House of No Food

7:30AM - Breakfast of cereal and milk (in solo cups) in the hotel this morning

8:00AM - Pack a granola bar for snack and meet in the lobby for our trip to the Hyatt

In the Hyatt, we gathered with 700 members from our own Northeastern Pennsylvania Synod almost all dressed in the same sage green t-shirt (we were one short and Stacey gave hers away so she wore a brightly colored tie dyed shirt.  If she didn't match, she was going to stand out!).  We were joined by the bishop of the ELCA, Bishop Hanson and our own NE PA synod bishop, Bishop Zaiser.  We began sitting in a large group and sang songs with the lead group.  Some songs we already knew and some were brand new.  A worship service followed led by Pastor Mary, Bishop Zaiser, and 3 youth, one of which was our own Scotty.  Pastor Jami, Steph, and Stacey volunteered to help distribute communion.

The Hyatt's escalator to the ballroom

Waiting to get in

2 youth, Bishop Zaiser, Kathy Schaffer, Scott, Pastor Mary

Swaying to the music with friends

Dave found a friend! Or should we say... a former choir member.

Whispering our prayers to God

Sealed by God and marked by the sign of the cross

I get down, God lifts me up!  A new favorite song... or at least one that is so catchy it always seems to be in someone's head at some point.

Following the worship service, we broke into small groups with various members of the synod.  We were supposed to try to find groups without anyone else from our congregation.  This proved to be very difficult since there are so many of us!  In our small groups we discussed the 7 Lutheran faith practices (worship, serve, encourage, pray, study, invite, and give) and worked on little activities.

The entire morning lasted 4 hours, but didn't seem quite that long.

1:00PM - A quick snack for lunch of Starbucks and ice cream because we had early reservations for dinner.

2:30PM - Return to the hotel for rest and relaxation

Two is better than one.

Pouring once again!

While some slept, watched a little TV, and had a bit of down time, others got a little mischievous in the hotel.  A few of our young boys spent the afternoon riding the elevator up and down meeting new friends and charging an entrance fee of $5.  What a wonderful afternoon!

A quick check of the weather told us the rain would be coming back again in the evening.  In preparation, PJ bought a few extra ponchos for the group.  She asked if anyone wanted one and most thought they would be fine without it... too cool for a poncho!

4:00PM - Reservations at the House of Blues

We had 4 choices off a limited menu for dinner - Cheeseburger and fries, Pulled Pork Barbecue, Shrimp Po Boy, or a Chicken Caesar Salad.  We were split among 3 tables and were some of the first people seated in the restaurant for dinner.  We ordered our meals and 1 of the 3 tables received their food.   The other tables waited... and waited... and WAITED some more.  Table 1 finished dinner while the other 2 tables continued to wait.  Their meals eventually arrived after a little prodding but to everyone's disappointment, some food was cold, some was dry, and all the french fries were sweet potato fries.  Not our favorite meal.

Ready to eat!

The only table that got their food. :(

Shuppy waits for his food... while wearing a paper hat that Olivia made for him.

Later in the evening PJ thanked everyone for being so patient during dinner and not getting overly upset or angry.
"That's may be true for everyone but you and Dave, mom!  You didn't look so patient when you went flying into the kitchen with your arms in the air yelling 'Do we know when these tables will get their food????  I don't think you had your arms in the air praying!'" - Scott


Tonight was the night we were supposed to get first dibs at seats on the floor, but due to our very long dinner we did not make it in time.  We walked out of the restaurant to find that it was POURING down rain.  Ponchos became the thing to wear.  Everyone wanted a poncho.  "My mom told me to pack a poncho and I didn't.  Now I wish I had one!" - Vicky.  PJ passed out the ponchos she had and bought a few more so everyone had one.

Happy campers, even in the rain!

6:30 - Arrive at the Superdome in the second tier

7:00 - Dome night #2

We made it in time for a few opening songs and watched an amazing night unfold complete with acrobats hanging by long cloth from the stage, dancers, singers, a man who overcame the challenge of being born without a right forearm and taught himself to play the guitar (by duct taping a pick to his arm), a radical speaker who stood up for what he believed, young girls who were missionaries in South Africa and Tanzania, and heard accounts from other youth who witnessed bullying first hand.  The night was moving, inspiring, and very much enjoyed by all.
"In the west, they have watches.  In Africa, we have time."  The young woman from Tanzania told us she was asked if it was true that in America people have to make appointments to see their neighbors.  It made us all think about our hurried and rushed lives.

