New Orleans, 3 1/2 Years Post Katrina

... is an odd, patchwork kind of place in the areas that had been flooded. Some folks have rebuilt and some have not, leading to neighborhoods dotted with abandoned homes. The end effect is incongruous. In some of these neighborhoods you see houses like this:


across the street from houses like this:


In the neighborhood where I was cruising around, about 25% of the houses looked to be abandoned. There were some businesses that seemed to have been left to rot as well, but I didn't get any shots of them.

Maybe the abandonment of these places is not a bad thing. The residents who have returned have shown an admirable tenacity and work ethic. The rebuilt houses and businesses are lovely. On the flight from Houston to New Orleans I sat next to one such fellow. His wife's family had owned Mandina's Restaurant for about 100 years and she was determined to come back and re-open it after it had been flooded. I went there to eat on Tuesday night and the place was packed. At 8PM there was still a wait for tables.

If you go, try the Catfish Meuniere. It's excellent.

The locals I worked with all had an air of determined resignation about the city - resigned to live amidst the remaining ruins from the hurricane, but determined to live a normal life. We talked Saints football and food and it was clear that their lives in New Orleans had resumed and they had recovered. They were the kind of people you would want as neighbors.

The derelict houses are intriguing to see and will no doubt continue to get media attention from people who want to tut-tut about the damage from the hurricane, but they're not the real story. To me, the real story was the ability of the residents to adapt and recover and thrive again.