Sinan: New Orleans, Round 2

I went to New Orleans a few weeks ago with some friends that studied abroad in France with me. This wasn't my first time going--I went in the spring of 2007 for a service trip to clean up after Katrina. Back then, I spent the vast majority the weekend there in the poorest parts of the city that had been hit the hardest by the hurricane. It was terrible seeing first hand all the damage that the hurricane had done and how bad it still was a year and a half later.

This time was a little different--we stayed at a friend's house in the city, went hiking through the swampland and marshes of a national park, and saw lots of great live music in the French Quarter.

It reminded me of Pittsburgh in some ways--people are so fiercely proud of their region, culture, and history that they could never even think about leaving, no matter what happens to their city. It's a place where families have lived for hundreds of years without ever thinking of moving. It's really a shame that terrible things keep happening in that part of the country because the people are so friendly, the culture is unique, and the city has so much charm that it almost forces you to fall in love with it.