The stage from our high perch

On a very quick side note:  Parents, you should be very proud of your children.  Each and every one of our youth have been extremely patient, kind, understanding, and participating fully in every activity we've gone to.  Not one person has complained or not been engaged in the gathering.  Looking around at other groups and seeing how wild and disengaged they can be, we know we are very blessed to have this particular group of youth.


You probably can't even imagine what it is like trying to leave the superdome by foot with 33,000 people.  I'm sure sporting events are crazy too, but in this case, everyone is walking the streets of New Orleans trying to get back to their hotels.  Stacey tried to capture the moment on her camera on the way out today.  Take a look.

After the dome, we moved to hotel life.  Everyone had the option of attending a dance or returning to the hotel to relax and get ready for bed (or swim like Marissa).

This ballroom was hopping!

We ended the night with our Final 15 where we briefly discussed humility and talked about our highs and lows for the day, and Krista announced she had very pruney feet.  We also decided where we would put our offering and decided to give it to the 1,000 well project which will put wells in Africa where there is no fresh water available.  Below are some of our high and low points of the day:

Highs: riding the elevators, the speakers, the dance, meeting new people, serving communion
Lows:  rain, food, women in yoga pants (what Jon??), waking up early, ponchos sticking to our legs

Good night, New Orleans!

I have to get up at WHAT time???

Omitted from yesterday's blog... At dinner, Andrew received a cocktail sauce bath.  It was just as it would happen in the movies.  The waitress was trying to juggle too many plates and a little dish of cocktail sauce slipped off the plate.  It hit the floor with such force that the sauce flew straight up into the air and came down... on Andrew's head!  Devin was quick... he dipped his napkin into the pitcher of water and helped to wash off his head.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY VICKY!

Congratulations to Larissa, Amber, and Briana for being the first three up, dressed, and ready to go this morning!


















7:45 - meet for breakfast at Fleur de Lis

8:15 - board bus for the swamp boat tour... or at least it was supposed to.  We've quickly learned that the life style here is VERY laid back.  If we were told we would be picked up at 8:15, they will probably arrive around 8:45.  Guess we didn't have to choke down that breakfast after all.  Sorry!

Once again there were not enough seats on the bus for the number of people in our group.  We split into groups of 25 and 4.  Our bus driver gave us lots of good information on the way such as how people are buried in New Orleans (it's different because of the amount of water underground.  If they dig a hole and put the casket in, it just floats right back up!) and that alligators like to eat marshmallows and chicken.

9:30 - board the swamp boat

9:45 - swamp boat departs!

We were very excited to spot our first few alligators.  They were sometimes difficult to find, but we saw many.  We also saw a turtle, a deer, a blue heron, dragon flies, and a baby gator!  The real treat came (although not for Dolores who quickly made her way to the opposite side of the boat) when Captain Jason brought out the alligator for us to take turns holding.  Oh boy!  Most of us took turns holding it (except Dolores of course.  She screamed when Scott dropped his water bottle on the ground because she thought a gator jumped on the boat).

Can you spot him??

The dragon fly is singing happy birthday to Vicky

Up close and personal

The alligator whisperer

12:00 - return to hotel and relax for one hour

1:00 - leave for the walking tour

1:30 - a walking tour of the city with historical information.  At one of the stops the sprinkler system behind us decided it was a good time to water the lawn and hit Dolores' shorts... or so she claims that's how her shorts became all wet.

Our tourguide, Patricia.  Scott thinks Dolores looks like Daphne from Scooby Doo

A street musician

Don't worry, we didn't leave and go to Disney.  This was the town square.

2:45 - souvenir shopping and a stroll down Decatur Street

3:45 - Dinner at the Louisiana Pizza Kitchen

4:45 - Refresh at the hotel

5:30 - First walk to the Superdome and boy was it HOT!!  We were all sweaty by the time we made it.  We were sure glad we did.

Champion Square just outside the dome where you can stop and grab dinner.

Here we go!

What followed was an amazing 2 and a half hours (but I bet the kids will tell you it sure didn't feel that long) of music, dancing, speakers, and entertainment at the opening of the 2012 National Youth Gathering.  Wow!  With 33,309 people in the dome, you could certainly feel the energy.

