In this blogger's humble opinion, this is the best time of year to go on a road trip and play tourist in and around your hometown. The price of gas is much lower than earlier summer; weather is beginning to cool off and feel like autumn; and there's nothing on the calendar for another few weeks. Destination: Lafayette, for the Festivals Acadiens, a three day celebration of all things French- food, culture, music. And some not-so-Francais moments mixed in too. The drive was long- a little over two hours- and the weather was uncooperative, as it stormed from halfway there almost to the end of our journey. The skies literally opened up and torrential rains baptized our car and the other vehicles on the road. Traffic started dragging. We were worried that this intro to the weather was a sign of what it would be like at the festival, but then resolved to remain optimistic and hope for the best. Turns out, everything worked out beautifully- when we reached Lafayette, it was absolutely beautiful weather-wise. Whew! Puffy white clouds, a clear horizon, amazing.
The Festival was free to get in, and parking was free. (Nola, take note and stop charging so much for local events!) While in downtown stopping to use the rest area, we asked for directions from a manager of a cool retro eatery called "The Filling Station". He directed us, and warned that parking was "a bear", and he was serious- we had to park several blocks away. Luckily it was a nice day for a (long) stroll, and a straight shot to the fairgrounds. Once we arrived, we were hit by the smell of festival food, the sound of good zydeco music, and throngs of people wandering around showing off their festival wear. I saw so many colorful boots, swinging skirts, cowboy hats and funky sunglasses. It was a colorful pageant just watching the other onlookers in their finery. The awesome thing about this fest is that there is literally something for everyone- the elderly can bring their chairs and camp out in comfort (albeit humid comfort!); the kids have play areas; the adults have a plethora of souvenirs, boho tents of clothing & accessories, drinks (lookout for that long line for daiquiris!) and of course, FOOD. That was our first destination. We made a beeline for the Cajun food stands, and Mom ordered a shrimp po-boy while I went for the crawfish and spinach boat- a delectable bread "bowl" filled and swimming with crawfish and spinach in a creamy sauce. A few dashes of hot sauce and "C'est si bon!!!"
We located a tent where they were prepping for a cooking demo, and sat underneath the canopy out of the blasting heat to enjoy our lunch, while watching the cook show us how to make orange marmalade. We met up with my friend Sara there and all picnicked together. The food was filling and yummy, and we caught up, watched the demo and ate while sweat trickled down our necks and soaked our hair. Ah, that good ol' Southern humidity, haha. We are almost never without it, even in mid October.
Next on the list was the music- we headed towards the stage where Rockin' Dopsie and the Zydeco Twisters were throwing out their tunes to an appreciative audience. The music was absolutely rockin' it! There were so many people ignoring the dead heat and free spiritedly dancing and partnering up to kick up their heels. There was a happy vibe in the air, really great energy from the crowds and the performers. The three of us took turns taking Nate around for a turn, and li'l man was hamming it up and giggling and shrieking for joy as we danced around to the music.
The weather surprised us one more time- while the sun was beating down, dark clouds were gathering on the horizon. While the sun was shining, small cold drops of rain started pattering down, like exclamation points in a long humid sentence. It was surreal- and yet amazingly refreshing. There was also a small mischievous breeze that caught our hair and cooled off our sweat-soaked skin. Paradise! If it had stormed, I don't think there would have been one person there to complain about it, because the heat was that dramatic. As it ended up, the small shower helped cool things off and refresh everyone, and it was an unexpected break from the blistering sun. Perfect festival weather!
As always, there was not enough time to enjoy the day and all the fun that the fest had to offer. But it was refreshing to get away from the daily routine, and enjoy familiar places that we always love to go back to, along with family friends that we never get to spend enough time with. And the ride home gave us one more pleasant surprise- a cloud angel that hovered on the horizon and gave us a sweet goodbye from our fun adventures on the road:
Here's hoping that everyone gets a chance to enjoy traveling on the road and seeing new places and enjoying new adventures!
