Art

Outer Journey

One artist that I really took a liking to was Sara... She was a photographer in New Orleans that most did still pictures of architecture and nature in black and white. While she had some photos in color, 90% of her work was in black and white. When I was talking with the photographer she explained to me that she finds beauty in natural occurring things, or things that aren't moving, such as still photography. I found it so beautiful to take the color out of the photos, because it makes you focus more on the actual structure of the picture, rather than being drawn to the colors that are included in the picture. I ended up buying one of her smaller photos, because I found the picture so beautiful. It was a picture of a gallery with flowers all around it and the green vines flowing down the black metal framework. The artist actually took time to explain where the picture was taken and gave me directions as to where I could see this picture in real life. I had a great time learning a little about her art, and was so pleased with her work that I bought it to hang up in my apartment.

Inner Journey

The story that is told through this artists work is one that is very interesting and very personal to me. After I talked to her for a few minutes, I realized that he work showed that you can find beauty in anything, as well as you don't need to "make things up" for them to be beautiful. For example, the artist doesn't add anything to the pictures. She doesn't add filters, or props, or anything. In fact, she takes away the color from the pictures so that people have to look at something they normally wouldn't find beautiful and see the beauty in it. I feel like this can relate to people. People think that they need expensive clothes, and make up, and botox to look beautiful, but actually they don't. Your natural self is enough, you are beautiful enough without everything you add in, and you need to focus on your inner beauty to really appreciate yourself for what you have or what God gave you. I feel like many people around my age struggle with finding natural beauty within themselves, but I feel like purchasing this picture and being able to hang it up will be a constant reminder to me that you are worth it, you are enough, and you are beautiful with what you have. I really appreciate the artists work for teaching me this, even if this wasn't her intended meaning, art is all about how YOU interpret it and what it means to you.

You are the music in me

Outer Journey

One of the most different things about things in New Orleans is that basically on every single street corner there is a street performer playing music. I heard so many different types of music, but the one that was most played was jazz. While walking down Frenchman Street, every building had a band or one musician that plays in the bottom of the building. Although since I am not 21, it was difficult to find a club where I could go into to listen to New Orleans jazz music. One thing that I did enjoy, was walking down Frenchman street in front of the clubs on the broken up sidewalks to hear many different styles of jazz. After learning how to swing dance, it was easier to tell which songs were meant danced to. Some of the songs were slower and sounded more sad, or to put it in different terms they sang more about the hardships they went through, which would be the blues. I enjoyed more of the upbeat dancing jazz songs. Other types of music I liked to hear was the kids that would sit on the street and play 5 gallon buckets as drums. I feel like with my percussion past, something speaks to me hearing the drums and drum lines. I also liked to listen to the violinist that usually played by Jackson Square, because even though violin music is usually played in slower and older songs, he made it more upbeat and modern.

Inner Journey

I feel as much of the citys music has spoken to me in different ways. For example, the kids playing the buckets as drums and the violinist, it is probably their only job to play music on the street, but since New Orleans is so big into music, they accept all different kinds of music and the people that play it. As for the blues being played, it really speaks to what the city has suffered through, more specifically the African American race. In someways, it tells a story that the artist of the song wants to tell in a different way for people to hear and learn. Jazz is also a large part of the New Orleans, because they are a big party and celebration city, they need something to dance to and get people to celebrate. I really enjoyed listening to all of the different types of music, because no matter who played it or what genre it was, it helped to give a story, but more specifically the story of New Orleans.

