, by Wednesday.
The church we are staying at tonight is super nice and it has couches, a pool table, ping pong,
Saturday, June 5, 2010
Currently we are in Panama City, and tomorrow we will bike to De Funiak Springs. Since I last posted we went to Perry, Sopchoppy, and Apalachicola. Most bike days are really fun because you just ride at whatever pace you want and stop to see anything you like.
In Perry we stayed at a middle school, and we all went out to Calhoons Saloon for a drink. It was the first time we really spent time together in a relaxed non BnB setting.
Next we moved on to Sopchoppy where we stayed at a Southern Baptist church. Our hosts were really nice and fed us well, but there were a few times I felt a little uncomfortable since I'm not really religious at all. People say that Florida is not the south but the pan handle definitely is. Most of the locals have southern accents and there is a large religious influence as wel as a lot of good old southern hospitality.
Apalachicola is probably my favorite town that we have stayed in, but my least favorite place that we have stayed. We had arrangements to stay at an abandoned high school that has been taken over by a nonprofit, but since BP is renting the rooms we were supposed to stay in and working out of the school we had to stay in gym. The gym itself was okay, but the bathrooms had not been used since the school was closed, and therefore they were covered in mold. The school was in a great location though and it only took a few minutes to walk into Apalachicola's cute downtown.
Like I said BP was working out of the school we stayed at since the oil is supposed to hit the beach in Apalachicola in a couple of weeks. About 25 percent of the population of the city works for the fishing industry, and another 30 percent work for tourism. With the oil approaching the shores, everyone is scared for their jobs and their homes.
When we stopped st a gas station on the way out of town an older guy stopped us and said to take a picture because this place is going to be a ghost town when the oil comes. He has worked in the fishing industry his whole life, and this is his home.
Today we had a semi day off since the house we were supposed to build at hasn't broken ground yet. About 15 of us went down to the beach to go swimming. Panama City Beach is extremely touristy, but the gulf itself is beautiful. We went simming and it felt so nice to be in the ocean. It is crazy that we are some of the last people who will see the gulf like this before the oil comes. I had know idea when ai chose the Southern route that we would be biking through the middle of such a huge environmental and economic crisis. Its a sad and crazy thing to witness.
In Perry we stayed at a middle school, and we all went out to Calhoons Saloon for a drink. It was the first time we really spent time together in a relaxed non BnB setting.
Next we moved on to Sopchoppy where we stayed at a Southern Baptist church. Our hosts were really nice and fed us well, but there were a few times I felt a little uncomfortable since I'm not really religious at all. People say that Florida is not the south but the pan handle definitely is. Most of the locals have southern accents and there is a large religious influence as wel as a lot of good old southern hospitality.
Apalachicola is probably my favorite town that we have stayed in, but my least favorite place that we have stayed. We had arrangements to stay at an abandoned high school that has been taken over by a nonprofit, but since BP is renting the rooms we were supposed to stay in and working out of the school we had to stay in gym. The gym itself was okay, but the bathrooms had not been used since the school was closed, and therefore they were covered in mold. The school was in a great location though and it only took a few minutes to walk into Apalachicola's cute downtown.
Like I said BP was working out of the school we stayed at since the oil is supposed to hit the beach in Apalachicola in a couple of weeks. About 25 percent of the population of the city works for the fishing industry, and another 30 percent work for tourism. With the oil approaching the shores, everyone is scared for their jobs and their homes.
When we stopped st a gas station on the way out of town an older guy stopped us and said to take a picture because this place is going to be a ghost town when the oil comes. He has worked in the fishing industry his whole life, and this is his home.
Today we had a semi day off since the house we were supposed to build at hasn't broken ground yet. About 15 of us went down to the beach to go swimming. Panama City Beach is extremely touristy, but the gulf itself is beautiful. We went simming and it felt so nice to be in the ocean. It is crazy that we are some of the last people who will see the gulf like this before the oil comes. I had know idea when ai chose the Southern route that we would be biking through the middle of such a huge environmental and economic crisis. Its a sad and crazy thing to witness.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
