Bama

Yet another state added to our list.  This makes 30 for Raggie and I think 39 for me.  Not sure about himself.


We have been hanging out at the Gulf State Park in Gulf Shores, AL, (not Gulfport, MS).  We made a stop on the way in in Mobile to see the USS Alabama and also the submarine USS Drum.  Raggie and I had some reading to do but himself thoroughly enjoyed the stop, particularly the submarine which was the best naval vessel display he had seen, well maintained and full of helpful self-guided information.

The park is the best laid out and maintained park I have ever been in.  It is largely populated this time of year by snowbirds, who are able to rent spots by the month, and they do.  There is tennis, golf, a pool and of course miles of white sand beach.  One restriction on long term visitors is that they can't have waterfront spots, so we scored.  There is no need for shades on the front and side that look out at a bay and then on to the gulf.

The town is somewhat touristy but doesn't have the endless casinos and the high rise structures are not as prevalent.  It does have the shops that we have seen in such places as South Padre Island, Gulfport and Biloxi.  I may have to go in one to find a really schlocky magnet.

Carnival Triumph

We were thinking of a cruise but found our "dream boat" in for repairs.  Per a local, they have already cut a hole in the boat to remove the engine.

We are surprised by the number of thunderstorms we have experienced so far on the gulf.  Rockport, Galveston, Grand Isle and now Gulf Shores.  It is lovely this morning but we had a day and a half of thunderstorms with US Weather Bureau flash flood warnings.  And we thought we would get out of Seattle weather!!!  Yesterday was so wet and rainy that we canceled touring and I got my taxes done-almost.  I still have to pick up the documents from our mail service in Florida but with the internet I got most all the info I need.  It was nice to look out at the water during such a boring task.

Raggie helping with taxes

Fried clams and a shrimp mixture over rice

The seafood selection is good and we will venture out some more now that the rain has stopped.  I am going to report on "fried cheesecake."

Mississippi

I am glad I learned that little rhyme for spelling this state but from here on out it will be MS.  We crossed over from LA, after a night of blowing wind down in Grand Isle.  I suspect the gusts were at least 40.  I was awake all night picturing being blown off the bridge as we left the southern reaches.  Fortunately it laid down and we made our way out early.   Driving the box down the road (sorry Bella) is not fun in the wind.

The trip around New Orleans went well and we made it into MS early enough to check out the campground and get some provisions.  I must say that for all its bad wrap, Walmart is a reliable source for so many people.  I like fresh fruit for breakfast and many "local" stores have really poor produce sections.  Surprisingly Walmart has organic milk and some organic produce.  I am sure if more people wanted it and were able and willing to pay for it, they would have more.  They do also seem to carry regional items as well, frozen green chiles in NM and boudin in this part of the country.  We take good advantage of their allowing overnight parking in many Walmarts.  But here we found a nice state park near the Bay St. Louis and settled in.

Katrina really hit this area hard.  Pretty much all we heard about at the time was New Orleans, the failure of the local, state and federal officials as well as the people who valued watching their house and possessions over their life.  The big hit however was in MS.  The Bay St. Louis was at the eye of the storm and had 46' of additional water!  Just west of there, in Waveland where our park is located, there was 24' of water.  The park is nice but STILL undergoing repairs.

Beautiful white beaches in Western MS

There is a lovely road that runs right along the coast, with the pretty white sand on one side and beautiful, stately mansions on the left.  Some were either spared or repaired but in about 60-70% of cases, all that remains is grass and remnants of foundations.  There are endless For Sale signs, and we are told that bank loans require wind and flood insurance which is costly.  As you approach Gulfport and Biloxi, the casinos, condos, restaurants and tourist stores are in full view, rebuilt after the storm.  The sad loss is the historic homes and of course, the financial hit which still hurts the area.   

Only the steps are left

Beauvoir after Katrina

Silver Service from Beauvoir recovered after Katrina

Still being restored is Beauvoir, the estate of Jefferson Davis for the last 20 years of his life.  While there was considerable damage, the stately home as been restored and the "Presidential Library" will open this summer.


By many accounts, Jefferson's wife Varina was the more interesting personality.  A northerner by birth, she was outspoken and a lively conversationalist.  These characteristics did not endear her to the Southern society ladies.  After Jefferson's death, she moved to New York where
she made a living as a correspondent.  I will read her biography when I can get a copy.
After his death she left the property to be a museum with the grounds to be used for the housing civil war veterans and their widows.  Up to the 50's, about 1500 had lived there and hundreds are buried on the property.

Beauvoir Cemetery Tomb of the Unknown Soldier

Civil War Widow

Gulf Coast Oil and Shipping

I am amazed by how the oil industry dominates the coast of Louisiana.  We have traveled miles over swamps and wetlands to the inter coastal waterway and its intersecting canals as well as  the Gulf of Mexico.  The drilling rigs, supply boats and endless offshore service industries go forever.  Helicopters are used frequently to ferry people to and from the offshore rigs.

The intercoastal is pretty interesting.  A 3000 mile shipping canal, comprised of natural and manmade waterways, it facilitates marine traffic on the gulf and atlantic coasts.

