Passed through easternmost Texas, which is covered with petrochemical plants, mile after mile. The Cajuns of Louisiana are fond of building structures on stilts! They do this so they can sleep unmolested by the gators and snakes that live in this area.
On Avery Island, Louisianians make a type of flavored vinegar called “Tabasco Sauce.” I thought it interesting from a geological perspective, as it is built on a salt dome, from which they mine the salt used in the manufacture of the sauce.
The marketing approaches used throughout the history of the company is fascinating…check out these examples.
Spent the night on top of the levee holding back the Mississippi River. A local old man farmer came by in a pickup to check me out and photograph my license plate. He said that was in case anything came up missing. I laughed at told him I didn’t have room for all my own stuff and certainly had no room for any of his! We conversed further, he gave his permission for me to stay the night and advised me to take care of myself, because some bad people wander these levees. I did not volunteer the info that I’m from Oakland. I was glad to have some sort of local connection, having gone to college at Louisiana Tech.
Katie and I did this same drive in either 98 or 99 on a motorcycle. Toured Tabasco, went to the church with the famous oak tree, got caught in a horrific down pour. Had a passenger foot peg replaced by an ancient man in an old factory with giant punch presses…the whole place was a relic! We finally made it to NO, stayed in a hostile next to a Laundromat run by a Nam combat vet tanker. All in all a lovely time! Memory a little vague but isn’t that State Hwy 98?
Do be careful Butler. And get yourself a Tabasco launcher.
I disagree with Chris Zook. If he launches his Tobasco, he will not have it for his cottage cheese. As for the old farmer, his stuff might have been better than your stuff. Linda
Ah, lovely Louisiana. Spent the summer of ’70 in Ponchatoula, a little town across Lake Ponchatrain from New Orleans. It was a fairly easy drive on the causeway across the lake to New Orleans so I got to experience a lot of the New Orleans vibe as well.
I love the stops you make. Thanks for reminding me of the fun, silly things out there.