One of the goals of this trip, and in fact, the eastern-most
destination planned on our route, was a visit to the city of New Orleans. We
approached with trepidation, not just because Lilypad doesn’t do well in the
narrow streets of historic cities, but because “NOLA” has a reputation for
unsafe neighborhoods and downtown streets. So we were back and forth about even
going there for quite a while, but in the end we really wanted to see it. Braving
one of the steepest bridges of the trip to make our descent into the city, we
landed at a small gated campground on the public bus line.
 |
| Our bus, stuck in parade traffic |
The next morning we hopped on the bus. The forty minute ride
into downtown took about two hours, but we do think the journey is in fact the
destination, and this bus ride was very interesting. First we got stopped by a
parade and sat for forty minutes as marching bands, horse drawn carriages, cute
twirling kids in matching outfits, and a contingent of “Buffalo Soldiers” went
by. Evidently parades are so much a part of the lifestyle here that most of the
people on the bus didn’t watch it and no one had any idea what it was about. We
watched part of it and talked with the woman sitting next to us, who told us what
it was like to be in the water and then in the Super dome during Katrina. Then
we transferred to a street car, which broke down enroute and we waited a long
time for the next one. We found it interesting that when we were on the bus,
our white faces were a noticeable minority, but the group in the broken-down
street car was almost entirely white tourists.
 |
| French Quarter: note "not haunted" apartment for rent |
We walked the length of Bourbon Street which we found way
too full of inebriated people of all ages, and we were astounded by the number of
smokers. We wanted music, but downtown music in New Orleans doesn’t seem to
happen without alcohol and tobacco, or before dark, and we had been warned off
the public transportation at night. So in our two days in the city, we walked
several streets of the French Quarter, shopped the independent venders at the
French Market, ate shrimp and grits, took a bus tour, and visited a sculpture
park and two very interesting cemeteries. We also spent a few hours in the
small but powerful exhibit about Hurricane Katrina in the Presbytere, adjacent
to the cathedral on Jackson Square. The personal stories in the exhibit, as
well as from our friend on the bus, were very moving. Our campground hostess
picked us up downtown both days at 5pm, so we did not experience that famous
New Orleans night life. But we did see a bit of the city.
We headed west, up the levee river road of the Mississippi River,
marveling at the huge refineries alternating with sugar cane fields and rice
fields. We learned a lot about rice culture at the 100-year-old Konriko Rice
mill in New Iberia. In Louisiana , the rice fields also produce another
lucrative crop: crawfish, thus making both crops sustainable and organic. Also
near New Iberia we took the factory tour at the Tabasco plantation, an iconic
Louisiana product produced by the same family for over 140 years.
 |
| Pennye fixes the concertina |
Our next stop was Scott, just outside of Lafayette, where
the fun really began, all because Janna’s concertina had a few sticky keys. We made our way to the Martin Accordion factory
in the area where Junior Martin, founder of the shop and his daughter Pennye
Huval were there to welcome us. Pennye quickly pulled the concertina apart and
put things right for a charge of only $10.Then she invited us to return the
next day to hear them present Cajun music culture to a Road Scholar group. So
we happily trundled off to the beautiful municipal campground in nearby Lafayette
with its adjacent nature center and trails. When we returned the next afternoon,
we were not disappointed. Three
generations of Martins: Pennye, Papa and grandson Joel Martin gave a two-hour
talk and musical performance explaining the roots of Cajun music, and
illustrating the differences between Cajun, Zydeco, and other regional music
styles.
 |
| Oh NO, Janna wants a new instrument |
Still seeking all things Cajun we visited the Cajun Music
Hall of Fame in nearby Eunice and saw Junior Martin’s picture on the wall and
felt privileged to have had a close encounter with this significant person in
Cajun music history. Then, in search of a local eatery where Liz could hear
some fiddle, we found D.I.’s Cajun Restaurant. This “field of dreams” place is
way out on a crawfish and rice farm, in the middle of nowhere, but everyone knew
where to come. The owner generously allowed us to park overnight and gifted us some
bread pudding for dessert and a box of fresh-cooked beignets for breakfast. The
band was great and Liz got to watch the fiddler all evening and engage him in
fiddler conversations during the breaks. The accordionist was sporting a Martin
accordion and told us that Junior was his great uncle.
 |
| We left Louisiana via this All American Road |
If there is any way to sum up our Louisiana experience it is
in the hospitality shown us by just about everyone we met. Not since Nova
Scotia have we felt so welcome and embraced. Hey wait, there’s a reason for
that! Followers of our travels will remember we were very much taken with the
story of the early pacifist Acadian settlers of Nova Scotia who negotiated with
Native Americans to share the land for five generations, and then were evicted because
of the their refusal to take up arms for the British, who by then had acquired the
land in wars against the French. A significant number of those folks found
their way to French speaking Acadiana, where their descendants, now known as
Cajuns, are still graciously and generously sharing their culture with all who
come along.
No comments:
Post a Comment