Work week beings... sort of.

March 7, 2011 A.M.

Monday morning began with a Habitat for Humanity orientation. There were over two hundred students from schools around the country present, having come to Miami to build houses for their spring breaks. The other students seemed very enthusiastic, but also down-to-earth, and there was a positive vibe throughout the room. We found out that we would actually be working on several different houses, all within blocks of each other, and that we’d likely get a chance to do some roof work with shingles. We also learned about the history of Liberty City, the area in which we’re building. This rundown part of the city suffered a decline when civil rights barriers were broken, allowing African American musicians performing in Miami Beach to stay there in hotels rather than in their former haven of Liberty City. Without the influx of money from the musicians, the neighborhood deteriorated into its present state as one of the most racially divided and crime-ridden areas of Miami. Despite these obstacles, Habitat still chooses to serve Liberty City, building homes in hopes of building an effective community.







Following orientation, we jetted out to Key Largo for a day of fun in the sun. We went to a state park in the area for some water adventures. The group split up, some taking a glass bottom boat tour, while the rest went snorkeling out by the reef. I took part in the snorkeling, but before jumping into the water, I asked the snorkel instructor about the large scars we spotted on his back, his chest, and his leg. As it turns out, he had been attacked by a sun fish, and they had had to take bone from other places in his body to repair his leg. Needless to say, that was comforting before getting in the water. Nevertheless, after ten minutes of getting used to the mask and breathing through the tube, I found snorkeling really enjoyable. We managed to take photos with a couple of underwater cameras, and I was impressed by the sightings of large fish, a barracuda, and a sea turtle. After about an hour in the water, we caught some rays on our speedy ride back to the shore.


--Amber Robbin