Home Bound

Outer Journey

Today was our last day in New Orleans. It was so sad to leave, but I took one last picture in my favorite place. My favorite place is Jackson Square for so many reasons. One of the reasons is because when you arrive in Jackson Square, all the way around it is filled with artists of different races, ages, and styles. They all display their art and it is so nice to be able to walk around the little square and walk from artist to artist and view all the different styles of art. From contemporary, portraits, charcoal, paint, etc. It is so interesting to me to see the different things people can put art on. Not even just canvas, but also glass, or a poster-board, everything. The mix of all the different colors of the rainbow mixed together to create a picture. It is so relaxing to be able to walk around the square in the sun, when the sun is shining down on my skin warming me up from the cool breeze. Surrounding Jackson Square is a tall black metal fence with 3 tall gates on each side. On top of the tall fence posts is big bright red bows that are still up from Christmas and the New Year. Inside there is winding paths of pebbled sidewalk leading people around the square through the flower beds, trees, and perfect landscape. Along the path there are black metal benches filled with people sitting around listening to the street music and enjoying the sunlight. In the center of the square is a huge 20 foot tall statue of Andrew Jackson riding a horse. He is displayed in the center of the square, as well as the square is named after him because of his heroic acts. He led the New Orleans in the battle of New Orleans, which was a victory. Story has it that the lady who constructed Jackson Square and the buildings surrounding it, Baroness Micaela Almonester Pontabla, had an affair with Andrew Jackson and wanted his statue facing toward her apartment she was staying at. Another fascinating thing about Andrew Jackson's statue is that it is the first statue that the horse is only on two feet because they were able to figure out the balancing. As you can see this square is very fascinating and has a lot of art and history surrounding it.

Inner Journey

Through this journey to New Orleans, I learned a lot. I learned a lot about New Orleans history that I did not know previously, I was able to try many new foods, bond with new friends, and explore a new city. My favorite part of the class was learning all of the new things that I did. I am very much into history, and being able to walk on so many guided tours and learn about the history behind buildings, famous places in the city, as well as just experience an entire new environment. When I first got to New Orleans I was so very confused about the streets and directions we were supposed to go. By the 3rd day I was walking around New Orleans without a GPS like it was nothing and I'd been living there for years. Which actually made my favorite part of the trip to be able to explore on my own and see new things that we can't or don't see in Illinois. It was so fun being able to talk to the locals and hearing them say how sorry they were that we came down in "winter" as we were standing there with long sleeve shirts enjoying the 65 degree weather. It was so funny to see their expression when we said that we loved the weather because we were from Illinois and that it was only 27 degrees and snowy at home. The people of New Orleans are so accepting and so open that there isn't anyone that I met that didn't want to talk and have a conversation with me and hoped that I would come back some day. It was so nice to meet these people and I am so incredibly sad that I am on my way home. I learned to experience/try new things that were out of my box, simply because you only live once, so why not do what you want! Dance in the streets, let loose, and just enjoy your time! I learned that I have so much more potential to have fun if I don't care what other people think, or I am surrounded by loving non-judgemental people. I am so happy to have gone on this trip, and as sad as I am to leave, I am so ready to sleep in my own bed.

The art of medicine

Outer Journey

Today I had the opportunity to go and tour the famous St. Louis cathedral. I learned so much about catholicism that I did not know before that I had a wonderful learning opportunity. The cathedral was so beautiful and had so many beautiful paintings and stories about all of the hardships that the church had been through. For example, they have had to rebuild the cathedral many times due to catastrophes. When the great fire of New Orleans happened, the priest frantically was throwing records into the streets to try and keep them from burning, as well as rescuing many different artifacts, such as the baptismal, the hung up paintings, and the gifts of Christ. While the fire wreaked havoc on New Orleans and the church, the Ursalines prayed with the Sweetheart statue, and miraculously the winds changed and diverted the fires away from the Convent. It was so cool how the Ursalines were able to pray for the fire so stop before it burned down the Convent. In the church at the Convent, there was a monstrance that was made of gold and covered with precious stone. When the story was told to us, I was surprised to learn that the monstrance was funded by the people of New Orleans. The priest asked people of New Orleans if they had any gold jewelry or precious stones that they wanted to donate to the church to help make the monstrance. It was so cool to hear how the people of New Orleans came together to donate their own personal jewelry to make this beautiful monstrance for the church.

View of St. Louis Cathedral from inside.

