Build Day 9

It's crazy that we are already at 9! I guess building for so many days in a row in NOLA take up a lot of time. Today, we worked with Rebuilding Together Baton Rouge. We worked to paint the exterior of a woman's house that had sever asthma and couldn't do any work on her own. She had owned the house for 30 years in her family so I was glad that she was able to have someone help her get work done on it so that she and her family can continue to live there. All day, we just did the painting and it didn't take too long so we got more down time than usual. Which wasn't necessarily a bad thing for me! 

Later that night, I went to run a bunch of errands with Claire and find a really random helmet clip I needed (which is apparently REALLY hard to find) and we also went to Walgreens. Society is fun. We also had family meeting where we talk about our weeks highs and lows and then discuss random things that need to be addressed. After the meeting, the guys had a dance off that turned into a wrestling match... Which was hilarious!! We also played about and hour and a half of knock out and I almost won one f the games!! 

Every day, I'm more and more convince that I ended up with the best people ever and that I am where I'm meant to be. I don't think I could be happier... Best summer ever. 

Baton Rouge

This was my all time favorite ride so far!! Colleen was the most consistent part of my group and it was a 116 mile ride from NOLA to Baton Rouge! Longest ride of my whole life and my best one so far!! I can really tell how strong everyone is getting and how much they are improving and it is really awesome to see and I'm super proud of everyone. We started by riding about 10 miles through the city which was really hard for me because the roads were extremely rough and it was very frustrating with the cars. After that, we had about 25 miles of bike path, which was the most amazing thing ever!! We were able to ride 2 across and basically do whatever we wanted without having to worry about the cars around us. I got a lot of really good conversation in during this section and lots of girl talk! The second half was even better but a little more boring because it was a straight rode with all industrial plants along it. Like big plants that do grain and all different random things. But, this road was also pretty empty so I was able to ride next to Colleen and talk even more! I think that because I was able to talk to much, the ride went a lot more quickly and was much more enjoyable. By the time I got to second lunch, my head was pounding and I was so so tired. I fell asleep on the pavement while my Shayan filled up my Gatorade for me. Being able to eat and get some fuel made all the difference in the world and my head ache went away and I made it into the host wonderfully! Granted.. I was pretty tired! Also, on the way in, we found a fountain about a mile from the host and jumped in! It was one of the best feelings ever :) I fell asleep on the gym floor when we got in and got woken up by the sound of everyone walking out going to get food. So, I jumped up, got a quesadilla, came back and then went to sleep! 116 miles definitely wipes you out. 

NOLA pictures

NOLA

New Orleans has definitely taken me by storm and worn me out!! I'm going to try to put everything in chronological order on the blog to try and remember it right but the whole week went by so quickly and was so exciting that it's hard to put in the right order and get right!

Night One (Sunday): this night we went out to Frenchman Street and walked around getting to take in the scenes and see what was going on and what the popular spots in New Orleans was. We went over to Bourbon street later that night and sight saw in that area as well. I really liked this night because everyone stayed in a huge group and we took over the city! We were obvious when we were coming through due to the mass amount of people that were together but this was definitely one to remember. This was the first night that we didn't have to do anything in the morning and we were able to sleep in so we really got to enjoy the night and not live for the next day like I feel like I do a lot. The French Quarter was gorgeous and kind of reminded me of Charleston but with a weird mix of Paris (even though I've never been there, I'd like to think that's what it was like). There were a lot of cool restaurants on the street and we also went to an outdoor market that was down a random alleyway where there were dozens of vendors selling home crafted goods like jewelry made of guitar strings and hand paintings. The French Quarter was really beautiful and cool to see. When we went to Bourbon, that was a whole different story. There were so many lights and huge signs for all the different businesses. There was music on every street corner and in every store. There were people EVERYWHERE (which was surprising for a Sunday night)! It was like I was on sensory overload and I didn't know where to look or what to listen to. I had a lot of fun but I think that New Orleans is too much to handle and I need to have more time in order to understand the city and get a full grasp on what's going on.

