Well hey there y'all! Welcome to my home way down here in the south, a state full of wonderful food, culture, and friendly and hospitable folks. Many of you most likely automatically think of a few things when Louisiana comes to mind: New Orleans, Mardi Gras, Saints, and LSU.  Why yes, those things are a big part of the state, but that's not all!  Louisiana is filled with a rich history (having been founded by the French, ruled by the Spanish, and eventually bought by the United States) and a culture that loves to find an excuse to party and have a good time.

Here are some basic facts of Louisiana:

• Official Languages are English and French (yes, French).
  
• State Nicknames are Bayou State, Child of the Mississippi, Creole State, Pelican State, Sportsman's Paradise, and the Sugar State.
  
• The state bird is the Pelican.
  
• Our motto is Union, Justice and Confidence.
  
• The state Capital is Baton Rouge
  
• The Largest City and Metro area is New Orleans
  
• The highest point is Driskill Mountain (yes we do have one mountain) at 535 ft (163m) above sea level, while our lowest point is -8 ft (-2.5m) below sea level (which is New Orleans).
  
• We were admitted into the union on April 30th, 1812.
  
• We are the only state to call our counties "Parishes".
  

Much of the state's lands were formed by sediment that settled from the Mississippi River, giving to much marshland, swampland, and water ways. All this marsh, swampland, and waterways are the main reason the state is called the "Sportsman's Paradise".  If you like the outdoors, then this state is for you. We have hunting, fishing, camping, tons of waterways for recreational boating, water skiing, tubing and any other water activity you could think of.

We are also home to many many MANY festivals. You can find a festival somewhere every weekend. Some of the more famous ones being Jazz Fest, Mardi Gras and Essence Fest. Other big ones are the Ponchatoula Strawberry Festival, Louisiana Seafood festival, Breaux Bridge Crawfish Festival, Crowley's International Rice Festival, Festival International de Louisiane along with tons of annual crawfish boils, cook offs, and other celebrations.



Our climate is considered a humid subtropical climate. So basically, its hot and humid during the summer and cold and humid during the winter. ITS BASICALLY HUMID ALL THE TIME AND YOU FEEL LIKE YOU ARE BREATHING WATER ALL THE TIME. *coughs* ...Winters are generally mild with snow and ice being a rarity. What is SNOW??  We have lots of rain throughout the year though it seems we have more during the spring and summer. We are also often affected by Hurricanes (also known as tropical cyclones, typhoons, tropical storms, etc.)  The most famous and nationally covered hurricane in recent history would be Hurricane Katrina, which struck land on August 29th, 2005. We just recently observed its 10 year anniversary.  Katrina caused massive flooding in New Orleans (80% of the city of inundated) and southern regions of the state, along with wind damage and loss of life (more than 1500 fatalities resulted in Louisiana alone). The last most damaging hurricanes had been Hurricane Betsy in 1965 (being the first in history to cause one billion dollars in damage) and Hurricane Audrey in 1957 which killed over 300 people.


A Small Bit of History:

Louisiana was originally inhabited by Native Americans long before Europeans arrived in the 16th century. The state has more Native American tribes than any other southern state, including (currently) four federally recognized tribes, 10 state recognized, and four tribes that have yet to receive recognition. Many of our names for rivers, parishes, cities, and street names come from the Native American tribes. Examples being the Tchefuncte River, Mississippi River, Plaquemine Parish, Atchafalaya, Natchitoches, Houma, and Avoyelles Parish.

Even though the French were the first Europeans to make settlements in Louisiana, it was actually a Spanish expedition led by Panfilo de Narvaez that were the first explorers to visit the region in 1528.  It wasn't until the late 17th Century that French and French Canadian expeditions established its first settlements and foothold in the area.  In 1682, the French explorer Robert Cavelier de la Salle gave the region its current name, to honor France's King Louis XIV.  The first permanent settlement was Fort Maurepas (which is now Ocean Springs, Mississippi).  The original French colony claimed the land on both sides of the Mississippi River and north all the way to the French Territory in Canada.

Mississippi, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Missouri, Kansas, Nebraska, Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota, North Dakota, and South Dakota were all originally a part of Louisiana (I OWN YOU ALL MWUAHAHA).

Many land owners became rich off the land and owned large plantation where they could farm and export their produce. Plantations historically litter the state and can be seen as historic sites.

Eventually France ceded most of its territory to Great Britain after the Seven Years' War or French and Indian War (as it is known in North America).  It only retained the area around New Orleans and the parishes around Lake Ponchartrain.  The rest became a colony of Spain.

It was during this time that several thousand French-speaking refugees from the Acadia region of Canada (now Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, and Prince Edward Island) made their way to Louisiana after been expelled by the British in 1765. These Acadian refugees are the ancestors of what we now call "Cajuns".  My family is descended from the original Acadians.

Eventually the area was purchased by the United States in a purchase famously known as the "Louisiana Purchase" in 1803, with Louisiana becoming a state later in 1812.


As a last tidbit, you will also see the word Creole thrown around. Creole describes the population of people who were born to settlers in French colonial Louisiana, specifically New Orleans. These people consist of descendants of the French and Spanish upper class. Eventually, the term came to include native-born slaves of African decent as well as free people of color. Typically "French Creole" described someone of European ancestry and the term "Louisiana Creole" described someone of mixed racial ancestry.


