In the heart of the University of Louisiana at Lafayette lies a swamp, complete with alligators, turtles, fish and blooming Louisiana irises. It’s a sight representative of South Louisiana’s swampy terrain. According to the University of Louisiana at Lafayette…
Louisiana birthed many famous native sons and daughters, but other famous people traveled through our state, leaving an indelible mark. Since we’re stuck in our homes and unable to travel our beautiful region, here’s a trivia test to jog…
When I worked for The Advocate newspaper around the turn of the 21st century, I parked in an undeveloped lot overlooking the Mississippi River in downtown Baton Rouge. Many of my colleagues would park in the non-descript gravel spaces…
You see them posted throughout South Louisiana but what exactly do those Atchafalaya National Heritage Trail signs mean? We’re here to explain, but even better to showcase the Atchafalaya Water Heritage Trail that accompanies the designation. The Atchafalaya National…
We may be banished from crowds and busy public places, but that doesn’t mean we have to give up adventure. You can escape civilization and get back to nature at the many state parks and recreation areas located throughout Louisiana.…
First came the bonuts, then the secret tour. It was going to be a fun afternoon. I was in Baton Rouge for Travel South, a convention designed to educate tour operators and travel writers like myself about the joys…
Jennings has always been the place to view alligators and pet a few. Yes, you can pick these babies up and give them some lovin’. And now, the up close and personal gator experience has climbed up a notch. The…
My career has taken me numerous places throughout the United States and always — always — I’m asked about our decadent festival known as Mardi Gras. Why do we celebrate in the middle…
Nature is resilient. Life rebounds and prospers, with or without humans. Nothing seems more evident of this than Briarwood Nature Preserve northeast of Natchitoches, once the home of acclaimed Louisiana naturalist Caroline Dormon. A tornado ripped through the 210-acre preserve…
If you’re curious about…
Mardi Gras parades have long gone to the dogs. We can’t celebrate the Carnival season without our pets! Yes, we parade anything and everything here in Louisiana. Most of the pet krewes features the canine variety but a few, such…
So many times when I’m driving through the Louisiana backroads, I catch a glimpse of bayous, lakes and rivers and vow to return to explore whatever lurks behind the trees and houses I pass. Heading from New Iberia to Lafayette…
I remember reading “The Moviegoer” by Walker Percy, in which the main character Binx Bolling in the award-winning novel remarks at how a place doesn’t exist unless it’s been in a film. Naturally, New Orleans exists, having been the setting…
Winter remains mild this year, so the birds at my window are the usual suspects — resident cardinal and wren couples, tufted titmouse, chickadees and the sparrows I can never name (they all look alike!) I’m waiting for the temperature…
In Shreveport, revelry goes double as the Krewe of Harambee celebrates Carnival along with the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. And this year, the krewe marks its 20th anniversary. Festivities happen over the Martin Luther King Weekend, Jan. 19-20,…
Louisiana is a great birding destination year-round but particularly interesting in the winter, when birds are craving a warmer climate and flock to the Bayou State. Here are a few South Louisiana hotspots birding enthusiasts will want to visit. The…
Built in three sections, the McRaven Mansion in Vicksburg has been labeled the “Time Capsule of the South.” And rightly so. The original 1797 structure remains next to the 1836 addition with an elaborate Greek Revival front, constructed in 1849.…
It’s estimated that people gain five pounds between Thanksgiving and Christmas, and if you’re feeling rather stuffed about now, consider getting outside for a hike. Don’t give me that look. Here’s a perfect way to walk off the turkey, breath…
As we head into the holidays, the events trickle down and the kids are home from school, you might wonder what there is to do to keep the little tykes busy. Across Louisiana the lights are twinkling, the right opportunity…
Looking for unusual holiday fun this season? Here are a few events happening throughout Louisiana to make your season bright. Make gingerbread Executive Pastry Chef Brett Gauthier of Red Fish Grill of New Orleans will host Gingerbread Workshops on…
Visit for the wine. Visit for the art. But most of all, visit Sunset for the chance to buy locally produced gifts and recycled antiques. The town of Sunset, about 20 minutes north of Lafayette, offers an Uncorked Art Walk…
You hear it a lot in Lafayette, that the Borden’s Ice Cream Shoppe downtown is the last free-standing parlor of its kind. The store on Johnston Street built in 1940 is the final retail store of the ice cream company…
Snow doesn’t happen often in Louisiana, but for two months this winter there will be plenty of snow in Shreveport. The entire first floor of Sci-Port Discovery Center, a 92,000-square-foot science center located in downtown Shreveport, will be transformed into…
The week’s forecast called for rain, then a dip below freezing, but Monday’s weather was warm and inviting. We decided to get outdoors and enjoy Louisiana’s autumn before winter arrived, driving south past the quaint town of Abbeville and vacant…
It’s been 30 years since “Steel Magnolias” hit the Silver Screen and I dare almost everyone reading this blog to admit to never watching the film. Or even admit to watching it only one time. It’s one of those films…
