Los Isleños
Sunday, November 14th (Afternoon)It turns out that the owner of the property on which we are staying, is an Isleño, one of the descendants of Canary Islanders who migrated to Louisiana under the...
View ArticleMuseo de los Isleños
Sunday, November 14th (Afternoon)More serendipity. We were introduced to William Hyland, the Director of theMuseo de los Isleños. He’s quite an imposing figure - a tall, erudite Southern gentlemen...
View ArticleVieux Carré
Sunday, November 14th (Evening)After returning from our tour of the Museo, we decided to rest a bit and then visit the French Quarter. Colleen had her heart set on eating at a place she remembered...
View ArticleOur First Day
Monday, November 15th (Morning)We started by meeting at the headquarters of the St. Bernard Project. It is located in a two story commercial building about 15 minutes from where we are staying. We...
View ArticleThe Fourth Roommate
Monday, November 15th (Evening)Colleen was about to begin her toilette, when she unexpectedly came upon our fourth roommate.S/he has made one other appearance. Apparently, s/he lives under the tank...
View ArticleThe Second Day
Tuesday, November 16th (Morning)We returned to 1613 Heights Drive. Today, it was just Devin and us. The weather was great - sunny and high 60's. (Unlike the yesterday, which was overcast and...
View ArticleMeals on Wheels - SBP Style
Tuesday, November 16th (Noon)Lunch was provided by volunteers from Most Holy Trinity Parish. It's located on the north side of New Orleans, about an hour away. Apparently, many St. Bernard residents...
View Article1617 Heights Drive
Directly south of the house we are working on is the foundation (only) of a previous house. Next to that (1609) is a vacant house. And then greenspace/the bayou.Directly north of 1613 is a vacant...
View Article"So three nuns walk into a bar..."
Tuesday, November 16th(Evening)Actually it was more like fifty nuns, but I’m getting ahead of myself.After washing up, we met up with Sisters Frances and Mary Ellen and finally met Sister Frances’...
View ArticleHump Day
Wednesday, November 17th (Morning)So the five of us basically did our own thing. I changed tasks, now promoted to taping of the woodwork in preparation for Colleen coming in and putting another coat...
View ArticleLa Casa Flotante
We are in love with the cottage we are staying in.Why not come for a tour?As you can see it was an A-1 rehab, while retaining and restoring all of the orginal woodwork. (Thank goodness it was...
View ArticleA Moveable Feast
Wednesday, November 17th (Evening)Nothing planned for the evening, thank God. (No pun intended.) So Colleen and I decided to invite Sisters Frances, Jan & Mary Ellen for a cheese and wine party....
View ArticleDay Four
Thursday, November 18th (Morning)After a quick breakfast, we were asked by Sister Frances to stop by the main house to help her get Sister Jan into the car for a trip to the clinic to have her ankle...
View Article1609 Heights Drive
The neighborhood we are working basically consists of one street that is about four blocks long. About 1/4 of the lots are just slabs of former houses, another 1/4 are abandoned houses and the...
View ArticleBig Easy Dinner
Thursday, November 18th (Evening)Tonight was the final planned event of the week: a Big Easy dinner at the local Knights of Columbus Hall for Americorps workers and the Nuns' Build volunteers. The...
View ArticleSt. Bernard Parish
A parish in Louisiana is the equivalent to a county on most other states. St. Bernard Parish is located southeast of New Orleans. The seat is Chalmette, the largest city in the parish. Chalmette is...
View ArticleTGIF
Friday, November 19th (Morning)Back to 1613 Heights for our final day. Nieko was our Site Supervisor. Today we were joined by Sister Mary Ellen and Sister Frances.(Who took a day off from her job at...
View ArticleA Final Night on the Town
Friday, November 19th (Evening)We showered, changed and briefly sat down for some wine (Diet Coke for me) and relaxation. Since Colleen and I planned on going into the city for dinner, we offered to...
View ArticleThe Most Important Meal of the Day
Saturday, November 20th (Early Morning)Morning ablutions, last-minute cramming of items in our suitcases, tossing the linens and towels in the washer/dryer and a final cleanup of la casa flotante. We...
View ArticleHurricane Katrina
Hurricane Katrina of the 2005 Atlantic hurricane season was the costliest natural disaster, as well as one of the five deadliest hurricanes in the history of the US. Among recorded Atlantic...
View Article"And now a word from our sponsors..."
Colleen & I are not very good about asking for donations. However, if you feel like making a contribution, we suggest that you visit the St. Bernard Project webpage at...
View ArticleKatrina & beyond
Saturday, November 20th (Late morning) It was back to the French Quarter as we wanted to visit the Katrina & beyond exhibition at the Cabildo on Jackson Square. Here’s a promotional video on the...
View ArticleReturning home
Saturday, November 20th (Afternoon)As we left the museum, we encounted a bit of street theater. A float of chanting Hare Krishna devotees.We drove to the airport, returned the rental car, checked in...
View ArticleRandom Musings
Nuns are amazing people And fun, too!It’s not unusual to hear gunshots in St. Bernard either early in the morning or towards dusk. (Hunting is popular out here.)We were introduced to the satsuma, a...
View ArticleEpilogue
It was an incredible trip. Colleen said that it was the most restful vacations that she's ever taken. (No running from one tourist trap to another, for example.) The trip was a hoot! We saw and did...
View Article
More Pages to Explore .....