Wednesday, 14 October 2009 Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-priority:99; mso-style-qformat:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin-top:0in; mso-para-margin-right:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:10.0pt; mso-para-margin-left:0in; line-height:115%; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:11.0pt; font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast; mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;} Fortyyears ago, to find Breaux Bridge, Louisiana, you really had to want to gothere. Yet even then, when only a twisting, two-lane highway reached this widespot in the road, people from Texas, Mississippi, as well as Louisiana made apoint of going there every evening. These two boys from Terrebonne Parish were doing what lots of Louisiana kids do on a summer day today: wetting a line in a bayouBreauxBridge and its generally soggy surroundings are home to trappers, fishermen,rice and sugar-cane farmers, oilfield workers, and families who raise crawfish,a tasty freshwater crustacean. This isCajun Country, named for French-speaking Acadian people who were driven out ofeastern Canada by the British governor in 1755 during the French and IndianWar. This is an infrared-camera view of a Southwest Louisiana swamp, which is every bit a spooky in color!Thousandsof Acadian exiles migrated all the way to swampy south Louisiana, where theycould hunt and fish in peace.
But eversince a high-speed, coast-to-coast interstate highway was completed across theAtatchafalaya Basin in the late 1970s, whole busfuls of tourists have come totiny Breaux Bridge as well. They tourthe swamps, get a close-up look at alligators, and learn about Acadian culture. They want to hear Cajun music, eat crawfishand 'gator stew, and try dancing in the happy-go-lucky fashion of the Acadianpeople.Folks of all ages have a good time dancing to Cajun guitars, accordions, and fiddles at Mulate's in tiny Breau Bridge, LouisianaAnd theyoften head to an old Cajun roadhouse called Mulate's, whose specialty isAcadian-French joie de vivre. That means joy of life, as one Louisiana native told us. You work hard. You play hard and enjoy life. Otherwise, what's the point?Sometimes,the most fun comes from simply watching an old man or woman twirl about thefloor with a young grandchild in a dance called the Cajun jig, and have a goodtime. Joie de vivre!Read more of Ted's personal reflections and stories from the road on his blog, Ted Landphair's America. |
Wednesday, 14 October 2009
VOA News
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