Inner Journey

One of the best experiences that I had today was going to the New Orleans pharmacy museum. I found it so neat to be able to see how people practiced medicine in the 1800s and 1900s. From the way they made pills, gave injections, and the lack of dosage control. How medicine was described during this time was that the medicine that you were given was to make you forget about your old disease and present you with a new one to distract you, or in many cases the medicine that you took was going to make you die quicker than your presenting illness. Especially being in the medical field, it made me realize how much practice has changed, and how much it could change in just a short amount of time. I found this exhibit and all of the artifacts so interesting that I almost didn't want to leave! All of their artifacts were original, and all of the substances in the glass jars that were displayed was all original! It was so different to hear how medicine was practice and all of the different tools that was used. I also found it interesting to hear how little people knew about diseases and medicine. Anyone at this time could practice medicine, but there was only one licensed pharmacist in New Orleans, which also made him the first licensed pharmacist in the country, and the only licensed pharmacy that was in practice. Of course the materials that they had at that time made it difficult for them to study disease and illness, but some how medicine came to be what it is today, and it made me so fascinated to learn about a different time of medicine and illness.

Inside of the Pharmacy museum, everything in the bottles is original.

Shopping, Shopping, and more Shopping

Outer Journey

Today was the first time during our trip that I had a free day and do whatever I wanted. I woke up around 8:30, which was so nice, because it was the longest sleep that I have had since the trip began, because we've been so busy! Hailey and I ate breakfast and then got ready for our day in our little hotel bathroom. When we were ready we began our long journey for the day. We started by walking at a slow pace from our hotel down to Canal Street. The second we walked outside, we immediately felt the warm Louisiana air against our skin. We we finally reached the sunlight after a few steps, both of our shoulders relaxed as we felt how warm and comfortable the temperature was today. We walked through the little and expensive mall by just wandering through different stores to admire what they were selling before we made our way toward the French Quarter. We spent our afternoon milling around the French Quarter and Jackson Square, exploring the different little boutiques, art galleries, candy shops, etc. It was such a beautiful day out side between the shining sun, the cool breeze, and 72 degree weather that we took our time walking around and enjoying our day. The best part of our day was walking down Burbon Street. While neither one of us to go into many places, it was such a different experience to be able to safely walk down Burbon Street and see what all the fuss was about. It seemed like there was music coming from all over the place. Dozens of people would be walking down the street dancing and laughing and having a good time. It was so nice to be able to see this and also be able to dance to the music that we heard. I had such a good time today I wouldn't have changed it at all.

Inner Journey

Being able to explore the city by myself was so relieving. Not to say that I haven't enjoyed any of the tours or being with my other classmates, but I enjoyed being able to walk at my own pace and be able to walk into the little shops that I have seen and spend time in them without worry about sticking to a timeline of where I have to be. The city spoke to me in a few different ways today. I realized just how kind and nice the people are down here. While I was shopping I had a long conversation with 2 different employees from a store and was able to hear and learn about them, as well as hear about the city and good places to go or eat it. These employees did not have to do that, but they took time out of their day to talk and learn about me and make sure I have a good rest of my trip. I also got to learn about their fashion and what it is like down here. I did notice in many different stores that they don't really have any long sleeves, jackets, or coats. This is obviously because it does not get very cold, because they are so close to the equator. It was super nice to be able to walk along the river and just have a very relaxing and fun day. I would definitely want to do it again!

 

Time to Swing!

Outer Journey

One of my favorite exhibits in the many different museums that we went to was the Hurricane Katrina exhibit in the Presbytere. When you walked in it started out in the very beginning of New Orleans history and all of the hard ships that they have experienced. There was a small TV screen that was constantly rolling all of the hurricanes that have flooded New Orleans since they have been established. There was dozens. Watching the dates flow by on the little screen made me hurt for this city, because there was one at least every year, or more than once a year up until Katrina. Following the flow of the exhibit landed me in the middle of 3 floor to ceiling screens that were playing videos of Hurricane Katrina as it flooded New Orleans and swept away the city. During this presentation there was many fans that hung from the ceiling on full blast, moving my hair in all different directions. Lights flashed as though it was lightning, it was a small dark room that made you feel like you were living there and experiencing Hurricane Katrina. It seriously opened my eyes to how terrified these people were. Everything happened so quickly that they had no time to react. I felt really bad for everyone that suffered through this tragedy. It was eye opening and a great experience. I am so glad that I was able to go through this museum to learn about a big catastrophe.

