Outer Journey
One of my favorite places that I visited several times on our trip was the French market. It was a place where many cultures came together, and it showed through the food, art, jewelry, music, and goods being sold there. The French Market was an open-air market that had many booths like a flea market would have. I love to shop for unique gifts and treasures that are one of a kind and I was able to find a lot of things here. There was always a fully packed market when we went, you would have to squeeze in between the crowds to get by to the next shop or booth. They had many vendors and sold everything from plants to sunglasses. There was also a lot of knock offs of expensive brand name things there as well. They had an entire shopping section and a large food vendor section as well. In the food section you could get anything from French dessert crepes to fresh seafood. There were pigeons walking around and birds looking for crumbs and dropped food. You could feel the breeze on you since it was outside, and you could stop and sit at a café if you wanted. It was just a great atmosphere to be in and you could even stop to listen to music coming from the street artists. I found one shop in particular that we must have gone to three times. It was a rock and gemstone store called Lalosh silver where you could buy jewelry that was premade, or you could pick a stone out and they would make a unique piece for you. When you walked into the shop, they had rocks, gems, and beads all over the shelfs and displays in little bowls and dishes. I think that I would 100% return to this shop and buy their products again. I highly recommend that anyone traveling to New Orleans go to the French market and shop for their unique gifts. I will miss this part of NOLA when I leave.
Inner Journey
Where do I start? I was having such bad anxiety about coming on this trip and preparing for it. I felt that I was cramming to much in before school starts this coming week. But boy was I wrong, I had such a fabulous time and learned so much about an amazing city. I had a chance to experience a different type of culture and way of life for many. My favorite part of the class was going outside of my normal traveling style. I have never been on so many tours in my life. I think it was so beneficial to really understand the city by learning its history and experiencing this through tours. Some of the highlights of the trip for me took place on the tours and I really found myself enjoying the history. I think my favorite part of the trip all together was getting to New Orleans and just seeing the city and meeting the kind people that live there. I really enjoyed learning the city’s history but many of the locals history and stories as well. I loved seeing all of the street art and performers as well as enjoying a day to explore on our own. I learned that most of the locals had suffered great losses in their lives and somehow picked themselves back up and put their pieces back together. I realized that there were many, many good people as well as some ones that you should not have interactions with. I think this was my favorite part because it was unique to the city and we have nothing like this in Peoria. I am taking away a lot from this trip and I have learned that I need to let loose and relax more like the free spirited people of New Orleans. I am learning that when I travel, I need to branch out and go on more tours and do more sight seeing in ways I normally wouldn’t because that was the best part of the trip for me. I also learned that New Orleans is a place I love now, and I definitely want to return as there is so much left that I would like to see.