Gulf Coast Inter-coastal Route

A jack-up boat used to support drilling rigs

A huge derrick barge and numerous tugs

These scenes are repeated over and over.  It seems the unemployment for skilled labor should be low in Southern Louisiana.

We arrived at the Grand Isle State park last night, after a long trip over swamp and the inter coastal.  This is truly at the end of the road, but close to Port Fourchon, which serves the offshore industry.  Grand Isle has had its share of challenges.  Hurricane Katrina devastated the island, Hurricane Isaac swamped it and the BP oil spill contaminated it.  Most of it is back in operation and it is quiet and peaceful this time of year.

 

Grand Isle after Hurricane Isaac

Grand Isle after Hurricane Katrina

Grand Isle after the BP Spill

Tomorrow will be off to Mississippi.

Swamps

Cypress Tree

We found an interesting swamp tour near the Atchafalaya basin, the largest swamp in the US.  A road across it was only completed in 1973 when an 18 mile bridge routed I-10 across the swamp.  The basin is a combination of wetlands and river delta from the Atchafalaya River.

The tour was private, even though it was Saturday, probably because it was about 50 degrees.  What we didn't know was that swamp critters don't like to be cold either, so the pickins were slim.

We did learn that the trees were either cypress or tupelo gum.  They start like on dry land but can also survive in water once established.

Tupelo Gum Tree

Aside from a few birds, we only saw one gator and several snapping turtles sunning themselves.

Gator

Snapping Turtles

Cajun Food # 2

There is a tourist publication that touts the Boudin Trail in Cajun Country.  As luck would have it we had Billy's next to the campground and Don's Specialty meats two blocks away.  Having been to Billy's, off I went to try Don's.  The place was crowded and sold out of most of the fried items but steamed boudin links were available.  Sooo good.  Just pork, rice and seasonings but quite delicious.  The freezer is now stocked with regular boudin links plus we have already consumed seafood boudin, shrimp and crayfish mixed with rice and again, the ever present Cajun spices.  More tasso was stashed in the freezer as was smoked andoille sausage.





In Breaux Bridge we found a very old bakery and tried some of their special "sweet pies" and bought special po'boy rolls for meals in Bella.

Established in 1889

At a local's suggestion we tried my first crawfish boil.  Yummy but a lot more work than king crab or lobster.


We also visited the oldest working rice mill in the US.  They only mill Louisiana rice and sell primarily under the Konriko brand name.  The mill was established in 1912 and most of the equipment dates from the first quarter of the 20th century.

Menu painted on the front of the store

A lucky find occurred as we drove back from a trip to Intracoastal city, on the intercoastal waterway and primarily an offshore drilling support area.  We were going through small agricultural, Cajun towns and I looked on Trip Advisor to find something to eat.  First on the list nearby was Suire's Grocery.  We went in and what a treat it was. The original owner's daughter, Joan, handled the counter while her sister cooked.  It was purchased by the family 37 years ago, it had been a small local grocery store but Mom said " get rid of half the shelves, use the wood to make tables and open a restaurant."  Dad was the cook.  It was truly a unique, local place but supposedly someone else stumbled on it and it was mentioned

in a NY Times article.  We had  a shrimp and catfish po'boy and took turtle picante and  pecan pie for dinner in Bella.  The turtle is tonight's dinner-the pie is long gone.

I can't imagine that the rest of the gulf coast can compare with the Cajun treats but I am sure we will give it our best.

Cajun Food #1

OMG, where do I start.  Now my gear head, himself, with have a dose of foodie land.

140+ year old Dupuy's

Alligator and Shrimp PoBoys

Our first meal in Cajun Country was at Dupuy's in Abbeville.  A unimposing place, it was just a convenient stop.  Turns out that it was established in 1869 when Joseph Dupuy started harvesting and selling oysters for 5 cents a dozen and it has continued for over 140 years.  Not liking oysters, we had a shrimp and an alligator sausage PoBoy.

Billy's Boudin and Cracklins

Our RV Campground is right next to Billy's Boudins and Cracklins.  Having learned about Boudin when first meeting John and Anna, I went in to check it out.  Truly, this is a different world.  Where would you find such things on the west coast???

The tasso intrigued me, having heard of it somewhere.  Turns out one of the ladies working at Billy's went to culinary school in NY.  When the instructors learned where she was from they insisted she bring back tasso and cook a meal with it for the students.  It is apparently used in gumbos and gravies, but she uses it, diced small and sautéed with aromatic veggies, in an omelet.  I bought some but since it is small and you use just a bit, more will need to be bought and put in the freezer.

Since there will be soooo much more on food, I will separate the posts so I don't OD my readers.

Cajun Country

Rice Growing in Western Louisiana

 We finally left Texas and soon entered the Cajun Country, west of New Orleans.  The area is comprised of prairie like terrain where cattle are raised and rice is grown and well as marshes and swamps.  A huge attraction for me is the regional food, unusual cooking ingredients and techniques.  A whole blog will cover that.

Palmetto State Park

We drove to see the newest State Park, Palmetto Island, a beautiful but somewhat remote park.  I kept a close watch on Raggie after seeing the sign about gators.


