Where's the river?

Where is the river? Geographically, we can see that the river sits in New Orleans but I didn’t see it until about a week after I’d been here. It wasn’t hidden; it was two blocks from my home. Sitting behind levees and wharfs the river has been entertaining and transporting every second since I’ve been here. For me, going to the River-walk is hardly a serene moment in conjunction with nature. Seeing the riverbanks lined with barges, and foreign boats in line to port, only confuses my sense of geographic location. However, it is a disjunction in which I feel confronted to enjoy.
The river has an intrinsic quality that is difficult to pinpoint. Anyone who glances at the river from a distance is intrigued to find what lies at its edge. Here in New Orleans industry and infrastructure lies at the edge. Cargo ships, steamboats, and ferries constantly pacing the river. The ferry as a system of public transportation, expresses a dependency of a city on its river. In New Orleans this public service bridges the gap between New Orleans Parrish and the West Bank. Just last week my friend Jordan and I took our bikes across the river, on the ferry to Algiers Point. The town is a historic community neighboring New Orleans. Once off the Ferry we ventured into the community briefly, only to later find ourselves riding our bikes along the river’s edge, following its banks with curiosity. We were going deeper into areas where Wharfs, boat repair stations, a gas plant, marina, and levee walls were part of an endless industrial landscape. We were continuously disappointed, expecting to see something to break the mundane. Eventually riding until we reached the base of the Crescent City connection bridge, which leads traffic to the West Bank. It was here that I realized why we had biked for so long. The sound of the traffic, a hundred or so feet above you creates an experience in synchrony with the passing traffic on the river where you feel incredibly small.
So what brings me to the river’s edge here in New Orleans? When leaving the density of the French Quarter to come to the banks of the river opens my eye to the scale change that occurs along the river. The environment shifts from the overwhelming micro sensory experience of the French Quarter to the massive scale of the river. The cranes, boats, barges, structural supports of docks and the river itself demand a presence. When at the river your senses are enhanced and your scale physically felt.
In New Orleans the two conditions of the micro and macro experience only contribute to my appreciation of the city. The river introduces diversity, as a dense network of possibilities, that I’ve come to learn, isn’t exactly evident at first glance or on the surface.