Pictured below is a timeline of one of the days before Hurricane Katrina hit.

Inner Journey

Also apart of the Presbytere, the Hurricane Katrina exhibit gave so many different types of people's stories. For example, one man feared he wouldn't make it out of the city, so on the pant leg of his jeans, he wrote his name, where his wife was staying, along with the hotel phone number, her name, his social security number, and his blood type. It was so sad to see that he was thinking he was going to die while trying to make it to his wife. People during Katrina really struggled, but rallied together to help others and do as much as they can. In this exhibit, it really showed how the city came together as one. Another wonderful experience that I had today was when I tried my first muffuletta. A muffuletta is a sandwich that consists of salami, ham, olive salad, swiss, provolone, and mortadella cheese. It was so good. Definitely one of the best sandwiches I have EVER had. I believe it was invented by the Italians for people who wanted something hearty while working on the docks. It was really neat to hear how this dish was invented in New Orleans, as well as the history behind it. We also got to explore and learn about New Orleans history in the Cabildo, as well as tour through the Jazz museum  to learn about Louis Prima and Professor Longhair. I was really fun to listen to good jazz music, as well as learn how to swing dance in the museum! I had a really good time touring around Frenchman Street and even got to walk through a few little boutiques in my free time. It was a busy day, but a lot of fun!

Pictured is a muffuletta

Don't let the ghosts get ya!

Outer Journey
Today was a day full of walking and seeing the city when it's warm and sunny. As we approached Jackson Square later in the afternoon, it was a completely different city to me. The small square was lined on all sides with local artists displaying their artwork. Some was abstract and bent in different ways. Some painting displayed horror and tragedy. And some were simply of the city or people that the artist knew. In front of the cathedral sat dozens of medians and psychics wanting to read you or tell you your fortune. There was also magicians, and dancers, and musicians. I was in awe about many different types of art that there was squeezed into this little square. It seemed like for every performer or artist there was 15 people milling around from artist to artist, or just simply sitting on one of the many black metal benches in front of the cathedral tapping their feet to the music and swaying back and forth to the beat of the trumpet. From my point of view, I was in awe about all the different people coming together and enjoying the same thing. Young and old, people of all races and religions enjoying the same thing. Listening to the jazzy tune born and raised in New Orleans people dancing in front of the cathedral and singing along to the music. It was truly a very cool sight to see and so fun to be apart of.

Inner Journey

I started off my day very sore. I'll admit it, I dreaded getting up today because my legs hurt so bad from the 6 miles I walked the day before, I was not prepared. Anyways, today the first thing on my agenda was to go on the cemetery tour. I was so neat to see how differently people in New Orleans bury their loved ones compared to we do at home. While I realize the reason they bury them in mausoleums is because of how high their water table is, I found it super sweet and meaningful how family gets buried with family, and not like near them, with them. I got to see the VooDoo queen Marie Laveau's burial place. It was actually really neat to hear that people believe she has 3 mausoleums. One of the mausoleums that she was believed to be buried, even though people know for a fact she wasn't buried there, actually had to get completely repaired due to the fact that people vandalized it and left many "presents" for her to grant their favors. Then we walked to Armstrong park where we learned about Congo square which is an area in which Native Americans as well as African Americans went to dance and sing and celebrate on Sundays. We next learned about many different musicians such as Louis Armstrong and how much they influenced the music and culture of New Orleans. We then walked around the French Quarter to learn about the different types of architecture and all the different types of architecture that had to be included in the house to make it livable, such as ventilation to the attic. Later in the day I went on a cuisine tour which was very fun. I first had a pulled pork sandwich at Tujage's. We then walked to Creole Delicacies where we had red beans and rice, and a custom dip. I was weary to try the dip, because I do not like sour cream or mayo, which was included in this dip. Although I tried it and actually enjoyed it. We then went to Antoine's Restaurant. We tried seafood gumbo, which I was not especially a fan of. For some reason I didn't like the taste of it. I actually got to tour around Antoine's and view all of their many private dining rooms, and their 67 foot long wine cellar. Antoine's restaurant can seat around 1,200 people! I then got to try pralines, which are so delicious and melts in your mouth. Lastly we went to Arnaud's which is also a very beautiful and nice restaurant. I was able to try turtle soup, as well as shrimp covered in remoulade sauce. Neither of these dishes was I a fan of, but I am so glad I had the ability to try all of these new things, as well as see what I do and don't like, so I know what to order in the future. Lastly, I ended my night walking along Frenchman street, which is lined with clubs and bars filled with local musicians playing their music. It was a nice end to a busy day hearing all kinds of music and being able to dance around and have fun with my classmates. I cannot wait for tomorrow!