Night Two (Monday): FREE DAY!! Today we were allowed to do whatever we wanted, when ever we wanted and on our own time! I slept in until 10:00! I haven't slept that late in forever it feels like and I don't know when is the next time I will be able to. If I sleep until 8, I feel like I overslept so sleeping until 10 was amazing. We started the day with a social injustice tour around the 9th Ward of New Orleans. Our leader's name was Nat Turner and he works at a farm in the 9th Ward called the OSBG (Our School at Blair Grocery) where they grow food for the community and also sell what they make to restaurants in the French Quarter because everything they make is organic. They also have goats on the property and they get the food from Whole Foods that can't be on the shelves any more and use it as either food or compost so when we were there, we helped Tuner go through the food and we got to keep a lot of really good bread and fruits! Turner did a tour about how the 9th Ward was effected by Katrina and the struggles that they had to overcome in the past 9 years and how they are able to thrive and come back from the tragedy. He showed us the several different types of levies and we went around the neighborhood learning about how there is such a restriction of resources and goods to the 9th Ward that even if they tried really really hard to overcome the poverty and poor living situations, it would be very very difficult to do. I found the whole tour very interesting and I was glad that I was able to do it! It made me realize that I don't know anything about Katrina and the real effects that it had. I didn't even realize that the flood was caused from man made errors, not the storm itself. They were talking about how there were several theories to how the levy broke and one of them astounded me; someone blew up the levy to drive out the poor black community from New Orleans. The other theories are that there was a barge that broke the levy and also that the soil under it was too weak to hold it up and it overcame the strength and it broke. I think it was a combination of the last two but I really want to learn more about it when I get the chance and research it some more. After the tour, we all went back to Camp Hope and relaxed for a little while. That night, we went back to the French Quarter and went to Cafe du Monde. It was a super cute cafe where they are famous for their beignets (which are little french doughnuts). I got an order of those and a coffee :) it was perfect. Later that night we just walked around and explored the city some more.

Night Three (Tuesday): this was our first build day! We are staying about a mile away from where we are building so just a short walk away and we made it to a cute little duplex in the 9th Ward. For the most part, and for the all of the week, we just did sanding, mudding, skimming and priming for the walls. It was a lot of hard work because we were constantly working with our hands over our heads so my shoulders were getting really tired. The site supervisors, Amy, Jack, and Amelia were so so nice and by the end of the week, they started to feel like they were part of the group. During the lunch break, it was almost guaranteed that the majority of the group was going to fall asleep in a high pile in the middle of one of the rooms in the house for a quick power nap. We were alway so tired and I'm starting to be able to fall asleep really easily whenever I stop moving for more than 10 minutes (which is why blogging is so hard!). That night, the group decided to stay in and take the night off because of how exhausted everyone was.

Night Four (Wednesday): more building just like the day before! We are starting to get crazy on the build site because of how comfortable we are becoming with the supervisors and they started messing around with us too. More priming, skimming and sanding! That night was crazy because everyone decided to do their own thing downtown and we were all spread out. I enjoyed being able to spend time with a smaller group but we went to a festival in a park in the business area downtown. It reminded me exactly of Charlotte. There was a huge stage with all different bands playing. There were food vendors everywhere selling a ton of delicious foods (I got a pull pork poboy)! Me and they group that I was with found an awesome spot under a tree and sat around in a circle just talking and enjoying each other's company. That night we just walked around some more and continued to check out all the different parts of the city and what everything is like. By now, I was starting to get a hang of the city and where I was, which made it a lot more enjoyable.

Night Five (Thursday): This was just another day of building and staying in. The staying in nights are fun because I get a chance to talk to people and learn about them some more and explore their personalities and lives a little more. We also walked to Walmart and got to see what it was like to be in a store again (exciting).

