Rip Van Winkle Gardens

There are many mansions in and around Abbeville, and we decided to visited the Joseph Jefferson Home (1870) which is fairly close in New Iberia and is surrounded by a 20 acre semi-tropical garden. It sits atop a coastal salt dome on Lake Peigneur. It was build by the American actor, Joseph Jefferson, famous in his time for playing Rip Van Winkle. The plantation was a part of a 2000 acre plot and it was used as his summer home. On his passing the land and home was purchased by an investor, John Bayles, and it was his son, Jack, that developed the marvelous gardens. We were given a personal tour of the house and viewed a movie detailing the history of the property. We learned that on November 20, 1980 the dreams of Bayless Jr. were washed away when a drilling rig pierced one of the giant caverns of the Diamond Crystal Salt Company, flooding the entire mine. This created a vortex that swallowed the lake, 65 acres of native woodland, drilling machinery, the Jack Bayless' new mansion and much of his beloved gardens. Although, the Plantation did sustain some damage it was mostly intact and much of the gardens has been thankfully restored so we can enjoy its beauty.

Lousiana means food--and Crawfish is king!

Okay most of you know that Louisiana means Crawfish, or as some of you call crawdads--or maybe crayfish or mudbugs. This is just the beginning of the Crawfish season and restaurants and boiling pots are advertising their arrival. Tonight we dined with Jim & Diane at Cajun Claws which is only open Friday & Saturday, because Crawfish is their speciality when in season. The place doesn't open until 5, but one must register in person long before that to ensure a seat. Jim got us on the list at 3:30 for reservations at 6:30--and we were in!! Wow, Frank and I shared a 5 lb platter and ate very single one of those succulent plump sweet critters. They were absolutely the BEST boiled crawfish! We were told they take the extra time to purge their crawfish before they boil them and that's what makes all the difference in the world.In Cajun country one is to "suck the heads and pinch the tails"--well, I did pinch the heads--and Frank, well he can tell you later.
Then there was a dessert, Piroette, that we were told we must have, and again this is a Cajun Delight that was so yummy that we may have to go again next week just for the dessert. Darn you Diane--another "must have" has been added to our list.

2 Tours 1 day

There is much to see in southwest Louisiana and although we've been here twice before, there is much we have not seen. Today we decided we would make another attempt to do more than we have before. First on our agenda was the Tabasco Pepper Sauce factory on Avery Island. We toured the factory which is free and learned the history of the sauce and how it is made. Edmund McIhenny cultivated the pepper crop (only the best of the capsicum peppers are used), invented the product and founded the company shortly after the civil war, and it remains in the family even today. After our tour we were rewarded with very small sample bottles of the pepper sauce and invited to partake of several more sample products in their country store. Hey, this is a good deal--pepper sauces, marinates, potato chips, chili and even ice cream. Oh yes, ice cream Jalapeno and the more to our liking Sweet and Spicy Ice Cream--we tried them all--not bad but then again not sure we'd buy any if presented with the opportunity.

Next we drove to the historic town of New Iberia. We toured America's Oldest Rice Mill, Konriko. There are many rice factories in this part of the country since rice is a major industry, along with sugar cane, but this particular factory was one in which we were directed to because of a specific item--Pecan Wild Rice. Edie & Lee Solomon prepared dinner for us in Key West and had served this particular rice which they had purchased at Konriko and we were very impressed with the taste. So we knew we must find it and "get" some of our own!! Today was that day. We also learned how rice is cultivated, harvested and sold throughout the world. One of the things we found interesting was that the rice is planted in the same fields as the crawfish are harvested, each in their own season. When rice is grown in a field it has often been previously used for crawfish, 2 for 1. Again more samples to try--all good, but we opted for a purchase of wild pecan rice.

Suire's is always a must

On our very first visit to Louisiana in 2004, we discovered the small, but hugely popular grocery store/diner, Suire's (pronounced sweers) in Kaplan, LA. It is in the middle of nowhere, way out in the country, but has the best shrimp poboys, Dianne thinks, as well as a most scrumptious seafood gumbo and more than yummy etoufee (pronounced A-2-fay) that Frank has decided is the best. Oh, did you not know that etoufee is his second best favorite next to Key Lime Pie ;)Jim Baker and Diane Fisher joined us, because they too think this is a must to visit if one is anywhere within striking distance or should I say eating distance--yep eating is the operative word.
On this particular night we met the owners, Mom and daughters, who took a liking to us. Mom gave each of us a CD with vocals by her late brother. We were all very touched by her generosity.

