Rise and shine lovelies!! We started the day waking up from
LaGrange College with Ms. Vickie yelling “GOOOOOD MORNING”at 5:45 AM. We all
just looked up, not realizing we had to get moving, as we were reminded we only
had 35 minutes to get on the road we all rushed to pack bags and get our seats
on the bus or the vans. Within the journey to Auburn University, we managed to
change time zones, visit a local Wal-Mart, and ask multiple people which team
they preferred (Auburn or Alabama) by saying “War Eagle or Roll Tide,”
whichever chant they repeated back to us, was the team they preferred.
Today
was an eventful day of traveling as we endured downpours, traveled over the
longest bridge in the United States (Over Lake Ponchartrain), totaling 24 miles,
and saw 3 state lines. The Lake covers 40 miles from West to East and 24 miles from South to North, with an average depth of 12-14 feet, interesting! Our main destination was New Orleans. Driving into the
city made it apparent how much Hurricane Katrina still has an impact on the
city, both downtown and on the outskirts.
Once we got to the heart of New
Orleans, we were dropped off near Café Du Monde and Jackson Square. Our first
stop was the Mississippi River where we sat on stone steps and listened to
presentations. We then proceeded to the Café where we feasted on Beignets
amongst the large crowds of people. Once
the beignets were completely gone, we toured the St. Louis Cathedral, in
Jackson Square, where the Pope paid a visit in the 80s. It was filled with beautiful painted windows
and a breath-taking organ. After our
group shuffled out of the enormous building, we split into groups and went into
different stores to buy souvenirs. We
split up and ended up all over the city of New Orleans. It was good to connect
with people in our smaller groups and strengthen certain friendships.
We then
traveled to our five star camp site for the night, also called the “Taj Mahal” at Fontainbleu
State Park in Louisiana. Counselor Rachel broke the law (don’t worry she’s
okay) because she drove in the grass to turn around in the state park….yes
driving in the grass, even if it’s an accident, is illegal!! We cracked some
jokes with the state ranger and were okay J
Counselor Heather also almost got in trouble for flying her drone on "private property" lol. What delinquents we have leading us!! Just kidding!!
We all get to sleep in our own bunk beds for probably the
first and last time. We enjoyed showers and then ate dinner. Tonight we had
chicken tacos with black beans, cheese, lettuce, and salsa. Followed by an ice
cream sandwich! It was great and our stomachs are very happy. After the long
day, we had a short meeting about upcoming days and the expected climate
changes. We were informed of the upcoming Grand Canyon hike and to always stay
hydrated, and try our best to avoid blisters. We also received our TWB
sportswear, and were very excited to wear our shirts across America! Catch up
with you soon, till then, yours truly, The Bashfuls!
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| First stop - Auburn University, just chillin' with some new bros and future bros |
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| Wow! Look at the time! And we thought we were tired when we had to wake up at six for school... |
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| R.I.P. Roll Tide - Here's Blake talking about Auburn State |
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| Click! New pics with new friends! |
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| Say Cheese! |
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| Are you a camera? Because every time I see you, I shutter and smile! |
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| About to go on the road, but first... WALMART! |
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| Go Auburn! The low prices at Walmart make it really tempting to buy some classic War Eagle merch. |
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| Move out of the way Alabama State! TWB's helping Auburn take over! |
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| I hope y'all know just how much money we've spent on snacks... |
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| Welcome to the great state of "M-I-Crooked Letter- Crooked Letter- I-Humpback-Humpback-I"! |
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| Here's London to tell your uneducated children (that didn't know where Mississippi and Louisiana were) about the great state of Mississippi! |
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| Here at TWB, we like to make sure people know we're tourists. |
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| "And right here on the left, we have horse drawn carriages. Back there is St. Louis' Cathedral. |
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| Crikey! A staff picture?! |
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| Ahhh, the sights and sounds of the Mississippi... |
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| Struggling to hear Parker over the sounds of the city, fog horns and train crossings. |
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| It's research time down by the Mississippi! Nick Andrews here! |
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| Gettin' splashed by the refreshing waters, wish we could take a dip...Riley Niven |
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| Kali's down by the river to educate us on our next delicious stop, Cafe Du Monde! |
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| There's no real reason that Andrew Jackson is on the $20 dollar bill...says Nathan Brown |
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| Addison's here to tell us more about our more saintly stop, St. Louis' Cathedral! |
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| "Come on and take a steam boat ride!" |
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| Hello from the Mississippi River! |
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| Visiting Cafe DuMonde |
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| Cafe Du Monde is surprisingly little, but really open and airy. |
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| Beignets with the boys |
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| Kathryn's really rocking the family shirt out here. |
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| Why is Imara always confused? |
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| Son! Take my hand! (Look! Imara's not confused anymore!) |
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| Grant's a little too sneaky with the beignet blowing... (Jackson be like - ain't nobody touchin' my beignet) |
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| Grant - "It was an accident!" |
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| Wow |
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| Taaaaaastyyyyy! |
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| This photo was taken five minutes before the Powdered Sugar Fiasco. |
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| This was not said fiasco, but man. We love Grant. |
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| BOURBON STREET |
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| Three bowls of gumbo for the ladies, three bowls for Jake. He finished in under ten minutes... We now call him Gumbo. |
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| Welcome to Fontainbleau State Park! A.K.A. the Taj Mahal |
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| Wow! Look at that moss! |
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| Taj Mahal! Taj Mahal! Taj Mahal! |
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| These duffels are waaaaay too overpacked and heavy... We're gonna look like superheroes when we get back. |
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| TACO TUESDAY! |
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| It's cooking time! Thanks to the Happys for feeding us! |
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| And here we see a few of the Sleepys cleaning the vans! |
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| Watch out for the alligators... They're faster than they look. |
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| Bunk buddies! |
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| Dinner time! Dinner time! Dinner time! |
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| Jenna's gotta have her taco. |
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| Nothing to see here... |
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| VICKIE! |
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| It's day two and learning people's names is haaaard! |
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| Gal pals! (and Jackson and Josh) |
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| Nothing but smiles from your kids on TWB! |
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| It's chowin' time. |
Next stop, San Antonio!!
Thanks for reading :)
