Day 1

       We met at the high school this morning at 3:15 AM. Everyone was on time and ready to go - even those still half asleep. The bus ride to JFK went smooth and the wait for the plane was not bad at all. Near the end of the flight I was speaking with the flight attendant who admitted she was complaining when she saw her section was full of kids but then told me it was the most well behaved group she's had in a long time.
        When we arrived in New Orleans we got our bags and myself, Mr. Galasso, and Ms. Millan drove with our program director, Fred, to get the vans. We then picked up everyone and headed for Tulane. I must admit, we got a little lost, but nothing a smart phone couldn't fix.
         Our dorm room here at Tulane, Weatherhead Hall (http://tulane.edu/about/maps/weatherhead-hall.cfm), is unreal. It is their new sophomore honors building that has 2 wings. It's perfect because they put all the females in one wing and the males in the other. There's a great lounge with ping pong, foosball, and a flat screen tv so we can all watch the Yanks whoop up on the Mets later tonight.
        After we got settled in we went to their food court where we had lunch. Then we headed to meet the bus for the city tour which was great - everyone loved it. We started out going down St. Charles place viewing the different types of architecture that stemmed from Spanish through French rule. Then we proceeded to what makes New Orleans famous: viewing the Mississippi River walk, the French Quarter, and an 18th century cemetery. Then we headed to see the reason we came down here in the first place - the destruction that still remained from Hurricane Katrina. Our guide showed us the levee and the houses that Brad Pitt helped build following the massive storm. We were also driven by Pitt and Jolie's house, Sandra Bullock, John Goodman, and others.
        At the end of the city tour everyone was simply exhausted. We collectively decided to order pizza and hang out in the lounge in our dorms and watch the Yanks game. All in all it was a great first day. It went exactly as planned and set us up for an exciting couple days of work tomorrow. I just received a call that we will be painting, replacing damaged siding, cutting grass/ pulling weeds in a neighborhood clean up tomorrow.

This time tomorrow,
Ray Cottiers