There's no place like home

Mr. Bingle
Visitors look at Mr. Bingle, a New Orleans Christmas icon that survived Hurricane Katrina, at City Park's Celebration in the Oaks in the Lakeview District December 23, 2005 in New Orleans, Louisiana. Devastated by Katrina, New Orleans is coping with the holiday season in hopes of returning to normal life.
Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images

According to a new report from the U.S. Census Bureau, Louisiana lost nearly a quarter of a million of its pre-Katrina population. It's been about a year-and-a-half since the devastating storm and people are still living in temporary houses; many have not returned. At this time of year our thoughts turn to home, but for people who grew up in New Orleans, the city of their childhood is gone.

Nick Spitzer is the host of the public radio program "American Routes" and a folklorist specializing in the music and culture of the Gulf Coast. He talked to MPR's Greta Cunningham about Christmastime in New Orleans and the music that captures that Louisiana sound.

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