May 15-17 Coda

Oh, boo hoo. Louisiana in the rearview mirror. How can I possibly console myself? What in the world will bring back the smile to my face and the tap to my toe?

How about a zydeco festival -- in Daphne, AL -- halfway between Breaux Bridge and Gainesville?
What a crazy weekend -- two cats, one dog, two women (head for the hills) and ten bands.

The 2009 Gulf Coast Zydeco Music and Crawfish Festival was zydeco central for three days. After last years fabulous turn-out, I think every zydeco dancer in the country showed up for this year's event. Great line-up (Same Ol 2 Step, Brian Jack and the Zydeco Gamblers, Leon Chavis & the Zydeco Flames, Thomas "Big Hat" Fields, Curley Taylor & Zydeco Trouble, Lil Nathan & the Zydeco Big Timers, Geno Delafose & French Rockin Boogie, Tip Tops, Corey “Lil Pop” Ledet, and Terry and the Zydeco Bad Boys), bargain prices -only $10 for Fri. & $10 for Sat. nights with free music during the day on Saturday and Sunday and a slew of dancers.

A special treat for me was seeing Lisa (one of the mandolin players during my Life in Louisiana) play fiddle with Thomas Fields - not a traditional zydeco combination, but it worked!! So it ends, with a little help from my friends, I made it back home without even clicking my heels three times. There's no place like home, there's no place like home, there's no place like home.

May 13 - Last night in Lousiana

I can't believe it's over. What a grand time I have had. I would not trade this experience for all the tea in China, all the snow in Alaska or all the coal in Newcastle. Of course, there was dancing. Of course, there were friends. Of course, there were magical surprises. But the one aspect I treasured (I never tired of any of it!!!) was the family connections -- the Huvals, Berards, Broussards, Ardoins, Savoys, Guidrys, Guillorys, Balfas, Vidrines, Trahans, and many more. Generation after generation of talented, hard-working people with a love of music and a willingness to share. I could travel the world and hear them play, but for three months I got to live with them in their home state, hear them play for friends and family, renewing and refreshing their heritage, something I can never be a part of, but, longingly, cherish from afar.

This last night of happy-sad swirls with dinner at Randol's, dancing to the Lafayette Rhythm Devils and a mad rush to the airport to pick up the house owner. Having never quite adjusted to living in someone else's space, I am surprisingly possessive as Lynda returns.

I feel as if I am being pried away from my most precious possession, even though I know the memories will stay with me for the rest of my life. After three months of Life in Louisiana, I will never again feel like a stranger in a strange land. Louisiana has captured me, heart and soul. I saw a billboard once that said, "We weren't born in Louisiana, but we got here as fast as we could." That's how I feel. I wasn't born there, but I stayed as long as I could, and I'm comin' back as quick as I can!!

May 12 - State Parks

With company in tow (town - ha, ha) it's time to explore wild areas beyond the dance floor. Lake Fausse Pointe State Park and Cypremort Point State Park are on opposite sides of the state, but very worth the drive. Lake Fausse is near the tip of the Whiskey River/Atchafalaya Basin and a favorite haunt of bird watchers, alligator seekers and brave kayakers. Cypremort (dead cypress) is located on Vermilion Bay, that inset of water that brings Lafayette much closer to the gulf than you would imagine. Both parks are beautiful, quiet, non-commercialized and way out in the middle of nowhere (like a lot of my favorite places in SW Louisiana). We'd heard about Holly Beach, the Cajun Riviera, but that was too far --- almost to Texas.

May 8-9 Calm before the Storm

Now that the end of my Life in Louisiana is approaching, the visitors pile one on top of the other. Jessi left yesterday for Pensacola and Don and Karin arrive today from Gainesville. What fun we'll have exploring dance adventures in Dance Heaven.

Friday night is a FREE concert in downtown Lafayette at Parc Internationale featuring Steve Riley and the Mamou Playboys with special guest, Geno Delafose. All the people I have met in the last three months have gathered for the dancing and Karin & Don have no trouble finding partners. 'Course the "locals" (many of whom are not from Louisiana, but have been drawn here like moths to a flame) think that Don is pure Cajun and Karin is too pale to be from Florida - maybe Minnesota?

Saturday - you know the drill. Cafe des Amis for breakfast and zydeco dancing, this is my last Z-Breakfast :( then off to Fred's in Mamou to please our happy feet. Our new friend from Ville Platte is crazy to dance with us "newbies" --- he is amazed at how well we pick up the Cajun beat. Please read with a hint of sarcasm, he may be Cajun, but he's no dancer!!! I've been hearing about The Hotel Cazan, so we hitch our boots on over. But it's smoky (we are getting soooo picky in our old age) and the band doesn't hold our attention, so we don't stay long.

