Plantation Country

On our way to Lafayette, Meg and I decided to stop in Vacherie and tour the Laura, a typical Creole plantation... much different than the American plantations (think Tara) that most of us envision. Creoles thought Americans vulgar and tasteless for building such ostentatious plantation homes.

A slave cabin 'duplex' on the property at Laura. It was here that the west-African folk tales of Compair Lapin, known in English as "Br'er Rabbit," were recorded.

This is Maison Olivier, another Creole plantation, located in St. Martinsville. It is much smaller that the Laura but built in the same style and colors, which shows a mixture of Creole, Caribbean, and French influences.

Looking across the front yard towards the Bayou Teche...beautiful old cypress and live oak trees.

The visitors center at Maison Olivier explains the difference between Acadians and Creoles...terms that I thought were interchangable.

The Acadians were 17th century French colonists who settled in Nova Scotia. After the British took over the territory, the Acadians were expelled in 1755 and loaded on ships bound for the east coast of the U.S. Many made their way to Louisiana and settled there permanently. Cajuns are the descendants of those original Acadian settlers.

Creoles (meaning native) are the descendents of French and Spanish settlers who colonized the area prior to 1755. The term 'Creole' was used to differentiate those born in the New World as opposed to France or Spain. Enslaved blacks who were native-born also began to be referred to as Creole to distinguish them from new African arrivals.

On our way back to New Orleans, we stopped at the breathtaking Oak Alley Plantation. It is the most photographed plantation in Louisiana...I'm sure you can see why!! These oaks are about 300 years old. The average life expectancy of live oaks is 600 years.

This was our favorite plantation. Meg and I decided we could definitely live here...especially if we had a staff of 20 as the original owners did!

On the balcony looking down the "alley" towards the Mississippi river. Many plantation homes were built facing the Mississippi to take advantage of the cool breezes coming off the water but levees to prevent flooding have been built in recent years so that the river can no longer be seen from the homes.

From the road, Meg and I though that this was corn...ha ha...typical midwestern girls!! It's actually sugar cane, the largest cash crop from this part of the state.