Take me to the River

We were able to actually see our "resort" this morning. It was aptly named Cajun Country. How true! Gary and Taryn noticed a field full of some beautiful low growing flowers and went to investigate. It wasn't long before they noticed the flowers moving and their feet sinking. These flowers were actually floating in a pond of water. What a surprise that was. Directly across the road from our "resort" were fields of sugar cane - the "white gold" of the South.

We traveled "The River Road to New Orleans" because "Everything in Louisiana is just around the bend". Well, that's what our travel brochure "Take me to the River" said. You can check it out at http://www.takemetotheriver.com/ . The river does wind gracefully around and it is a most pleasant drive to wander and discover as you go. We were on our way to see some plantation homes. In '92 we toured two - the Nottoway and Oak Alley. I had really enjoyed the Nottoway tour and wanted Taryn to enjoy that. Since we only had time for one tour we headed there.

Nottoway was completed in 1859 for Mr. & Mrs. John Randolph and their eleven children. It took 10 years to plan and build. Mr. Randolph acquired thousands of acres of land making his fortune in sugar cane and his plantation home boasts 53,000 square feet of grandeur and Southern hospitality. The tour was enjoyable, but we had a young lady lead the tour who was obviously new to her job and didn't add the detail of our previous tour. A more "mature" woman led the next tour and we tagged along for a portion of hers which was far more interesting.

Our next stop was The Cabin, a restaurant set in one of ten original slave dwellings of the Monroe Plantation. The structure is over 180 years old and its original cypress roof is still visible from the inside. There are also areas of the cabin with ancient newspaper still fixed to the walls as insulation. It is an amazing place to see...and an amazing place to eat. We enjoyed real Southern fare - gumbo, jambalaya, black-eyed peas, red beans and rice, sausage, po-boys and a piece of buttermilk pie to share.

We did a quick stop at the lovely Houmas House Plantation and all agreed we should have toured that instead. That is now on the "must do" list for our next U.S. Tour.

Gary suggested we still drive into New Orleans. We had decided that was something we had to cut but we went for it anyway and got there about 5 pm. He dropped Taryn and I off by Cafe Du Monde and went to park the bbow. That was quite a trick in this town. We had a delightful dinner of beignets and cafe' au lait. This has been a spectacular eating day! Took some time to walk the area and then back to the bbow.

Driving out we were able to see the Katrina damage. There are some significant areas of destruction to see. Both homes and businesses still uninhabitable. There are still blue tarped roofs you will see as you drive around. It is hard to imagine the force of the wind and water that could do such damage and destruction. It was amazing to see.

Our big debate was how far to drive tonite. We want to get as close to Florida as possible so we can spend as much time as possible by the beach before hitting Disney World this weekend. We decided to go for it and I am writing this from somewhere near Fort Walton Beach Florida. That means we've been in four states today. Cool! ...and tomorrow we hit the beach. Way cool!!