Saturday night is another trip to the Liberty Theater in Eunice, LA for Rendez Vous des Cajuns , one of my favorites. Our special treat is Paul Daigle and Family Gold. His "regular" band is Paul Daigle and Cajun Gold, but tonight he plays with his children + a Huval. Dreu (in the yellow dress, and barefoot) keeps smiling at us as we dance around the lower stage. Amazingly, this night and the band are described in great detail at http://www.lsue.edu/acadgate/music/pdaigle3.htm. Most touching to us was Paul's sincerity when he described the riches of his life --- his family, his talent and the special pleasure of making music with his children.

After the show, I meet a lively 85-year-old woman while on my way to the restroom. She admired our dancing (people are soo kind) and invited us to hear her baby (83-year-old) brother play fiddle with a group at Bubba Frey's. Well, that sounds interesting -- but you ain't heard the half of it :) The restaurant is on the way home, but still way out in the middle of nowhere. The sister is at a table for 8 and they are the only ones there. But the menu looks yummy, we are starving and the music isn't half bad. The owner of the restaurant (in his 40's and definitely the baby of the group) is in the center of 6 musicians, all over 70 --- ahh, there's hope for us yet. On the far left, the fiddle player starts having fun as soon as we walk in the door. Have you ever heard a fiddle whistle? Whoo-hoo, as in, look out good-lookin'. The antics just get juicier and we end up laughing our socks off --- ever hear a fiddle-fart? What a time, what a night - magical and hysterical!!!

Sunday dawns bright and warm. Nunu's in Arnaudville is holding another interview session by Marcie Lacouture and guests Joe Hall, Mitch Reed, Mary Broussard, and Joe Vidrine. Another web quote, "Joe Hall is one of the many Louisiana musicians who have set their sights on the preservation of their music and culture. However, he is one of only a few of the Creole musicians who have turned away from the contemporary Zydeco sound and focused their energies on preserving older Creole songs and musical traditions." AND he barbequed the chicken for the morning brunch. Catch the energy on You Tube. After a quick visit to the cajun jam at Tom's Fiddle & Bow, just for the experience and pleasure of gazing out the balcony over Bayou Fuselier, we mosey back to Breaux Bridge to rest up for our HUGE afternoon adventure.

Karin and I bump over the not-yet-newly-paved road to Henderson, LA (Don had to start for home after Nunu's) for dancing at Whiskey River Landing. Renowned for it's Sunday afternoon crowds we are surprised to see very few cars in the parking lot. Wait, Geno's not playing - that explains everything. But I am happy to see that repairs after Hurricane Gustave (WRL is one of three favorite dance venues that lost roofs and suffered water damage) have taken away none of its charm. The band is situated with their backs to a full wall of windows overlooking, actually, overhanging, the beautiful Atchafalaya Basin. Jeffrey Broussard (some relation to Mary, whom we heard this morning) and the Creole Cowboys get the crowd wound up and dancing. Lots of friendly faces - Floyd whom we met Friday night, Marianne & Michel the Belgians, Leon ever present bundle of dance energy, and Gerald from Ville Platte, plus other unnamed charmers.

When our stomachs start to holler, "Dinner!!" we quick-hop to Pat's Atchafalaya Club right around the corner for burgers and Steve Riley. Pat's is situated between the basin and Bayou Amy (ah-me). Pat (Huval) started selling crawfish and hamburgers near this location in 1948.

Karin has never seen this dance floor and quickly dis-equates our usual Sunday night at GDMA with 8 dancers being a good crowd to Life in Louisiana where hundreds of dancers twirl to zydeco, tw0-step or waltz around the floor, and, will wonders never cease, find a few opportunities for West Coast Swing. Mr. Aren't-you-from-Minnesota turns out to be a fabulous dancer of all types and a fun friend to hang out with on this magical night.

May 6 - Joe Hall with Mes Amis

We are at Cafe des Amis tonight. Jessi is back in town and wants to try something from the menu besides breakfast. Our table becomes fuller and fuller as the evening progresses. Ken, the Alaskan fiddling poet joins our little party. Chelsea is next - she is heading to Nova Scotia next week to begin the French Immersion program at St. Ann's. Then Marianne & Michel (the Belgians) pull up chairs. The music is average. Joe is a great guy and good musician, but this is an acoustic set and the energy is low. But hey - there's dancing, so no complaints from this quarter!!

