Author: Kelly Massicot

Episode 132: Télé-Louisiane – Un Renouveau Français

French is perhaps one of the most beautiful languages. It is also a vital part of Louisiana’s history. Through the effort of some dedicated individuals looking to preserve our culture, we have the opportunity to hear more of the language…

Shreveport-Bossier City Launches Independence Bowl Passport

SHREVEPORT, La (press release) – The Shreveport-Bossier Convention and Tourist Bureau (SBCTB) is partnering with the Radiance Technologies Independence Bowl to create a gamified experience pass program, encouraging audiences visiting for the event to explore the Shreveport-Bossier area. Visitors and…

Episode 111: Floating with the Lt. Governor

When you need a way to promote your state that will draw lots of attention and is fun to look at, a spin-off of a Mardi Gras float might work, especially if your state is Louisiana. State tourism promotion is…

Recipe Pairs Well With Virtual Festivals Acadiens et Créoles

  LAFAYETTE, La – Festivals Acadiens et Créoles is going virtual this year, but that doesn't mean you can't add a little something special while celebrating at home. Acadian Slice sent their "Brown Butta Pecan Pie" recipe to Acadiana Profile…

2020 Carnival Calendar

While New Orleans is the most well-known place in Louisiana to celebrate Mardi Gras, Louisianians know there are lively parades and events for weeks all over the state. From Shreveport to Eunice and everywhere in between, here's your guide to…

Calendar: Gumbo Daze

World Championship Gumbo Cookoff Oct. 12-13, New Iberia With more than 20,000 eventgoers expected, the annual Gumbo Cookoff in New Iberia is clearly a popular event. In addition to the cookoff, attendees can participate in the Roux Run, cooking demonstrations…

May the Fourth Be With You

  The LTEC team is taking a hiatus Thursday and Friday to celebrate our country’s independence, but before we go, we wanted to offer advice on those potentially tying in the nation’s celebration with wedding festivities. Putting a theme to…

Calendar: Art En Blanc

NEW ORLEANS White Linen Night Each year, Hancock Whitney and the Contemporary Arts Center host an outdoor celebration of local artists in the New Orleans Arts District. Don all white while perusing the art galleries and shops along the 300…

Flying Over Gators

  Last week I wrote about great places to view alligators, but for those more adventurous here’s a spot where you can zip line over dozens of the scary reptiles. There’s so much to see and do at Gators and…

In Search of Gators

  One of the first things visitors ask me when they land in Louisiana is where to find gators — well, second to the nearest drive-through daiquiri. Then they go all freaky like when I tell them we get up…

Big Creek Trade Days

  Big Creek Trade Days may be hard to find through the backroads outside Ruston, but even if you get lost and stop several times to check your GPS – like we did – the stress is worth the final…

SOLO Fest

  Last year, Lafayette debuted a musical event that matched local songwriters with national and international professionals in a collaborative workshop. Titled South Louisiana Songwriters Festival and Workshop (SOLO), this four-day event partnered with the Buddy Holly Educational Foundation to…

French Heritage Festival at Kent House Plantation

Settled by the French in the 1700s, Natchitoches Poste became the oldest town in Louisiana. It was here that Pierre Baillio served as an officer at Fort St. Jean Baptiste, marrying Marie Catherine Poissot and raising a family. His eldest…

Stuffed Shrimp in Shreveport

I must admit, I dearly love a food festival, and after sampling Eddie Hughes’ famous stuffed shrimp recipe at the restaurant named for the former chef, I’m thrilled to discover that the Eddie E. Hughes Foundation and Budweiser will be…

Paradise Lost

Sitting in solitude, cross-legged, with the Gulf waters gently rolling onto shore, former president Theodore Roosevelt seemed at peace on the remote Louisiana barrier island. One can see why — he worked to save it, after all, and he had…

Home of the Hayride

Odds are the edifice often called Louisiana’s finest structure of the Art Deco era would never have been built had Shreveport dragged its feet. By luck, though, the three-year task of erecting the city’s Municipal Auditorium was complete (not yet…

