Casinos right next to gas stations - Lucky Duces was within walking distance. We had walked to the gas station to get ice (they were out) and decided to check out the casino. We got about 10 feet in when they asked for ID. I didn't have mine so I had to leave. Apparently, you have to have an ID on you to be in a casino no matter how old you are!
Next day, I worked in the morning, and then we decided to go to the Tabasco Factory (based on the recommendation from the staff at the RV park). It had been raining all morning, and it was over an hour drive to get to the Tabasco Factory, but we decided we might as well try it. The other places I wanted to go to weren't open on Monday. So, off we went.
The Tabasco Factory is located on Avery Island. Tabasco sauce has been produced there by the McIlhenny family since 1868.
They had a museum that gave the history of how the Tabasco Factory came to be, and they also had a gift shop (of course!) that had all kinds of Tabasco items. They had more 'flavors' of Tabasco than I even though imaginable. They even had samples of Tabasco ice cream and Tabasco soda! Too bad I didn't get pictures of those!
It was a self guided tour through the various operations. To get to the greenhouse, which was the first stop, we had to pass this sign.
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| Mixing barrels |
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| That's a lot of bottles of Tabasco sauce! |
After we finished at the Tabasco Factory, we continued the tour at the Jungle Gardens. Jungle Gardens is a 70 acre garden of semitropical foliage and lots of wildlife along Bayou Petite Ans. It even has a centuries old Buddha statue (that I wasn't able to get a decent picture of. boo.). The Gardens were created by Edward Avery "Ned" McIlhenny around 1920.
There is a self-guided driving tour through the gardens, with stops that had signs telling about that area. It was just so peaceful and so beautiful.
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| Bird City |
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| Big spider! |
When we got back, we were hungry, and didn't really have much left to cook. Based on decent Yelp reviews, and due to the fact that it was really close to the campground, we decided to have dinner at Cajun Claws. What a disappointment!. It was not at all what we were expecting. We got fried pickles, which I love, and they were pretty good, and they gave you a lot of them. We also got the fried shrimp baskets, with onion rings. They just weren't very good. It seemed like everything just tasted like the breading. Definitely not the Cajun food I was hoping for.
On Tuesday morning we went to the Acadian Cultural Center, which is part of the Jean Lafitte National Historic Park and Preserve. We watched a 35 minute film "The Cajun Way: Echoes of Acadia" that told the history of the Acadian People. It was very interesting. It also hosts a museum that we also found very informative.
Right down the street from the Cultural Center is Vermillionville. The first thing we did when we got there was go to the little restaurant and eat lunch. The Ranger at the Cultural Center had told us that it was always pretty good, and with really good prices, as well. It was called La Cuisine de Maman. It was excellent! For about $10 we got the plated lunch - blackened catfish, crawfish etouffée, corn on the cob, a biscuit, and then either a piece of chocolate cake or bread pudding for desert. It was amazingly good. That's what we had been hoping for the day before!
Here's some pictures of the various buildings and such in Vermillionville.
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| Moulton House |
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| Acadian House |
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| Boucvalt House |
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| Beau Bassin House |
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| Attakapas Chapel |
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| School room |
The same ranger at Acadian Cultural Center that said the food at Vermillionville was good had also told us about a place called Taco Sisters. So, we decided to go there for dinner. They had brisket tacos and burritos that were amazing.
Well, that's about all I can remember at this point!
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