Baton Rouge/New Orleans

Gail here - Steve - As we crossed the Mississippi, you'll never believe the sign we saw! I should never have doubted you! Ok, well it wasn't right on the Miss...

There is so much to share from the last two days! We are staying with a dear friend of mine, Diana, and her family in Baton Rouge. She took time off to be our tour guide. On Friday we went on a nature walk in the Bluebonnet Swamp here which is a beautiful example of a cypress forest. After a cajun lunch we toured a French Creole plantation house which is the oldest wooden house in Baton Rouge. We visited Mike the tiger, the LSU mascot, on our way home. He lives in a brand new $2.5 million enclosure on campus. Sorry Oscar.

Yesterday was a blast. We took Pablo's advice! We started the day with a swamp tour run by these two guys who liquidated all their assets to buy a 1,300 acre cypress-tupelo swamp to save it from being drained, harvested for timber, and turned into a landfill. They run a gator rescue program and play it up big for the tourists.

They have a very strong conservation message, and of course, deliver it with a very witty repetoire. We saw lots of white ibis, egrets, herons, and a bald eagle. In their show they use a nutria (large aquatic rodent with very soft fur), baby and teenage alligators, an oppossum, and a big rat snake. Because Diana knew these guys, we got a special tour at the end to meet Bobbette - one of their rescue bobcats. I think Carolyn still has all her fingers...

Then off to New Orleans! We decided to just visit the French Quarter since it was mid-afternoon already. Also, we'll be driving through the devastated Mississippi coast today. Getting there is the epitomy of Louisiana - miles and miles of highway built on bridges over swamps. We walked a big circuit of blocks looking at hotels, shops of every variety, bars, clubs, and historic buildings. There was fantastic music of a dozen varieties pouring out of the bars, street performers, and amazing architecture. For a Saturday night, it was remarkably uncrowded. Diana says that's still the aftermath of Katrina - locals who will never return and tourists who are still staying away. I love the signs of things you'll probably never see anywhere else, such as "Cocktails To Go!" and "Swamp Shots - Coonass Waterin' Hole." We had more cajun food (gumbo and muffellatta), and finished off with beignets and cafe au lait at Cafe du Monde. Perfect! On the way to the car, a classic Louisiana downpour trapped us under an awning for a 1/2 hour while about 3 inches of rain fell.

We're hitting the road for a two day drive to the Tampa area today. Season's greetings from the south!