oh, the places

hey y'all,

i'm down here in new orleans. straight up. it is very much like i had imagined. every other house is empty, neighborhoods show immense damage from the storm. stores are closed up, and not much is happening down here, other than the rain. on the other hand...the people that we have met so far are super nice!! people have been quite hospitable so far, and we have had a very warm welcome to warm new orleans.

The planner's network youth council has officially begun their first meeting down here in nola. yesterday, we arrived at the hippie india house hostel, a sort of crazy place to be staying with students. if any of you have stayed at a hostel, you can imagine what goes on...beer drinking, smoking cigs on the porch, bugs, joint showers...well, i wouldn't recommend staying here with youth again. but they are LOVING it! the adults are the only ones thinking this place is sorta nasty.

Our trip yesterday to the french quarter was great, desiree touched a mime and got so scared by his movement that she fell on the ground! yup, right in the rain water. then we had hot chocolate and beignets...YUM!

Today, we went to Walker High School, met the students there, showed each other powerpoint presentations of our work...then joined in on the youth leadership council of New Orleans official meeting. we were served fried chicken and jumbalaya, then got to see the marching band practice!!! it was hot.

Tonight, we went to the Planner's Network kick-off event. the kids got dressed up like they were professionals. they wined (iced tea), dined, performed an amazing spoken word piece, and introduced themselves in style. Tomorrow, we'll do some mobile workshops and go to the upper and lower ninth ward. it's sure to be intense, beautiful, and most of all a powerful experience.

Here are some (very few) pics of the week...it's really taking my breath (and energy!) away, these kids are so amazing!

xo
lis