Music City is lit up any night of the year — which makes sense, considering it’s the world epicenter of country music. During the holidays, however, Nashville glows. More than four million lights will be installed at First Tennessee Park…
It’s a literary weekend in many ways, from spoken word to live theatrical performances to the annual massive Louisiana Book Festival. First up is the annual Festival of Words Nov. 1-2 in Grand Coteau, an event that brings in three…
Fall means living history in South Louisiana. In Lake Charles, local actors will dress in period costumes and portray city notables from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. Friday, Oct. 25, for the annual…
Joe Genna and Molton Brasseaux suffered under the heat of an Aug. 28, 1926, evening, longing to see their girlfriends in the southwestern Louisiana sawmill village of Tullos. They hailed a taxi out of DeRidder, driven by the affable Joe…
The veil between death and the living grows thin this month as we head toward All Hallows Eve or Halloween. And since Louisiana has some of the most interesting cemeteries in America, now’s the time to take a tour…
Forget falling temperatures. You know autumn has arrived in Louisiana when festival season kicks into gear. This past weekend I attended the 78th Sugar Cane Festival in New Iberia, an annual celebration held by the historic town that’s surrounded by…
The Georgie G. Johnson Branch of the Rapides Parish Library occupies only three rooms in the old Lecompte High School building but the memories contained there are massive. “Former students visit all the time and they say this was the…
New Orleans with its unique traditions, unusual terrain and colorful residents has long been a haven for writers. Where else can you find such fodder for stories? As Tennessee Williams once…
So many of the nation’s finest writers have called Louisiana home, and I love visiting the places where they wrote, lived and placed their characters. Take James Lee Burke, who grew up in New Iberia and sets his award-winning mystery…
This month the City of Eunice will celebrate its founding 125 years ago with the help of an adorable crawfish. The fun beings at 10 a.m. Saturday, Sept. 14, with a parade beginning at Picous Drugstore on North Second Street…
Louisiana’s capital city offers lots of free things to do, from walking the levee parks to view the country’s largest river to learning about history at not one, but two unique state capitols. Here are five to get you…
Interstate 10 can clog up around Baton Rouge at certain times of the day, so sometimes we opt to travel Highway 90 when heading to New Orleans, a more relaxing drive through the wetlands of South Louisiana. On one…
There are hundreds of Native American earthen mounds scattered throughout Louisiana and you may be surprised to learn that some are older than the Great Pyramids. Poverty Point may be the best-known archaeological site, a UNESCO World Heritage Site and…
There are hundreds of Native American earthen mounds scattered throughout Louisiana and you may be surprised to learn that some are older than the Great Pyramids. Poverty Point may be the best-known archaeological site, a UNESCO World Heritage Site and…
I travel the state constantly and for years would pass a state-run rest area between Lafayette and Alexandria that accompanied a large lake surrounded by bald cypress, tupelo trees and a small hardwood forest. It’s a lovely area despite…
On the night of Sept. 8, 1935, Dr. Carl Weiss approached former Louisiana governor and then U.S. Sen. Huey P. Long in the Louisiana State Capitol and words were exchanged. When armed guards suspected Weiss of pulling a gun on…
On the night of Sept. 8, 1935, Dr. Carl Weiss approached former Louisiana governor and then U.S. Sen. Huey P. Long in the Louisiana State Capitol and words were exchanged. When armed guards suspected Weiss of pulling a gun on…
Louisianans have been fiddling around Natchitoches for years at the annual Natchitoches-Northwestern State University Folk Festival. This year’s event, slated for July 26-27 inside Prather Coliseum on the NSU…
I was enjoying the delicious sunshine while overlooking the blue waters of the Gulf of Mexico when news of Barry surfaced. Early last week, with a sky devoid of clouds, you’d have never known a storm was brewing. It…
You must slow down when you travel through Maurice, a small town boasting of great Cajun food. For one, it’s a speed zone and you’ll get a ticket faster than you can say “Turducken.” Second, life’s less hectic here,…
The morning brought a symphony of bird calls outside our quaint cabin at Lake Fausse Pointe State Park, located on the west side of the Atchafalaya Basin levee near St. Martinville. Two beady alligator eyes watched us from the…
It sounds so easy: Hop over to the Florida Panhandle and enjoy fabulous sun, emerald Gulf waters, grab a cool beach drink and enjoy exquisite seafood. But alas, the region known as 30A — referring to the highway that runs…
Nothing screams relief on a hot summer day than water. And in Monroe and West Monroe, there are plenty of options to cool off and refresh. For those who love to be outdoors, rent a canoe or kayak from…
Before his company created Better Homes & Gardens and other memorable magazines, Edwin T. Meredith covered America’s farms. Almost exactly 100 years ago he was reporting on transportation trends, noting the rise of the automobile and the completion of the…
My first battlefield experience was Bull Run in northern Virginia, the first full skirmish of the Civil War and one that would repeat itself years later. Listening to the park ranger talk of flanks and advances while staring at…
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