Pictured below in red is the parts of New Orleans that was flooded after Hurricane Katrina. The blue dots indicate where the levees failed, and the green dots show where generators failed.

Welcome to Nawlins!

Outer Journey

When we arrived in New Orleans, we were introduced to the city. We saw the French Quarter, along with Jackson Square, and even walked around to see different restaurants and shops that are contained within the French Quarter. When it was time for our dinner reservations, our group of 21 people filed down the narrow and crowded sidewalks until we finally made it to the Original Pierre Maspero's. It was an older rustic looking building. They had dark green french doors that lined all open outside wall space, accompanied by brick walls from floor to ceiling. It was a beautiful place to be in. We were sat towards the back near the kitchen where we could see cooks, kitchen help, waiters, and all other stuff dancing around to the jazz music that was played over the speakers. Waiters rushed back and forth from table to table and back to the kitchen, hurriedly trying to take everyones orders and give them food and drinks before the food got cold and the drinks ran out. I ordered the crescent city sample, consisting of jambalaya, gumbo, and crawfish étouffée. When the steaming plate came out minutes after I ordered, I was overwhelmed with smells and colors that made my mouth water looking at it. The food smelled of all different spices and peppers, yet tasted creamy and absolutely delicious.  The jambalaya was my favorite, filled with white rice, gravy, and pork sausage. Following that was the crawfish étouffée. Creamy and spicy all at once, the vibrant orange color complimented the delicate plating of white rice in the middle of the small bowl. Lastly I had the gumbo, while delicious and spicy, it made me drink my water after every bite. I came to Pierre Maspero's hungry and left with a full belly of new foods that I absolutely enjoyed.

Inner Journey

Later in the night we went on a haunted history tour. I was very unsure about this, just because I am not someone who is very into horror or haunted things. When we started we began in a restaurant call Tujage's. We were led into a small room and told the story about Julian Eltinge, a cross dresser, or "woman impersonator" that was an actress and regular at Tujage's. It is said that her ghost haunts Tujage's and very bad things happen when her picture is not displayed for everyone to see. About this time in the story, I felt a chill go down my spine, which was alarming to me because I was comfortable inside and all of a sudden had a chill as we were leaving the little dining room. When walking to our next stop on the tour I was trying to wrap my mind around what I just experienced and felt very uneasy about continuing the tour. I toughed it out and learned a lot about the genocides and massacres/murders that happened at Jackson Square. I also learned about a different catastrophe that happened in New Orleans that I had never heard of. There was an awful fire that actually burned down 85% of New Orleans on Good Friday. The reason was because they took the church bells out of the church to make sure the town was quiet for Good Friday, the church bells acted as alarms, but since they were taken out of the church there was no way to warn others before their hours burned down. I found this very interesting, because I had never heard about it since the major catastrophe that everyone talks about is Hurricane Katrina. Lastly, we went to a house that was based off of an American Horror Story show, from the episode Covent (I believe don't quote me on that). It was actually a very gruesome and sad story so I won't share the details. After the tour we had a long trek back to the hotel. It is very late, I had a long and exciting day, I am going to bed. Goodnight!

( Pictured below is the haunted room in Tujage's)

Oh the things you'll see and the places you'll go!

