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Vacherie, Louisiana - Part 2
Written by: Janet Pope
Photography by: Donald
The steamboat pulls to the side of the river to deposit passengers on a both a plantation tour and a swamp tour. Bring your overcoat and watch out for alligators.
Day 2 - Vacherie Louisiana
The Grand American Queen gives a variety of breakfast options, but we chose a quick buffet in the dining room, since we were booked on an early morning tour. We landed in Vacherie, Louisiana literally at the foot of Oak Alley Plantation.
Remember, the Mississippi River is the main "highway" through this area so the plantations take advantage of the view and the river access. Since the days of the plantation era, a levee or beam-like structure of almost 20 to 30 feet at this site protects the property along the shore from high waters and storms. Therefore, Oak Alley no longer has a river view, but a view of the levy wall. As you walk from the riverboat, which is at river level, up the levy and down the other side, a house comes into view - an unbelievable house, a Gone With The Wind house. Lined by huge 300-year-old oak trees, it is an entryway befitting royalty and the pathway provides a picture-perfect Kodak moment.
We toured the house, built in 1839, and enjoyed the view afforded by the 13-foot-deep veranda encircling the building. Tour guides, dressed in period costumes, gave us a background history of the families that inhabited the house. Our tour guide, Darlene, told us little bits of trivia that made the house come alive. We enjoyed hearing about the "rolling pin" bed with the removable rolling pin used to smooth out the Spanish moss filled mattress.
Don found a map in the gift shop and tried to retrace the location of the 20 original slave cottages, which at one time housed 93 men and their families. Here is an example of how slavery was such a part of the everyday workings of the rich. The house and farm were so big that it would seem to be impossible to maintain it without enslaved labor. While slavery is such an important part of the local history, it is seriously lacking in the exposition of the history. The slave cottages are gone, slaves mentioned as an ancillary part of social history, and there is only a small book in the souvenir shop devoted to it. (I think the cookbook was larger.) Yet, many people on the bus bought the small book.
As part of our tour package, we boarded a bus and headed to a swamp tour about 30 minutes away. Here, our tour guide, a fourth generation owner of the swamp area with a thick Cajun accent, welcomed us. He took us on a pontoon boat and we spent the next hour roaming the swamp. If the Oak Alley tour filled us with the history of the aristocrats in the area, the swamp tour provided us with a glimpse of how the local trappers and hunters of the same area survived.
Since it was February, the swamp was cold and the alligators for which we searched were in hibernation. Alligators, we learned, do not need to eat for six months (which is what we will need to do after our cruise ends). Once the temperature drops below 80 degrees, the alligator finds a nice hole in the swamp in which to chill out.
We learned more facts about swampland than I will ever need to know. Back in Brooklyn we tend not to bump into too many alligators, just a lot of wolves and snakes. We found out that fishermen use Ivory soap on a hook to attract catfish, with both the brightness and the scent being a natural lure. We also were surprised to discover that hunters cut down the wild Spanish moss to sell for upholstery filling. This is actually a practice more dangerous than alligator hunting, since four types of venomous snakes and two poisonous spiders, known to inhabit the moss, are naturally not too happy about someone coming around to dismantle their home. Another bit of trivia for Jeopardy fans is that alligators live to be over 100 years old. Perhaps, if we all took a six-month nap, we too would make the century mark with ease.
Our guide was one of eight children raised in this swamp area taught to hunt, fish, and trap by their father, grandfather, and even their great grandfather before them. This is his backyard and he knew every nook and cranny of the swamp, having explored the waterways since he was a child. He was a wonderful storyteller and the tour doused with facts, childhood memories with some local folklore and humor thrown in.
It was a busy morning and we worked up an appetite just in time to re-board the boat and hear the luncheon bell ring. I could not possibly describe each meal, but suffice it to say that my short ribs fell off the bone and were served with noodles, carrots and celery.
The afternoon was spent reading, listening to a talk on upcoming shore stops, playing bingo, (oh my God, I am turning into my mother), and the obligatory nap. Although who could nap through the special sounds of the calliope played by Phil Westbrook. Right then, I made up my mind that to be truly happy I need a calliope. Let the neighbors listen to me for a change!
Tonight was the Captain’s Champagne Reception and the dress code was more upscale than usual. We met Captain John Dugger and his wife and then enjoyed champagne at the welcome reception prior to the evening’s show.
Dinner, as usual, was a five-course formal affair meant to savor and relax. The wait staff was wonderful and our waiter, James, never rushed us.
After dinner there was a choice of three different venues each night - a band for dancing in the Grand Saloon, Phil Westbrook to sing along with in the Captain's Bar, and music in the Engine Room Bar with which to mellow off.
Each night we tried to see at least two of the showcases.
This was our second day on the boat and as the night ended, I felt a little sad that I was one night closer to the last day. This is really an entertaining and relaxing vacation and one of the last uniquely American experiences.
Part 1 - American Queen - Jazz and Blues Cruise
Part 2 - Vacherie, Louisiana
Part 3 - St. Francisville, Louisiana
Part 4 - Natchez, Mississippi
Part 5 - Vicksburg, Mississippi
Part 6 - Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Part 7 - Mardi Gras, New Orleans
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