Delcambre , Abbeville and New Iberia. Day one in Port.

After we washed down the boat last night, after getting into Port Delcambre, the clouds finally gathered above us and opened up. We had been waiting for the storm to catch up to us as per the weather forecast and the dark skies on the horizon.
The rain was most welcome, but the boat was wet to begin with, so it was pretty steamy out there!

This morning it was evident that we had rain in the night...also a good thing. It clears the air somewhat, but it was still pretty humid.
We were out of the boat and onto the dock fairly early. 9am we were walking to take a look at the local shops. First we had to negotiate the naked body on the dock!

 The birds didn't seem to want to eat the rest of this poor soul:(

 

One of the neighbors, this morning. A giant Egret. he didn't budge when we walked by, but he didn't look so healthy either. His feathers were sticking to him which would indicate some oil in the water.

Remember I told you about the home which has a shrimp boat parking lot?

 

Here we are parked at the far end of the dock which also has house boats tied alongside. I don't know if anyone lives in them, but they are used for something...business??

This is very much a Shrimp town. It appears that most people in the town have a connection to the industry one way or another. There are a few original families whose fathers were Shrimpers, but the majority are gone now.

We took a different route to the main road, this morning, and on the way encountered some characters with hearts of gold. The old families are definitely Cajuns. The families originally came from France to Nova Scotia, and then dispersed to the South and even South America.

The following links are to History of Arcadia (later known as Nova Scotia) and the French colonization there. It is a fascinating history and one that is not so pleasant for so many of them. The British sent them packing...you can read the rest below..

 

Cajuns in the 18th Century

The history of the Cajun people starts in 17th century Canada. A group of French settlers colonized land in the area now known as the Maritime Provinces of Canada. The main area of settlement is now known as Nova Scotia, but was referred to as Acadia for almost 2 centuries. For more information on the Acadians, please go to the Acadian History or Acadian Genealogy web pages. After the English exiled them from their land, the Acadians were scattered about. From 1765 to 1785, over 3,000 of them made their way to Louisiana. Louisiana was to become their New Acadia.

PRE-1764 LA • FIRST ACADIANS IN NEW ACADIA • 7 SHIPS OF 1785 • BECOMING ESTABLISHED • OTHER NATIONALITIES

Pre-1764 Louisiana Louisiana been inhabited by Europeans since the beginning of the 18th century. But up until the time of the Acadian settlement, most of the population consisted of the military and people looking to make money off of the territory. The only real attempt at placing settlers was the group of Germans on the Mississippi River above New Orleans (the German Coast). Most of the population was made up of French and French-Canadians. Though they didn't know it when the first Acadians headed for Louisiana, they would be arriving in Spanish territory. The First Acadians in New Acadia: 1764-1784 Once the Treaty of Parish was completed, Acadians were on the move. Those in the American colonies and held at Nova Scotia made their way to Louisiana, with most of those who came arriving in 1765 to 1768. They settled in the west (Attakapas/Opelousas) of the Atchafalaya and along the Mississippi River (Acadian Coast). The Seven Ships of 1785 The largest single group of immigrants in 18th century Louisiana came in 1785, when Spain paid to carry about 1600 Acadians from France to Louisiana. Most of this group settled along Bayou Lafourche. The Acadians Become Established in Louisiana: 1786-1800 After 1785, the Acadian migration to Louisiana was essentially over. They set about to adapt to their new surroundings. Taking what they knew, and mixing it with their new climate and ideas from their neighbors, they were able to fit in and succeed in their new environment. Other Nationalities in Louisiana The Acadians, though the major population in south-central Louisiana for some time, found themselves surrounded by other nationalities. The blending of elements of these other cultures eventually formed the Cajun culture.

 

http://www.acadian-cajun.com/hiscaj1.htm

 

This is the new Gate to the Marina at Port Delcambre. Less than a year old, there is much to be done here to bring it into line with other Marina facilities. No bathrooms for cruisers, and no laundry facilities. I know these are in the works, but it was a bit disappointing in some ways, to see that these facilities dont already exist. We cannot complain about the weekly rate which includes power!

 

We loved the old barn on the road we walked down to get to the main road. the owner saw me photographing it and came to see what we were all about. He is a 4th generation Cajun...French speaking local. He worked in the oil industry out of New Orleans and then Florida for 42 yrs before retiring and coming back home (he grew up here, as did his wife) to live. They had visions of owning a trailer home and fishing for fun and food. His mother-in-law was ailing at the time and he, Paul, and his wife Joy ended up living in the family home and looking after her. After the old ladies death from Alzheimer's, they took over the family home and raised it up after two hurricanes swamped it.

 

Paul generously gave us veges from his garden

 

This is a Banana Pepper. He also gave us Banana eggplant! yum!

FEMA (US disaster relief fund) is paying ( sometimes $150K ) to raise all the homes up a couple of levels. This one is on a concrete pad...fascinating to see this process.

See the green mark 2/3 the way up the building? That is where the high tide mark came to during Hurricane Rita in 2004. Most of the town was inundated. This was just two years after the last one. The land here is so low to the sea, and in some places below sea level. Most homes are up on concrete stilts or wooden piles/poles.

This is the main road that goes through the town from New Iberia in the East, to Abbeville in the West...and beyond. The towers are the rail bridge on the right...old ones, and the road bridge to allow boats up the Petit Anse Bayou. We plan to take the dinghy up there in coming days. Some lovely homes and properties up there, we are told.

 

 

On the way back to the marina, a different route to the one we took getting to the main road...we met these fellas who were demolishing this house. It had been condemned by the government and they would have demolished it and thrown all the building materials out. These three men (two not in the photo) were taking all the swamp Cyprus off the house. They get $1 per board foot for it. The man they sell it to takes all the nails out and plains the wood to get it straight etc, and he sells it for $2 per board foot. We could smell the timber as we walked towards them. This man in the roof space is 'Cowboy'. He is a La Font (family name) and the man whose business it is was a La Blanc. They are fourth generation Cajuns. This is quite exciting to us...all these families who have come back to this special place. Cowboy could tell us all the names of the people in town he was related to:)

They get this timber for free. FEMA is happy for them to take it away. Save them some demolition. There are hundreds of condemned

  buildings around town. It is a pretty depressed area after the last hurricane.

 

This mural is a depiction of the Shrimp festival complete with King and Queen. We just missed it!

 

 

Nothing quite like knowing where your food comes from...this restaurant has it's own shrimp boat right outside!

 

 

 

Our fantastic hosts, chauffeurs and tourist guides, Katherine and Jim. Jim's hair is fantastic:) he plays Father Christmas locally:)

they live on their sailboat in the marina...18 yrs! they have lived aboard, and have been everywhere!

 

This is Jim's work cap:)

He rents a 'garage' space around the corner for his workshop which has a library for Katherine. It is fantastic, but I wonder where they will put all this stuff when they move on?

Jims workshop

 

They took us into Abbeville for lunch at Shucks...the best seafood restaurant around. And it is! WOW...the Crab Cakes were the best ever!

The owner asked us to eat some of these fantastic oysters raw...he said they are small ones!

Jim and Katherine...see what I mean about his hair??:)

Crab cake. Katherine put some of her chips on my plate. The remoulade sauce was stunning!

 

Shrimp...a bit spicy for my liking, but delicious nonetheless.

 

Katherine's Shrimp Po'Boy. Soft roll with LOTS of fried shrimp inside with salad.

 

Our bread pudding, which was covered in white chocolate cane sugar sauce...yummy, but so sweet!

 

 

I'm beat, so will have to finish this tomorrow...

Stand by for New Iberia.