It took me several hours to go through brochures with attractions and look at maps to begin to narrow what we want to see.  There is so much of interest.  I will do a special blog on food since that interests me a great deal and this is an area of great regional specialty.

Old Ships and Oil

When you travel with a gear head you see more machines that you can count.  This will be a short post as we are heading to Louisiana today.

While in Houston there have been 5 old ships.  I visited one, saw two from afar and declined to climb over two more, enjoying my audio book instead in the car with Raggie.

USS Selma-a concrete ship

One of the ships was the USS Selma, constructed in WWI of concrete as steel was in short supply.  When it was disabled in Tampico, Mexico it was towed to Galveston Bay where a trough was dredged and it has lived there since.  No one could figure out how to repair the concrete ship.

The best ship was the USS Texas, which was built prior to WWI where she served and she also served three important invasions in WWII as well, Normandy, Iwo Jima and Okinawa.  

USS Texas-The only WWI AND WWII ship left

We learned that the small brig housed 20 Japanese POW's plus one US Sailor who stole 5 packs of Fig Newtons.  Under the Geneva Convention the POW's ate food from the mess, the naughty sailor had bread and water.  There were only 4-5 very small cells for all those confined.  The sailors' regular  bunks fascinated me.  I am sure that some Federal judge would find such sleeping quarters unconstitutional if used in a prison.

Ocean Star Drilling Rig

Oil is a BIG deal in Texas.  We see endless refineries, oil barges and tanker ships in the channels and waterways of Texas.  An admittedly clever oil industry ploy but interesting attraction is the Ocean Star Drilling Rig Museum.  The museum tells you more that you can take in about how ocean drilling is done.  The Ocean Star was in service in the gulf and is a "jack up rig," one of several types of drilling rigs.  It displays the machinery (my eyes are crossed) and explains how the employees live on board.  You can even see a blow out valve-the thing that failed in the BP Gulf disaster.  

I was so taken with the work that I applied for and was awarded a job on a rig.

Galveston

The last time we were here it was just a few months after Hurricane Ike hit the island and did so much damage.    When we saw it the place was a mess, it was 100 degrees in June and the standing water provided endless breeding places for the mosquitos.  We left after one night and headed for the lovely Hill Country.

Since then most structures have been repaired or town down though if you look there are still boarded up buildings.  My clever plan to avoid the New Orleans Mardi Gras was somewhat foiled when I discovered that Galveston also celebrates Mardi Gras.

Even Modest Shotgun Houses are decked out 

Galveston Mardi Gras Revelry

The history of Texas and Galveston is pretty fascinating.  In the early 1800's there was an influx of scoundrels, opportunists and people escaping debts that headed out to Texas, then part of Mexico.  A common notice posted on vacated premises  in the US was GTT-gone to Texas.  Land was available for 12 1/2 cents per acre, 10% of what it would be in the  US.  For some time the new immigrants assimilated but in the 1830's Mexico restricted immigration to Mexicans and Europeans, required people to practice Catholicism, imposed stringent duties on commerce and prohibited Texans from forming a militia.  In 1836 Texas declared independence and elected David Burnet as the first president of the Republic of Texas.

"Except for a decisive battle on the banks of the San Jacinto River, Galveston might have gone down as the second Alamo and Texas might be part of Mexico."

I really liked the mental picture of Santa Anna at the battle of San Jacinto:

            "On the afternoon of the 18 minute decisive battle of San Jacinto, Santa Anna was relaxing in his 3-room tent,     smoking opium and -legend has it-dallying with a mulatto servant girls who would henceforth be known as the 'Yellow Rose of Texas".

Here it is

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IyZpOAyGq1Q

For a long time Galveston was very important economically.  It was the biggest port west of New Orleans and a few families controlled the island.  To this day people are identifieds as BOI (born on the island) or not.  I think Vashon should adopt the term BOI and there are many to this day despite the  influx of us Californians.  The Civil War had little effect and the island continued to prosper, in part due to successful blockade running. The Houston area dredged a ship channel and that changed the balance.  While there is still a port in Galveston, Houston and the surrounding area have become the powerhouse.  Twenty-five % of petroleum products leave the US via Houston.

Walking around the historic district is a treat.  The architecturally interesting structures are endless as are the historical plaques.  One of my favorite areas is the former red light district, now cute shops and restaurants.

The 1900 Hurricane Isaac leveled Galveston, and caused an estimated 6,000 deaths or about 15% of the population.  The city hired a panel of engineers who proposed the 17 foot sea wall facing the gulf and raising the island by 8'.  This was approved and it took a few years during which 2000 structures were raised.  Material was dredged to add height and the residents put up with mud, construction and detours.  We were told that the 2008 Hurricane Ike had many of the same characteristics as did Isaac but only 35 died.  As always some declined to leave when asked, ordered and threatened.  I liked that the Mayor told them there would be no dispatch of emergency personnel to save them because they stayed behind to save their color tv!  During Ike the sea wall held but the shallow bay was swamped by storm surge and the waste covered the island from the bayside.

The building below is in the historic district and the line on the brick shows where the water level was after Hurrican Ike.