A day in Historical St. Martinville

We all decided to spend some time in the historic town of St. Martinville--the 3rd oldest town in Louisiana and considered the beginning of the Acadian (now Cajun) beginnings here in LA. We toured the beautiful St. Martin de Tours Catholic Church and the Evangeline Oak made famous in Longfellow's poem. These old oak trees stand majestically over all within its branches. From there we drove to the Longfellow-Evangeline State Historic Site and learned much about the early Acadian and Creole people of the area, dating from the 1815. This was the refuge of the Acadian people who had been exiled by the British from their homeland in Nova Scotia. They led very distinctively different lives. The local wealthy french Creole people lived on large plantations worked mostly by their slaves and the immigrant french speaking Acadian lived fairly separate lives, living in rustic cabins and farmed their new lands as a community.
Of course no visit or sightseeing adventure with Boomers is complete unless we break bread--and today was no different. We were directed to a favorite dinng spot, Le Petie Paris Cafe. The special of the day was Crawfish Etoufee and it was a resounding winner--but then there was the dessert--beignets (pronounced bey-Yay) served hot & with the must have requisite powered sugar, okay now we were talking Louisiana gooood!!! Our last stop was Martin Lake. It is a broad shallow lake full of Cypress and Tupelo stands which teems with aquatic life, including many species of amphibians and reptiles. Although, Lake Martin is the largest nesting area of wading birds in the United States and has been listed as one of the top 10 bird watching spots in the United States by the Audubon Society--today was not the day to see those birds, however the lake itself still provided us with a beautiful visual for the days end.

Mardi Gras may be over, but the good-times are still rolling in Abbeville, LA

We have left Abita Springs and arrived on Wednesday to our very favorite RV Park--Betty's RV in Abbeville, La. We have been here twice before and cannot tell you y'all how much we love being here--we have definitely been "caught in Betty's web". This park is in the heart of Cajun Country and a great stepping off point to discovering Arcadian history. Betty makes us feel as if we have come home to a favorite relative---she knows how to make you feel welcomed! Her park has been described as the "most fun & friendly small private RV Park in the US" and we can tell you that is only the beginning. It is unique, inexpensive and intimate--definitely not ordinary. Betty created an RV park in her backyard--so no pool, no showers and no staff-just Betty. She takes a personal interest in making sure her "guest" discover all that is Cajun--giving you her tips and suggestions on places to see, events to attend and restaurants that are "truly Cajun"!! We can only say if you haven't been here--make sure it is on your "must stay" list.

Mardi Gras is very serious business!!

Wow, Mardi Gras is not what we expected. It is a very Big Deal and every one takes it seriously!! Schools and business close for the day or week much like Christmas, it is a family celebration and it is steeped in tradition. We had always thought Mardi Gras was one day--and New Orleans was where it happened. That is just not true. Mardi Gras happens in many small towns & big cities throughout Louisiana, Mississippi & Alabama, and parades number in the hundreds. There are over 250 parades held throughout this region for weeks prior to Fat Tuesday. Families gather bringing ladders, wearing costumes & hats, cooking food and displaying fun, they rate parades by their "throws" and yell to each float as it passes. We attended several parades and caught way too many "throws", and certainly had more fun than we can describe in this blog--so enjoy the photos! We don't know the count of "throws" we caught but we can say that we are talking about over 200 beaded necklaces, many stuffed animals, small trinkets and oh my gosh too many more things to addressed here.

New Orleans' National World War II Museum

We spent the greater part of our day at the National World War II Museum, and we were more than amazed at the information we did not know. It was if history came to life and we were there. In our past we tried to listen to our teachers in history classes, we intently have watched the history channel and we have read numerous books on the subject--but yet we still did not get or perhaps did not understand what we did not know. On our two previous visits to New Orleans we had passed up this museum, but have since been encouraged to at least give it a view. So on this trip to Louisana it was a priority, and our encouragers were right--this museum, in our opinion, is a big 2 thumps up!! It somehow is able to not only give participants a view of real-time history, but a chance to understand the perspective of many soldiers through personal narratives, what their families were experiencing, as well as, the politics of the time, all within the confines of detailing a horrific war. Frank's father was a Marine who manned a tank and participated in several battles of World War II and this museum gave him a bit of of insight into his father's history-which he (his father) would or could not speak about. We felt this was a day well spent and want to encourage others to put this on their must do list!

Lambert's "Home of the Throwed Rolls"

Foley, Alabama is not far from Styx River and home to one of our very favorite restaurants, Lamberts. We discovered Lamberts “Home of the Throwed Rolls” in Ozark, Missouri on our way to Branson during our 1st year of full-timing. Friends had suggested we stop, and stop we did. My oh my what an experience, the portions are huge, the atmosphere is fun and goodness those “pass arounds” are a real favorite. These "extras and all you want" are brought to your table by servers carrying pots of fried okra, fried potatoes & onions, macaroni and tomatoes, black eyed peas, and sorghum and honey for those “throwed rolls”. Yep, the a waitperson roams the restaurant throwing rolls at who ever puts their hands up—Frank’s a good catcher. You’d better come hungry and ready for silly antics.