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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.