Heavenly Match

This is that magical time of year when shrimp are in season, gardens are at their peak and farmers markets are overflowing with vegetables. It’s a given that you’ll either harvest or buy more produce than you know what to…

Comfortably Yum

Chef Kraig Dixon is a Crescent City native who grew up with a love of cooking for family and friends. Cooking as a hobby was a way to bring those close to Dixon together in celebration. “My family had restaurants…

Serious Shrimp

The first time I had the Shrimp Buster at Herby K’s I could have fallen off of my counter barstool and cracked my head on the floor. It was years ago and I was dining with my friend Chris Jay,…

Naturally Chic

Reaching for a hand towel in the Griffard residence requires sliding a dark wood panel past a golden grid of speakers on a 1950s Grundig hi-fi sound system. Above, the vinyl turntable has been supplanted by a shining, modern sink…

For the Birds

“Adventures of a Louisiana Birder, 1 Year, 2 Wings, 300 Species” by Marybeth Lima A tale of intrigue, a near-death experience, humorous mishaps and a year-long road trip. Does this sound like the most recent account from your favorite dashing…

Catch of the Day

Bonus: Louisiana seafood a local and sustainable food! But if you’re watching your weight and trying to stay heart healthy, is it something to embrace or avoid? The Good News! Local seafood is good for you! Molly Kimball, a registered…

Pelican Briefs

KEITHVILLE Expansion Underway for Refuge They react with indignation, laugh like us, wage war, they are selective at choosing friendships and their ability to remember numbers on a screen at age 5 is considerably higher than adult humans. When it’s…

Critical Conservation

In 2014, the Mississippi River Basin was designated a Critical Conservation Area by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The river is home to countless species of wildlife as well as a source of drinking water, recreation and industry for millions.…

‘Lake Charles,’ the Song

I am willing to accept that there are lots of things in life that I don’t know. What bothers me however, is the things that I don’t know, but everyone else seems to know. As I stood near the front…

Fashionable Philanthropy

Shreveport native and fashion designer Latasha Henderson says she grew up “less fortunate.” Her mother dressed her in hand-me-downs to save money and she says the other kids bullied her for it. By age 10 or 11, Henderson was customizing…

Peachy Keen

The Louisiana Peach Festival has been around since 1951. The surrounding area is known for its wealth of peach orchards and the event has grown exponentially since its inception. It now includes a kid’s fishing tournament, tennis tournament, rodeo, parade,…

Grotto of Our Lady of Lourdes

Stroll through the historic downtown of New Iberia and you’ll find gracious live oak trees, beautiful historic homes and the Shadows-on-the-Teche plantation, spots where James Lee Burke used in his best-selling novels and the cement Grotto of Our Lady of…

Sale on the Trail

If you love a treasure hunt, be it a garage sale, estate sale or searching through thrift and antique shops, you’ll not want to miss the 11th annual El Camino Real Sale on the Trail. This highway-long shopping extravaganza May…

Coca-Cola And Joseph A. Biedenharn

  Atlanta claims Coca-Cola but Joseph A. Biedenharn was the first bottler of the soda pop sensation and he built his home in Monroe. Visitors can tour the elegant home and gardens built in 1914, plus view the neighboring Coke…

Boating the Basin

If you’ve traveled along Interstate 10 between Baton Rouge and Lafayette, you’ll have ridden across one of the world’s longest bridges. The Atchafalaya Basin Bridge — actually a pair of parallel bridges —  stretches more than 18 miles and is…

Be A Doll

I’m not a doll fan, had a few small ones as a child but most dolls with their vacant stares or beady eyes appeared a bit freaky to me. Call me a geek, but I veered toward rock collecting and…

Magazine Street

  Magazine Street is well known for being a shopping destination, but the thoroughfare also offers a wider variety of experiences that begin near Canal Street and extend all the way to Audubon Park. From school children learning French and…

Grouper Brings the Buddy System to Dating

Online dating has become ubiquitous, but even so, I’m not completely sold on it. Online dating does make sense for people like me who are busy and want to meet people beyond their social circles, but meeting up with virtual…