Shrimp Étouffée was probably my favorite meal from the trip. I had it on my first night in the city at Buffa’s
We did end up finding a Mardi Gras Indian walking the street for a brief period of time
Then some of us went on a trip to the French Market:
Then on a ghost tour:
On Sunday, a group of students was driven to St. Bernard’s Parish. There we attended the Isleños Fiesta, which celebrated the Spanish heritage to the area. The festival included music, and there was food and crafts for sale. There were various historical buildings used to tell the history of the Canary Island descendants in Louisiana. There was a variety of food at the fiesta, ranging from American, Cajun, and Spanish dishes. I had paella and an alligator sausage. The small marketplace contained items such as hats, jewelry, leather products, and decorations. After venturing around the festival, we were given a tour by Bill Hyland, who is a member of the Los Isleños Heritage and Cultural Society. He took us from one building to another, explaining each buildings importance and how it has been preserved. One of the most interesting things about the houses were that many received damage during Hurricane Katrina. The area had been flooded, and a lot of the buildings also received damage from wind and debris. One of the buildings had the roof blown off. But despite the damage that was done, the Heritage and Cultural Society was able to renovate the buildings that remained. I had a great time at this festival, and it was great to learn about the Spanish influence that the coast of Louisiana has.
Just a short walk from the Banana Courtyard is a little restaurant on the corner of Espanade Avenue and Burgandy Street called Buffa’s. Besides just the friendly employees, welcoming atmosphere, and the occasional dog or two, the restaurant has great food. On Monday I went to Buffa’s and tried their fried alligator balls for the first time. I was a little nervous when I ordered, but by the time my food arrived, I was ready to dig in. The balls of alligator meat were served in a crawfish sauce with two pieces of bread. The crispy shell of the alligator ball was misleading. You have to break through the crunchy outer layer of the alligator balls to get to the steamy center. The fried balls of meat are complimented by the addition of the crawfish sauce, which, with pieces of shrimp and crawfish, adds more of a seafood taste to the dish. Finally, the bread is great for soaking up some of the sauce left over in the bowl once the meal is over. Overall, this dish was delicious.
Buffa’s Alligator Balls
On Tuesday, we drove over an hour to Covington, Louisiana and visited the Insta-Gator Ranch and Hatchery. During our experience we were taught how to distinguish an alligator from a crocodile. Alligators are black with gold stripes; crocodiles are gold with black stripes. Also, gators are normally just defensive, while crocs are all around grumpy. Establishments like Insta-Gator are helping Liousiana’s gator population by collecting and incubating eggs and then releasing a percentage of the hatched alligators into the wild, only after they had reached a certain size—4 feet long. The process for collecting alligator eggs involves boats and airplanes. The airplane scans the marshes for alligator’s nests and drops markers near them. The people on the boats then find the markers and extract the eggs. The eggs are very delicate, and whoever is collecting them has to make sure that the eggs are turned upside down or the little alligator inside probably won’t survive. And, although they keep a majority of their alligators for meat and souvenirs, Insta-Gator Ranch releases a small percentage of alligators back into the wild, helping the alligator population thrive in the wild.
Tuesday morning was rainy and slightly chilly; it was a perfect day to visit a cemetery. When I entered the cemetery I was awed by the beauty of the graves. The graves were above ground and very intricate and sentimental. Many graves contained the bodies of multiple family members together.
When I first met everyone at the airport, I had no idea what to expect them to be like. Most of them were new to me, other that Lauriane and Steven, I didn’t know anyone on this trip. When we found out our roomies, mine was Nikki, I was really hoping she would like me, turns out we are like the same person.
As the days went by, I started making more and more connections. These people are the best people I have ever met, and I’m hoping to stay in touch with them the rest of my life.
I was with Liane, Lauriane, Steven, Nikki, Shannon, and Nick most of the time, but it wasn’t just the day trips, it was also the late night talks in the Banana’s hallway that made these people special, with Austin, Bryce, Chelsea, Mike, and Zack sitting in there with me as well. The laughs we shared at the dining table in the morning were oddly comforting because I missed them the next morning when we were back in our own homes. It makes me want to go back and be in that room with all of them again, sharing stories, and laughing with each other, and just enjoying the company.
And meeting Joe in the airport when he was on standby, just to find out he got accepted on to our plane.
“Friendship is the hardest thing in the world to explain. It’s not something you learn in school. But if you haven’t learned the meaning of friendship, you really haven’t learned anything.”
― Muhammad Ali
When we first arrived in NOLA I was very surprised by how much swamp land there was as the airplane was landing. Then when we were driving to our hotel I was amazed at all of the old, rustic buildings everywhere. I could immediately tell that NOLA was a town full of great history. For lunch/dinner we went to the Gumbo Shop, and I got a sautéed shrimp poboy. It was very delicious; I could definitely tell that we were near the ocean because the shrimp tasted so fresh. I also got homemade chips with my meal, and they were very fresh and delicious as well. It was a very fun first day in NOLA.
Sunday was probably one of my favorite days. We started out by having lunch at the French Market. I first got a banana royale smoothie, which had vanilla ice cream, chocolate, and banana in it; it was very yummy. Then I got a seafood boat from Real Creole Bar-B-Shrimp seafood dock. The seafood boat I got had fried shrimp, fried catfish, and delicious buttery bread in it. The seafood was so fresh, and the catfish was so tender it nearly melted in my mouth. After lunch we walked around and looked at all of the stuff for sale in the French Market. I also got a freshly squeezed strawberry lemonade before we left the market, and it was very sweet and refreshing. The French Market was one of my favorite places because there was so many different foods to try, and they were all so fresh! For dinner that night, we went to Acme Oyster House. We waited in line for about an hour, but it was well worth the wait because the food was very good. I got a plate of fried oysters and fried shrimp and a side of hush puppies. I had never had oysters before, but I was glad I tried them because they were delicious.
Today we went to Cafe du Monde for beignets and fresh squeezed orange juice. It was pretty great because we did not have to wait in line, and the beignets were hot, delicious, and covered in powdered sugar! Next, we went back to the French Market and got some delicious, buttery corn on the cob. We then walked around NOLA and did a little souvenir shopping. We were soon hungry again, and luckily we stumbled across Little Vic’s where we got gelato. I got teramisu and pistachio gelato, and it was the best gelato I had ever had. Finally, for dinner we went to Today’s Cajun Seafood where I got shrimp pasta. Once again, I found the shrimp to be very fresh.
Today for lunch we went to Willie Mae’s Scotch House for the most amazing fried chicken ever. I got three pieces of fried chicken with a side of macaroni and cheese and peas. This was my favorite meal out of the whole trip because the chicken was so juicy and tender, and the macaroni and cheese had great flavor, and it was extremely cheesy. After lunch we went to an alligator farm where I got to play with baby alligators; it was so much fun, and I really enjoyed learning about the alligators. Later for dinner we went to Clover Grill where I got a waffle and a side of home fries. It was very good, and I loved the fun loving atmosphere at this restaurant. Finally, we walked down Bourbon street where we got to listen to some amazing music being played by a brass instrument band on the street.