Le Cafe is a little lunch spot with fabulous Shrimp Po'boys. We had lunch there yesterday --- look for the little yellow house on Rees St. More home-cookin'. What I love about these little eateries is, when they have cooked and served all the food for the day, they close up shop and go home (or maybe they go dancing!!). Breaux Bridge is no paradise, but there seems to be an absence of money-grubbing, greed among the local merchants and restaurateurs.

Dinner last night with our new Belgian friends reminds me how determined I am to get to Paris this summer, and perhaps to visit them in Brussels. Add LITE to this mix and I know I am leading a charmed Life in Louisiana.

May 1-3 Another Festival?

'Tis the season. This weekend is the Breaux Bridge Crawfish Festival .... celebrating all things écrevisses. There are queens, princesses, kings, contests, parades, races, food, arts, crafts, dance lessons, bands galore and carnival rides.

Of course, I'm here for the dancing!! There are three stages so I can't see it all. Friday night was Pine Leaf Boys on one stage conflicting with Cedric Watson on another. Having missed his outstanding performance at Festival Internationale (I was too tired to stay) I really wanted to see Cedric Watson. He has assembled a talented group of musicians and they are in prime form. Blues de la Musician, Pine Grove Blues, waltzes, two-steps and zydeco - he does it all :) But the crowd is getting thick and no one is dancing - where did the dancers go? They are all at the Breaux Bridge Tent dancing to Al Berard Family Band. Wood dance floor (as opposed to concrete or asphalt) and great music. The whole family is onstage including husband & wife Laura B. Huval-acoustic guitar, vocals and Adrian Huval-accordion, saxophone/vocals, with Maegan Berard-electric guitar, vocals, and Kyle Hebert-bass, fiddle. Of course, Mom & Dad lead the show --- Karleen Berard, t-fer, vocals and Albert Berard-guitar, mandolin, fiddle, vocals.

Saturday is going to be long & hot, so I've got to pick & choose. Balfa Toujours is tops on the list with Christine Balfa, Dirk Powell, Joel Savoy sitting in on fiddle and Yvette Landry on bass. Christine gets a chance to show her t-fer skill as Dirk & Joel play dueling fiddles. Evening brings Steve Riley, Geno Delafose, and Hunter Hayes. 'nough said about the first two!! Hunter Hayes is a native of Breaux Bridge made famous by his appearance with Hank Williams Jr. in Texas when he was 5 years old. He played Jambalaya - accordion & vocals - and was a BIG hit, catch it on You Tube!! Well, that was 12 years ago. He is much cuter now & just as talented, playing guitar, singing R&B, country, cajun, etc. It's a young crowd with few dancers, I guess all the dancers are at Geno!! After a couple of zydeco partners, including the drunk who kept spilling his beer on me, I decided tomorrow is another day.

Sunday was T-storm day. I got to The Festival Stage in time for Bonsoir Catin (Anya Burgess, Christine Balfa, Kristi Guillory & Yvette Landry) to play their first song. The pitter-patter of drops brought out the umbrellas - did you know you can dance under an umbrella?? Yummm :) But the wind forces the band to protect their instruments, so the music is over for a bit. Thirty minutes later the rain is over, the band is out and the concrete dance floor is slick. Does that stop the dancers? NO!! We dry out a path with our travelin' two-step and enjoy the rest of the set. The rain comes again as the last number begins and we scuttle to the car just in time to avoid the monsoon.

Dinner tonight (May 3rd) with Gerry's house guests at Zea's. What a wonderful evening with new friends. They are Deidre & Linda from England and Marianne, Michel & Daniel from Belgium. Lots of talk about the zydeco festival in Soileau, France in August. Wanna go?

April 26 - Festival International #3

Lunch was at Hub City Diner. Lafayette is known as Hub City (all roads lead to it, I guess) and this was 50's style with a Cajun twist. I had my usual grilled cheese, but with a creamy chicken soup all peppered-up. Nicey, spicey.

Then off to the festival again for Crocodile Gumboot Dancers from South Africa. They also performed at Jazz Fest. From their website, "The gumboot dancers perform a chorus entitled “Tsakeni – Be Excited” which regularly brings broad smiles to the faces of their audience. The dancers put a tremendous amount of energy into their performances, making the earth shake in time with their feet." Sometimes my descriptions fall short :)

I caught a little of Horace Trahan with The Bluerunners (not enough) but the sun was beating mercilessly by this time so I headed for some shade while waiting for the zydeco band. Li'l Nathan was all dressed up in a suit!! I've heard the group several times at Cafe des Amis, but they pulled out all the stops for the festival crowd (not unusual). But I was about done in. Good thing that was the last act. Too much of a good thing, this Life in Louisiana.