Outer Journey

When I got on the train in Champaign, everything seemed so normal to me. The trees were all the same, the houses had all the same shape and building materials, I was so used to everything that I was seeing. Sleeping on the train was not so good. I woke up frequently due to bumps and stops and just people walking by on the train. The dark blue seats that are often seen on trains we just as uncomfortable as I remember from my last train ride. While there was enough leg room that I could straighten my legs out and not hit the seat in front of me, it was hard to sleep. because I've never had to sleep on a train. When I woke up however, it was as if I was transported to a completely different world. the view outside my window reminded me something out of a horror movie, yet it was all very calming. The dark grey clouds that covered the sky gave an eerie feeling about the forest we were making our way through. While I was warm under my white fuzzy sherpa blanket, I knew if I were to go outside, I would be shivering instantly. You could almost see the breeze flowing through the trees because their branches were slowly swaying back and forth. The water the trees were standing in reminded me of hot chocolate due to the mud, a light brown almost creamy color. Climbing up the frail trees was a lime green moss. It surrounded all of the trees and started to grow up them. The trees bark had a look like it was an old forgotten penny. The little grass that there was resembled the lime green moss in color but had a felt texture look to it. It was a different feeling waking up somewhere new in an environment, but it was a feeling that I won't forget. It was a feeling of being unsure and in a brand new environment, but realizing that this new environment can be calm and peaceful, that new experiences don't have to be scary or something to fear, but rather something to look forward to and find peace in the new things. It made me feel like even in our own country there is still so much that I have yet to see, do, or simply just experience. I really enjoyed waking up to see this little forest at 6 am.

Inner Journey

Waiting in the Champaign train station I finally had time to meet and get to know my roommates. While I previously knew Hailey, because we have taken so many classes together. My roommates pictured below from left to right is Hailey, MaryBeth, Sommer, and me! We were able to talk about all the things we wanted to do while down there, such as kayaking, shopping, or just walking around to see what street performers are out and about. One thing I was most looking forward to on our travel was having to get ready for bed in a tiny train bathroom. As crazy as it sounds it was so fun and my roommates and I shared so many laughs as we all squeezed into this tiny bathroom and were being tossed back and forth while trying to brush our teeth. It was something we all got to share together and helped us in a way share a bond of a new experience for us all. Luckily my roommates and I are all very close in age, so it will make it easier for us to find things in common with each other, as well as decide what we want to do on our free day! I cannot wait until we finally get to New Orleans, because I already know that every day, I am going to have a fun new experience. Which actually relates to one of my new year's resolutions, which was to try something new every day this year. I can't wait to get to New Orleans to see all it has in store for us!

Preparing for the Po'Boys

Outer Journey
Packing has always been hard for me. I find myself overpacking and then stuck hauling around many heavy bags full of items that I won't use, or clothes that I won't wear. Another thing that makes it hard with packing is the fact that I have never been to New Orleans, and the simple fact that weather can be very unpredictable. After stalking the weather online for weeks, I have determined that the weather will be mid 50s to mid 60s, which is something I am very excited about, due to the cold and windy weather here in Illinois. I have made sure to pack lots of snacks for the long train ride, as well as downloaded movies and tv shows onto my laptop to watch and keep me occupied. Some of the things that I would like to see while we are down there is all of the street performers, as well as where the VooDoo queen was buried. Luckily for me I have many family members that have been to New Orleans before and have given me so many different tips and tricks and things that I have to see or experience before I come back. Like I said in an earlier blog post, Daisy, my kitten, will be staying with my parents while I am gone. It will be so different to be away from her so long, but I know she is in good hands.

Inner Journey
I think the trip is going to be very eye opening to me. While I have traveled to different places before, I have always heard that New Orleans is its own place, and almost gives people culture shock, due to the fact that their life and culture is so different from people in the midwest, which is something I am very used to. One thing I hope to get out of the class is to soak up as much information as possible. I feel as though this class is going to give me the opportunity to learn a lot about other people's culture and lifestyle, which is very important in my future line of work. I want to experience all of the different foods that are down there, as well as their music. I have had cajun cuisine before, so I am super excited to eat an endless amount of po'boys, because they are one of my FAVORITE foods! I am most looking forward to all of the different tours that we will be going on, such as the cuisine tour, the different museums we will be going to, and especially the cemetery tour. I think that it will be so interesting and just overall really neat to see, because it is so different from how we bury our loved ones. I can't wait to finally be down in New Orleans and begin to experience all of the new things and push myself out of my comfort zone!