Day 5- Synopsis

Hi all! Today was a very fun, relaxing day. First, early in the morning we went and got beignets at Café Du Monde. Then we broke up into small groups and toured some of the streets for the morning. One group shopped in a couple of shops and walked along the boardwalk, while the other group walked around as well. We had a quick bite to eat for lunch and headed back to the apartments where we met Koné, our tour guide for the afternoon. Koné shared lots of interesting information about New Orleans. First, he told us that around 130,000-140,000 people are still missing after Katrina, which is 1/3 of its original population. He added that around 90% truly want to come home. They have managed to get back the majority of the evacuates. Also, the cost of living has gone up 2.5 times since hurricane Katrina. He shared with us that 2/3 of medical facilities still haven't been opened since Katrina, and this area has the 2nd to worst medical health facilities in the United States. Another shocking fact is that 90% of the schools have not been opened since Katrina and 40% of young people (age 18 and under) did not have a guardian in their life after the hurricane came. Koné brought us around to the different districts in town and showed us both the devastation and rebuilding of the city. After the tour we went out to dinner at a yummy place called Sassafras and came back for some games and compline. It was an overall great day and we can't wait for our second fun day tomorrow!