Night Six (Friday): this was our last night to explore the city and do some things that we hadn't gotten a chance to do or things that we wanted to do again. I went out to a restaurant called Jacques Imos. It was a super expensive but laid back New Orleans style food place. I got shrimp étouffée, which came with a ton of sides and then we got some chocolate covered strawberries on top of creme brûlée on the house because the owner of the restaurant heard about what we were doing and thought it was really cool! I'm glad that I got to experience a traditional New Orleans meal and see yet another part of the city! We also went to a really cool coffee shop called Rue de la Course on Oak Street, which was set up very elegantly and like no other coffee shop I've ever seen (picture to come). After a lot of food, we just ended up walking around again.

Night Seven (Saturday): the final night and build day (and the day I'm finally caught up on with my journal)! Today we didn't have to be at the site until 10 (more sleeping in)! So we got up a little later and only had to work until 2. It was a very short building day. Also, at the build site, there was a gallon challenge between Greg, Rhys and Josiah. They had to drink a gallon of 2% milk in under and hour and then not thrown up for another hour after that. Greg was the only one to finish the gallon but he threw up almost immediately. Right after Greg did, the other two did very shortly after. I thought it was hilarious but also so so gross! I got some really good footage of them starting the challenge. After building, we came back to Camp Hope and did a massive clean up of the whole place and then went to a Bike and Build alumni's friend's house for a pool party! It was the coolest house I've ever been to! They had a full tennis court and a pool in their backyard, so it was perfect for us. They had more food than I could imagine and it was a really great time. It makes me so happy to see alumni involved in the program still and want to make our journey so much more memorable by contributing to the experience. Now, we are all getting ready for tomorrow! It's our longest bike day and our earliest wake up yet.. we are getting up at 4:00 tomorrow morning and doing 116 miles to Baton Rouge! It will definitely be hard but so worth it once I do it! It was a long, exciting but relaxing stay in New Orleans. Now I'm ready to hit the road!

NOLA (the ride in)

I feel like there is so much to write when it comes to New Orleans (but mostly because of how awesome the ride into New Orleans was)! On this ride day, we did a rando-ride until the lunch stop, which just means that everyone has to pick a person that they haven't ridden with yet and do some one on one bonding! Charlie and I rode together for the friend date and had a really great time getting to know about him and what he's been through before deciding to do bike and build. Charlie is going to medical school once the summer is over! He seems very excited and like he found an awesome passion.. He's also trying to convince me to go to medical school along with the assistance of Gaurang. The ride also had a lot of awesome tail winds until the host which made me a very very happy person!

At lunch, we stopped right after a bridge that goes over the swamp. It was a pretty cool stop because we were able to check out the swamp a little but also, there was a little business right there that does swamp tours! By the time lunch was over, Gaurang, JoBeth, Connor and I had decided that we couldn't pass up the opportunity to go on the swamp tour so we stayed behind the group and became our own sweep (meaning we didn't have a support crew behind us I we get a flat tire or something). The tour was so amazing and I finally got to see an alligator! We were in big metal boats that took us around the swamp to see the tour guide feed the alligators, feed wild boar and check out some of the crazy houses right on the water. There was a lot of beautiful trees and inlets in the swamp that you wouldn't be able to see if you were just driving by so I'm definitely happy that I did the tour! By the time it was wrapping up, it started POURING and we got completely soaked before the 35 mile ride we still had to complete to get to the host in New Orleans. So, the whole way into the host, we were soaking wet and so happy to finally get here so we can take a much needed break and be able to explore the city and see what it's all about! 

We are staying at a place called Camp Hope which is an old elementary school that has been turned into a place for volunteers to stay when they are coming to help out the housing crisis in New Orleans. We do pay to stay here but we get mattresses and they cook for us for every meal so that's pretty awesome! At this point in time, we have been here for five days and I've been antsy to hit the road! But, I've been having a wonderful time! 

For dinner that night, we went to a Hare Krishna where they served us some awesome Indian food for free! Every Sunday night, the temple opens their doors to the public for a feast where anyone and everyone can go and be fed! When we got there, we sat in a worship service and listened in on how it went. There were a lot of languages that I didn't understand but they did speak San-script for part of it, which was cool because that's the language we used in my yoga class during the school year. It was definitely an interesting experience and I'm glad I was able to see another culture. 

