Newspaper Page Text
PAGE12A
THE BANKS COUNTY NEWS
WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 2008
Houma,
back. Luckily, a local college now owns
the property and oversees the artwork,
known as Chauvin Sculpture Garden.
There are more than 100 concrete sculp
tures.
You can walk through the small lot
and think you have seen everything only
to see something new. Most pieces have
religious references and a huge light
house is the center piece. It’s fascinating
and makes you want to know more
about the reclusive Kenny Hill. When
asked to comment on his work, Hill told
one of the professors at the college, “It’s
about living and life and everything I’ve
learned.”
There is no fee to view the artwork. A
donation box is on the site with the funds
used for the upkeep of the property. For
more information, call 985-448-4597.
MARDI GRAS CELEBRATION
While there is so much more to Houma
than the Mardi Gras, you don’t want to
miss the celebration that takes the locals
all year to plan. The community-wide
event takes place during a two-week
period in February or March of each
year.
We toured a “float den” where the
floats are lined up and prepared for the
parade and went to one night parade
and two day parades. In the float den,
we saw how elaborate the floats are
and how much work and money go
into them. One of the floats we saw had
$32,000 worth of beads and trinkets on
it. Different social clubs sponsor the
various parades, and each club has hun
dreds of members.
Houma has 12 parades during its
annual Mardi Gras. The parades take
hours and you will get plenty of beads.
I got 300 pair of beads from the three
parades I attended. I think it’s because
we were at the end of the parade route
and they were getting rid of as many
beads as possible. They were throwing
bags of beads and beads in big clumps
instead of a strand at a time. There is no
feeling quite like being hit in the head by
a bag of beads — slightly painful but so
unexplainably exciting that you will find
yourself leaping in the air minutes later
to catch another bag.
I had more than enough beads but I
kept leaping in the air for more. It was
so much fun that you got lost in the
moment and forgot that you already had
hundreds of pairs of beads. It was a chal
lenge to fit them all into my luggage.
I’m sure I wasn’t the only one going
through security at the New Orleans
airport with beads crammed into every
available space in my luggage.
Next year’s Mardi Gras celebration
will be held Feb. 13-24. Other Mardi
Gras dates include: Feb. 16, 2010;
March 8, 2011; Feb. 21, 2012; and Feb.
12, 2013. For more information, go to
www.houmatravel.com.
MORE REASONS TO VISIT
Other reasons to visit Houma include
world-class fishing and rustic fishing
camps deep in the swamp, Cajun music
and dancing,
For a little peak into nature, go to
Wildlife Gardens owned by Betty
Provost. This wildlife refuge also has
cabins available for anyone who wants
to experience an overnight stay in the
swamp. Betty and her husband started
their refuge as a backyard paradise for
their grandchildren. It quickly grew and
is now a favorite of locals and out-of
town visitors.
We were greeted with a beautiful
white peacock. Before long, Betty took
one of the baby alligators out and told us
about it’s life. For more information, go
to www.wildlifegardens.com.
For a great overview of the history and
culture of the area, spend some time at
Bayou Terrebonne Waterlife Museum in
downtown Houma. Interactive displays,
videos, photos and other memorabilia
from the area give you a great insight
into the history of the area. For more
information, call 985-873-6545.
WILDLIFE REFUGE
Betty Provost is shown with
one of the baby alligators at
Wildlife Gardens. Betty and
her husband started their ref
uge as a backyard paradise for
their grandchildren and it has
grown into a tourist stop.
La. continued from page 11A
SUGAR PLANTATION
Southdown Plantation House, a 19 century sugar plantation,
now houses a museum. In addition to furnishings from the
period, displays of historical memorabilia from the area are
found in the historic home.
For another look at a piece of the early
history of Houma, visit Southdown
Plantation House, a 19 century sugar
plantation that now houses a museum.
Tours of the home are offered daily. For
more information, go to www.south-
downmuseum.org.
WHERE TO EAT
Restaurants not to miss in Houma
include the following:
•For plenty of fresh crawfish go
to Boudreau & Thibodeau’s Cajun
Cookin’. We entered the seafood restau
rant and newspapers were already cov
ering the table. Moments later, the staff
brought out buckets and dumped huge
piles of crawfish on the table. We also
enjoyed a low country boil with corn on
the cob, shrimp, potatoes and sausage. It
was all wonderful. For an appetizer, try
the delightful boudin balls, a traditional
Cajun favorite. Save room for dessert
because the turtle beignet is yummy. For
more information, call 985-872-4711.
•A-Bears Restaurant is very unas
suming from the outside but inside the
wooden restaurant you will find some
of the best catfish you will ever taste.
What makes it so wonderful and quite
unusual is the crab sauce covering the
fried fish filets, which is served with red
beans and rice. A-Bears also has a great
shrimp gumbo and a peanut choco
late pie that you will be talking about
days later. The family-owned business
has been located in a 1920 home for
PLENTY OF BEADS
FOR EVERYONE
Visitors to Houma
won't leave the parade
without several strands
of beads around their
neck, as well as a
bag overflowing with
beads. Be sure to take
along a bag to put the
beads and trinkets you
catch. Remember too
the advice from the
locals, "heads up.”
You don't want to look
down, you might get
hit in the head with a
few strands of beads.
Georgia Turner and
Sharon Aucoin Alford
are shown with some of
the beads they caught
at one of the day-time
parades.
45 years. For more information, call
985-872-6306.
•At Big Al’s Seafood Restaurant, be
sure and order the fried pickles and
sweet potatoe fries. For the main course,
I highly recommend the gumbo and
oyster poboys. The two Louisiana favor
ites are great at Big Al’s. For more infor
mation, call 985-876-7942.
•Stop for snacks at Cecil Lapeyrouse’s
Grocery Store, which was built in 1914.
For a local treat, try the Cajun style pick
led Quail eggs. In addition to snacks,
antiques fill ever corner of the old-fash
ioned country store. For more informa
tion, call 985-594-3054
•Bayou Delight is another spot for
some great gumbo. Their version is
prepared with oysters, shrimp and crab-
meat and is served over white rice. The
entrees include traditional favorites such
as shrimp or crawfish etouffee, alligator
sauce piquante, red beans, rice and sau
sage and catfish. For more information,
call 985-876-4879.
•Cafe’ Milano offers an elegant place
to dine with a wide selection, including
pasta dishes and steak. For more infor
mation, call 985-879-2426.
WHERE TO STAY
We made the Hampton Inn in Houma
our headquarters during our five-day
visit. A full breakfast, snacks in the after
noon, a friendly staff and central location
make it a great place to stay. It’s located
at 1728 Martin Luther King Blvd. For
more information, call 985-873-3140.
For more information on visiting
Houma, go to www.houmatravel.com
or call 1-800-688-2732.
sWAffPTStasilSm
A visit to Houma, La.,
isn't complete without a
swamptour. This; relax
ing swamp scene was
spotted during a tour
with Annie Miller's Son's
Swamp and Marsh Tours.