History and People

An interesting part of this trip was our interaction with Professor Dianne Guenin-Lelle's class in French Culture, which was also on a trip in the area. This allowed us to explore historical and cultural aspects in more detail than we normally do on these trips

In Lafayette, the historic center of Cajun culture, we visited Vermillionville to explore its living history displays of what life in the area was like over a hundred years ago. Here the group pulls a ferry across an inlet in the river.

Cajun culture today is expressed in food, music and dance. The group experienced all three in Randol's restaurant in Lafayette. Here Amy and Chie enjoy the omnipresent crawfish. The next day we say many examples of crawfish farms.

A group photo in St. Martinville on Bayou Teche. The owner of this property maintained that this is the true 'Evangeline oak", not the tree with the historic marker half a block away. Regardless, both trees, and the historic town, were well worth the visit. In this area, we also visited the Longfellow - Evangeline State historic site, with its early 19th century indigo/sugar plantation.

We ended our trip with a day in New Orleans. Here the group gathers in Jackson Square for a lecture by Professor Guenin-Lelle. People then dispersed to explore the City on their own. We were impressed that the city is a world that appears to be separate from the surrounding wetlands. The fact is, loss of wetlands means loss of the buffer that helps protect the city from the sea.