The stage

A favorite, AGAPE (who sings Rejoice which the choir performed in church)

During slow songs, everyone gets out their cell phone and turns on the light... no lighters in here!

All lit up!

The dome is filling in... this was about 1/3 of the crowd.  We were nearly in the center section.

At the conclusion of the opening ceremony, an announcement was made over the sound system.  No one was allowed to leave the dome due to a severe thunder storm.  We waited an additional 45 minutes for the storm to slow down and the lightning to stop so we could leave.  The teens entertained themselves by making friends with neighbors, chatting, and then eventually nosing other people in the dome.  Nosing - touching someone typically on their arm with your nose with the intention of going unnoticed.  They were pretty good at it!  And when they were caught, there was normally a good laugh and an introduction.
When we finally left the dome, it was still raining the lightning continued, but the severity was down.  "Besides, the lightning will hit that woman holding that huge palm in the air before it gets to us!" - Scotty.

Upon returning to the hotel, we held our Final 15 (debriefing and small discussion), sang happy birthday to Vicky and had a birthday treat (zebra cakes, oatmeal creme pies, honey buns, etc), and went right to bed.  No arguments there!

Below are some of our favorite and not so favorite things we discussed at the Final 15:

Favorites:  Andrew was slapped by a fish on the swamp tour, the Superdome activities, making it to New Orleans, just being here, making new friends

Not so Favorites:  Cocktail sauce in the hair, sore feet, sore ankles, heat, the rain, getting a wet willy from a stranger :/

Having a great time!!!!

Zea's

Tonight's dinner was brought to us by Zea's!

The plan was to walk a few blocks to the trolley stop, ride the trolley for a little over a mile, and then enjoy our dinner at 7:00 at Zea's.  But as it usually goes with good and careful planning, things did not go as we had hoped.  At 6:30 we were waiting at the trolley stop watching the buses go by and people getting on.  At 6:45 we were still waiting for the trolley.  Dave asked someone on the street about the trolley only to find that they are not working this week... down for repairs.
This is when the kids also had their first run in with one of the more interesting folks in the South.  Just ask them!

Waiting for the trolley... BEFORE we knew it was down

Okay, plan B.  We waited for the next bus to pull up which rolled in around 6:55.  And it was full!  So let the first mile long walk begin.  Obviously we didn't make our reservation time of 7:00 and we strolled in around 7:20.  As we walked in the restaurant a couple stopped Dave asking if we were with the Lutheran group that was here to help build and fix stuff.  He said yes we were and the woman said to him "Oh, bless you for coming!"  We were seated and the water began to flow, and flow, and flow, and FLOW.  The man walking through our section filling water glasses eventually gave up and left pitchers on all of our tables.  Man, is it hot down here!

Our waitress, Vanessa!

The hungry boys

 The adventurous teens ordered things like Duck Empanadas and Spinach Dip for appetizers and main entrees of Chicken and Ribs, Casablanca Chicken, Veal (oops ran out of that one), Pork roll, Salmon, Shrimp, Crab Cakes, Corn Grits, Beans and Rice, and the list goes on and on.  As the food started coming Caleb announced "Wow, no one feeds me at home.  This is like a feast!"  Lesson learned... never say "does anyone want to try my ____________" when Caleb is at your table!

Duck Empanadas for the girls

Jon's Mega Meal... watch out for Caleb!!

After stories of great danes breaking legs and laughter that nearly shook down the restaurant it was time to head home.

Instead of walking, we decided to take the bus back as it was now nearly 9:30 PM and we were tired and FULL.  The bus pulled up with all the seats full and passengers already standing.  But we were DETERMINED.  We squeezed and squeezed and somehow all made it on the bus.

Standing room only!  Shuppy's a giant!

Once back at the hotel, it was time to make our give aways for the week.  We glued THOUSANDS of pennies (just ask your kids, they will tell you) on to our cards to pass out to other youth tomorrow.  It took a loooong time, but we are ready!

Assembling give aways

Scott, get up and help us!  Someone found the complimentary bathrobes.

Pastor Jami passed out wrist bands, backpacks, and work t-shirts for Saturday and the teens were sent off to bed.  Although they didn't have to be sent too hard at 11:30 PM.  Everyone is exhausted after our first VERY long day.

Tomorrow's breakfast begins at 7:45 AM.

Good night, Hope!