The Los Islenos Fiesta, St. Bernard , LA

   I know…..it’s been a while since I posted a blog.  As usual, our plans took another change..(this trip has been a series of changes lately).  We left St. Bernard State Park last Monday and had planned to stop at Homochitto National Forest campground to stay for a week, since our reservations at Tickfaw State Park were cancelled. This National Forest was only about 110 miles up the road, and about 30 miles from Natchez, MS. Weeeeeeell..We drove through it and determined that we would not be comfortable there…It is very steep roads and drop offs. Knowing me, I’d step outside the Hiker door and right into a deep ravine! Dennis decided to drive the extra 212 miles and go to Grenada, MS North Abutment campground. We stayed there on the way down and we actually have reservations beginning March 17th for a week. We also knew that they have some non-reservable spots, and figured we could find one.

We drove another 3 1/2 hours and made it to Grenada campground about 4PM..Let me just say that I don’t like these loooong rides anymore, and neither does MacGyver. Yep, long and tedious driving an RV isn’t as much fun as it used to be..and HEY!..WHAT’S THE RUSH? AREN’T WE RETIRED??? So here we are for 8 days in site 70, exactly where we were last November 27th..

It has been raining for 5 days now…and I am sure Tickfaw and St. Bernard State Parks in Louisiana are both flooded by  now. We have water dripping inside around our TV antennae and on the seam in our big rear window…The culverts are running full and the low spots in the woods here are flooded…but all campers are high and dry, .well, kind of, but now worries…PHEW!

Next Tuesday we will move to the site just up the hill, where our reservations are for another week..We DO love this  park, and don’t mind being here for a couple weeks…Hopefully, by the time we leave, we won’t require oars on the Hiker to get out of here!!!

I promised I would post our photos from the festival we went to in St. Bernard, LA..We  had a great time walking through a big part of Louisiana’s Spanish History..This was the 40th anniversary of the Los Islenos Fiesta…and it didn’t disappoint..

“Isleños Heritage and Cultural Society is dedicated to preserving the Spanish language, legends, crafts, customs, folklore, rituals, music and history of our Spanish Isleños heritage by: maintaining an Isleños museum and multi-cultural village; promoting an annual student of Isleños heritage; and promoting annual Museum Days, a three-day event, to give students hands-on knowledge of the early Isleños and their way of life.”

 

There was native dancing, beadwork and food.  Even raw oysters, wine and beer..WOOT!WOOT!

No, we didn’t have any oysters..We do like them raw, but not in a “festival” situation..and Den and I aren’t much for eating at these kinds of venues…Heck, we don’t even eat at any of the food stands at our Sandwich Fair! 

Left, you could get a big glass of wine here for $5…right are some children descendants of Canary Island natives doing traditional dances.

People dressed in the “garb” of that era…I loved that little lady on the right…Somehow holding a bottle of beer and a can of pop smacked of THIS era!!..I did have a bonus “sighting” here though…

His sweatshirt even said “Elvis” on the front…and..he is drinking a beer..so it MUST be him, right???

As you can see, we had a great time wandering the grounds and taking this all in..The money raised here goes toward a scholarship fund for a descendant of these Canary Island Spaniards…

Being raised in a cemetery for part of  my teen years, I always have an interest in old ones…You know I loved that Chalmette, LA National Cemetery, so it isn’t so strange that I made MacGyver pull over when I spotted this small one along the St. Bernard Rd…

Merrick Cemetery looked so forlorn to me…There was a chain link fence all around it, and no way in that was visible to me..The above ground vaults were in disarray, some tipped up and empty..

I took the pictures through the fence..and felt a bit like an intruder for doing that. I didn’t linger long, as I didn’t want to show any disrespect for those buried there or their families…I think the flooding of Katrina took it’s toll here too…

I cannot explain the sadness at seeing this devastation…and so I left,  not wanting to disturb those souls any further…

I was in the mood for some good fish, and what better place to find it than Louisiana?..We asked a few people and all recommended a place they call The Green Store…but it’s real name is Guillory's Grocery.  This is a VERY small meat and cheese market…and deli…and a few groceries thrown in…

The menu was up on the wall behind the deli…You order, then sit at the tables and wait..or you could eat it there, but they have no plates..It’s mostly sandwiches, but they do have oyster, fish and shrimp dinners to go..When I ordered, I said “I’d like 2 fish dinners to go”, and the young man said “that’s all we do here..to go”..I  have no idea what kind of fish it was but the fillets were huge, and came with fries and your choice of sides for $9.99 @.

I  unpacked the paper sacks when we got back to the Hiker….Dinner for Two…with a side of mac/cheese dripping in butter..YUMMY! (and it WAS!)

OK, now I have gone on waaaay too long yet again…Although this trip hasn’t been the exact weather I expected, it has been one of the most diverse, historical and humbling trips we have taken!..I like to call it a Military/Patriotic/Historical “Round About”…with a few colorful birds thrown in…

…And speaking of “colorful old birds”……

…This OLD bird is still in her well known feathers/ “ensemble” !!