Inner Journey
I loved traveling today and I feel like the city spoke to me in many ways. When I first went out this afternoon my roommate asked me where I would like to go first, and we decided to head to the French Market area and get something to eat before shopping. We found a cute little seafood shack to eat at and I ordered a crab cake sandwich. We sat and ate our food and people watched for a while. This was a lot of fun and we saw tons of people pass by to go shopping. In the French Market me and my friends went to several different store that sold jewelry and handmade gifts all the way to tee shirt shops. I think the biggest thing that I learned from this experience of going out on our own in a city that is unfamiliar was that I need to remember it is ok to ask for help, directions, suggestions on food or ideas of things to do. I also learned that you have to be flexible and be able to collaborate with your friends to make plans before you head out in a city that you have not spent a lot of time. Today, also taught me to be thankful for what I have as I saw a lot of people less fortunate them me. It taught me to be more flexible and to try things I never would have thought of. I think it is so important to travel and it really helps you grow as a person. The most enlightening thing I participated in was the parade of Joan of Arc it was the first parade in carnival season. It was meant to celebrate not only Joan’s birthday, life, and death but also to explain how the world worked in her time. Lastly we finished our night off at Acme oyster bar and had the most delicious charbroiled oysters with parmesan cheese and french bread.
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| Homeless peoples stuff lined up and stor |
Outer Journey
Today, I spent my time shopping, eating, and sightseeing, all over the city. However, my favorite experience by far was the Joan of Arc parade put on by the Joan of Arc krewe. It was a walking parade that tells a story and honors the unofficial patron saint Joan of Arc “The Maid of Orleans". There was so many sights to take in during the parade route when me and my friends got to Jackson Square, we saw all of the road barricades in place and picked a spot to stand. We were right in front of the Cabilido and had plenty of room since we arrived about 45 minutes early which started at 7 pm. The parade krewe started to hand out small candles that lite up and flickered like a real fire to the crowd to hold along the parade route. Next thing I knew the parade was starting and people were getting very excited around me. This was not the type of parade that you typically think of for Mardi Gras, but it was the kickoff parade and it told the very important story of Joan of Arc and how she was killed. The parade was loud, intense, and colorful and we were cold standing outside. There was so much to read, look at, and see. Most of the story being told by the parade was either being spoken by the krewe on megaphones or written on their banners they were carrying. The colorful costumes and details that went into them really stuck out to me a lot. Some of them were really funny and most of them were handmade. Many were also church related and there were the bad guys who killed joan as well as the good ones. there was a lot of screaming, hollering, and cheering going on in the crowed as well as music being played such as the drums and bagpipers. there were parts of the parade where they would hand out different things such as coins, angel pins, swords, religious memorabilia, matches and postcards with the St. Louis Cathedral on them. This was such a great experience and told a story that had a lot of meaning behind it. I think it was great to be able to experience things and explore the city without a time frame.