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This year I wanted to talk a little bit about the city I have lived in for the past 8 years (well technically I live in another city RIGHT outside of it but it counts ).  Many of you may have taken notice to it lately as we recently were in National news for the tragic movie theater shooting that occurred here at the end of July.  However, despite such a terrible event, this community has pulled together and shows how strong we are and how we care for our neighbor.


Lafayette and the surrounding areas is a mix of American Indian, African American, English, French and Spanish culture, much like the rest of Louisiana. We sit in the region known as Southwest Louisiana or Acadiana. The city is considered the "Heart of Acadiana" and nicknamed "The Hub City".  Lafayette is located along the Vermilion River and is the fourth largest in the state. As of the 2010 census, we have a population of 120,623 that has been steadily growing every year. In 2014, Lafayette was named the happiest city in the United States, with the top five cities all being in Louisiana and Louisiana also being the happiest state.


A Little Bit of History

Originally the earliest settlers were the Atakapa people who historically lived along the Gulf of Mexico.  By 1765, Acadians were arriving in Louisiana and the Spanish governor of the time began settling them in the Lafayette area. Lafayette was originally founded as Vermilionville in 1821 by Jean Mouton, a French speaking man of Acadian descent. Eventually as parish devisioons were created, Lafayette parish came to be. The name coming from the Marquis de Lafayette who was very popular in the United States for helping in the Revolutionary War.  In 1884, Vermilionville became Lafayette.




Lafayette Today

With all that said, today Lafayette is a bustling progressive small town feeling city. We have many of the amenities of a big city without the hassle and stress of actually living in one. We are home to the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, where I graduate from. Lafayette does well due to the oil industry. The city has some manufacturing and fabrication businesses along with a booming IT community. We are one of the first cities to be have fiber optic internet technology.  Despite the fiber optic service being municipally owned, it has been an extremely successful and welcomed service.

Lafayette also boasts a large music and food culture, one that very may rival New Orleans in some aspects. We have several centers of art and performing arts and are home to Festival International de Louisiane, a free music and food festival that celebrations cultures from all around the world. As a tourist you can even book a food tour to check out all the great places to eat!  And to further cement our love of food, there is a large local restaurant campaign titled "Eat Lafayette".  We boast a large variety of cuisines from chains to local joints.
I'll go more into detail in the Lafayette Food Tour.  

We have many attractions ranging from Antique Malls, science and history museums, swamp tours, parks and festivals.  You can also experience music and dancing in our many bars, restaurants and dance halls.

I don't personally listen to Cajun and Zydeco but here are some videos to give you a taste!



There are many reasons to live here and why I love it (honestly 90% of the reasons are the food) but I hope this gives you a better idea of what its like down here in the deep south.

Thanks for checking out Louisiana and specifically Lafayette!  Take this bumper as proof of coming get a taste of southern living!



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Were you ever in New Orleans for any festivals?

Growing up, my parents took me to Mardi Gras parades, generally in the suburban areas outside of the city. Back in 2007, I went to New Orleans with some friends for Mardi Gras, we went on Lundi Gras (the Monday before Mardi Gras, which is a Tuesday). We saw a parade then walked around the French Quarter, mainly bourbon street. It was pretty fun and had a good energy considering it was a only a couple years after Katrina. And yes I did see some girls flash their you know whats for beads. >.>

I feel like this is a state I need to visit at some point!

I live in Shreveport, which is not as exciting, but we still have a rich Louisiana culture.




Ours is more of the city life. But every fall, we have the Louisiana State Fair and the Red River Revel, my favorite things to do in Autumn!!




Sorry, Small Lady, didn't mean to jump in. I just love talking about LA, too 

Oh its so awesome to have someone else from Louisiana chat with us! The only other member I know of that is from here is Sailor Jupiter (and we grew up together in the same town!) So totally shed some light on the other areas of the state I don't know as much about. Ive passed through Shreveport like once so thats the extent of my knowledge. xD

I didn't know that you and Jupiter grew up together! That's awesome!

Yeah...There are many pictures of us in highschool and beyond together.

I love Louisiana! It's not like any other state. I've moved out of LA and it has always called me back.

I would love to post more about Shreveport, if that's okay

Sure! Aren't you close to the Christmas lights thing? I can't remember where that is. I think Natchitoches right?

Ooh, yeah! It's Natchitoches! My family tries to go every year. It's a blast. The lights are gorgeous, and there are fireworks! 



The festival was even featured in the movie Steel Magnolias, a beautiful movie about the lives of Southern women! (I highly recommend it, I love it)

Oooh maybe I should try to go there this Christmas. In all my life living here, I've never gone to see the lights there. :O

I'm named after Alexandria Louisiana, so I've always wanted to go there. Maybe get a pet crocodile.

That tree is gorgeous. If I ever go down there, maybe you can force me to try crawdads. XD

Oh yeah I think that tree was in front of one of the historical churches here. Theres lots of gorgeous oak trees down here like that. One of my favorite nature things thats in the south. Oak trees are so pretty.

I have always wanted to visit Louisiana. Maybe now I can. I can come visit you and all the cats