Photo Friday: New Orleans
This week’s Photo Friday is in honor of one of our recently announced Meet, Plan, Go! 2011 locations – New Orleans! We are excited to have Alyson Kilday of Hop and Jaunt hosting our first event in NOLA.
Most visitors to New Orleans experience great food, exciting festivals, and incredible music. And very few can relate to the devastating effects Hurricane Katrina had on the residents. But with the interactive multimedia exhibit, “Living with Hurricanes: Katrina & Beyond" now on show, visitors have the opportunity to get a glimpse of what it was like to live through the event during and well after.
Using authentic accounts, historical contexts, immersive environments and in-depth scientific exploration, the exhibit awakens all of your senses to put you in the heart of it all.
These photos represent one of the more interpretative parts of the exhibit, “Message of Remembrances” by Mitchell Gaudet, and it had just as great an emotional impact as the “real-life” exhibits.
Message of Remembrances
Mitchell Gaudet, 2010
Cast glass, etched glass bottles, paper, wire, steel, woodIn creating this installation, Mitchell Gaudet wanted visitors to feel ‘as if one is moving up and out from being underwater.’ ‘I though about all the things floating in the water after the storm,’ he explains, ‘and all the people in need.’ The etched bottles allude to Hurricane Katrina’s death toll. The vessels protect messages, delivering them to a safe haven. Glass hands represent the countless, often unsung, individuals who rendered aid to the residents of the Gulf Coast. ‘Even during the storm and the trying times after,’ recalls Gaudet, ‘people still helped others.’
If your travels ever bring you through New Orleans you can not miss this powerful exhibit.
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Leah on Mon, 6th Jun 2011 8:12 am
I really enjoyed reading your post. I am thirty-two soon and have itchy feet that are ready to try out foreign soils.
It is a fear of leaving the security of the day to day grind of paying the bills and living a safe and non-challenging way of life that has put me on hold for some time.
I hope (as it has I) your post will inspire others to go and follow their bliss – Leah 🙂
Patricia GW on Mon, 6th Jun 2011 8:54 am
Travel and experiencing a new culture really has put it into perspective, and filled that void with purpose (and joy).
In three weeks I’ll be moving to Paris myself for one month. I have the same feeling – the incredible surreal realization that I’m going to be living there…. it’s thrilling!!
Abby on Mon, 6th Jun 2011 2:11 pm
Oh, Jenny! Escargot isn’t palatable — it’s delicious! I love your writing style; it’s so fun and energetic. Can you believe how far we’ve come? Everyone, Jenny and I were in the exact same industry and have known each other online and via work emails for years and years. But we’ve only met once, many, many years ago. And one of those jobs she was sleeping next to her BlackBerry for was one I’d just left. And now she’s 33 and living abroad, just like I was last year. Kindred spirits. Jenny, you’re a true inspiration — I can’t wait to see how your adventure unfolds!
Debbie Beardsley on Mon, 6th Jun 2011 3:22 pm
Your life in Paris sounds ideal. It is nice to read about people who follow their dreams instead of wishing they had! Enjoy the rest of your journey.
Terriaw on Tue, 7th Jun 2011 1:40 pm
Wow, fabulous and well said! I love your new outlook on like. After experiencing career burnout and feeling a little lost and purposeless lately, you have encouraged me. I look forward to seeing Paris someday!
Jenny on Tue, 7th Jun 2011 6:50 pm
merci for all the sweet comments! @abby we are soooo kindred spirits! well except when it comes to our differing feelings on escargot…;) and congrats patricia on the move! thrilling indeed!
shawna on Thu, 9th Jun 2011 1:32 am
you’ve reawakened my travel bug. must. return. to. france. (someday.) eat a croissant for me!
Weekly Travel Blog Links — LandingStanding on Mon, 13th Jun 2011 6:16 am
[…] how badly I want to go to Paris… If only we could afford living there for an extended period of time during our travels! Any […]
G. Michael Schneider on Sun, 19th Jun 2011 3:36 pm
I am a firm believer in living and working overseas, just as you described. However, many of us actually like our jobs and our homes and are simply looking to renew and refresh our lives, not change it. However, you can have the same type of cultural experience without having to reach into your own wallet and without having to quit your day job–by taking what I call a “working vacation.” My wife and I have done this 15 separate times, from Australia to Zimbabwe, Turket to Tibet, Mauritius to Mongolia. I describe how to do it in my blog otherguysdime.wordpress.com and via Twitter at @otherguysdime. Learn how to have fun without having to have burn any of your bridges behind you.