New Orleans has been a lot of fun and is a city that I've been wanting to check off my "things to do list"! More on the city life and builds in a different entry!!

Biloxi Mississippi

I know I've been taking a long time to blog and get everyone caught up but I'm going to try to tonight and tomorrow!! We've been so busy and having so much fun that I am so tired by bed time and forget to write! The ride into Biloxi was a lot of fun! I got to ride with Kevin, Laura, and Kirstin so I was able to ride with Laura finally! This was the first day of the whole trip that we had a tail wind and the wind was working to out advantage! The wind blowing the right way makes the biggest difference in the world and makes it so much easier to keep a faster pace. During this ride, we felt really good so we didn't stop as much as we usually did and ended up beating the van to the lunch spot so we got to pick where we thought would be a good lunch stop break. After much debate, we ended up picking a spot in a gas station parking lot with a Sonic fast food restaurant across the street (which was perfect because I was craving a slushie!). When we went to Sonic for the slushies, we got talking to the owner of the store and she graciously donated lunch to the entire group for that day! I was super proud if myself because that was the first time that I was able to get something donated to the team and I think that it was the team's favorite donation so far! The second half of the ride was a lot more nerve wracking than the first because it started to storm really hard when we were only 20 miles from the host and we had to ride through the city of Biloxi (which is a way bigger city than I thought! They have a TON of casinos along the highway we rode in on). After crossing a bridge and fighting through the storm, my group (with the addition of Shane, another B&B alumni) and I were able to make it to the host and get in a nice got shower. 

That night, I took a lot of time to hang out with Jamie and help her change her bandages from her wreck a few days ago. I had a lot of fun getting to know her better and have some one on one time with a team mate that I don't typically ride with. Everyone on this team is becoming more and more awesome as the summer progresses and I know that it's only the beginning and it can only keep getting better. 

Build Day 3

We built in Mobile Alabama with Habitat for Humanity. The original house that they wanted us to work on was a painting job but because it had been raining constantly, we were unable to go there. Instead, we went out to a site that had three houses (just like the first one) and did laminent flooring which looks super similar to hardwood floors but isn't quite the same. The house I was in was able to move through the house pretty quickly! Rhys, Patrick (the site supervisor), and I worked together the majority of the time and Rhys and I were in charge of tackling the section of the house that had a lot of weird corners so we were doing a lot of intricate cuts and measurements, which I enjoyed a lot. 

After a long build day, a Bike and Build alumni, Margaret, invited some people out to down town Mobile for some chips and Queso that the restaurant donated to us! It was such an amazing time and so awesome to be able to get away from the huge group for a little while and go to a sit down restaurant for some different food! The place was ironically called the Ok Bicycle Shop even though it didn't seem to have to do anything with bikes and they sold sushi and Mexican food (my two favorites)(but pizza is a favorite too!). The majority of the night I hung out with Claire, Gaurang, Maddy, and Angela. I laughed the hardest I have in a long time with them! We all just goofed off and made complete fools of ourselves but I have a really great time! For dinner I had a steak and a shrimp taco plus A LOT of Queso, which is what I had been craving for so long! 

At dinner, we also had Bike and Build alumni Shane and Kevin visit with us! They were able to spend the night and ride with us ino Biloxi the next day so that was pretty awesome. That's definitely something I would like to do next summer when I'm back in the real world and want to feed some hungry bikers. Kevin also worked with us at the build site earlier that day which was also really awesome. 

Before we left for dinner that night, the two men that had scooped up Jamie after her accident stopped by to have some food with us and meet the group. They were so so nice and it was really amazing to meet the people that were able to lend such a helping hand to a fallen team mate. They had also bought the group a GPS for the van so that if there is an emergency again, the driver will be able to get hands free instructions to a hospital or something. The two men were so wonderful and so investing in what we are doing and how they were able to help. It was very touching and wonderful to see complete strangers care so much and want to protect a crazy group of bikers as we make our way. 

There were a lot of wake up calls in Mobile and a lot of blessings.