Took me the longest time to realize the acronym, NOLA, that I was seeing all over the place stands for “New Orleans, Louisiana”. Duh!!
So, we are in New Orleans. Staying at a very nice little campground/marina close to Lake Ponchartrain (on the outskirts of New Oreleans). It’s in a surprisingly industrial area of town on a canal. Our theory is that the land was available at a bargain price after Katrina. There are very obvious signs of Katrina in the immediate area even after 9 years.
We visited the French Quarter today. Walked around, had some great traditional food for lunch at The Corner Oyster House, listened to street musicians, visited history museum, saw the Mississippi river. All that tourist stuff, had a great time.
One of the museums had a great exhibit about Hurricane Katrina – very powerful. The picture below is the ceiling in the entrance of the museum and these words were on the sign near to it.
Message of Remembrances
Mitchell Gaudet, 2010
Cast glass, etched glass bottles, paper, wire, steel, wood
In creating this installation, Mitchell Gaudet wanted visitors to feel ‘as if one is moving up and out from being underwater.’ ‘I though about all the things floating in the water after the storm,’ he explains, ‘and all the people in need.’ The etched bottles allude to Hurricane Katrina’s death toll. The vessels protect messages, delivering them to a safe haven. Glass hands represent the countless, often unsung, individuals who rendered aid to the residents of the Gulf Coast. ‘Even during the storm and the trying times after,’ recalls Gaudet, ‘people still helped others.’
A better picture and an article here.