Duson, Louisiana (GA416)

Mary is no longer available for RV traveling, but we remain good friends.

Because we have 4,000+ postings, I’ve invited her to continue posting entries on this blog.

I’m currently in my 23rd year of full-time RVing and my lifestyle is changing, For more info click Here

---

The motorhome is parked at Thousand Trails RV Resort in La Conner, Washington. I’ll depart here August 13th.

 

 

 

Since my RVing life is changing (see above), I’m starting to re-visit previously visited places. So rather than constantly re-blogging past entries, I’ve decided to do something different.

  In 2011-2013, Mary and I did a 682 day, 12,679 miles in the motorhome and 8,000 miles in the Bronco, circumnavigation of the United States, which I called The Great Adventure. I called it so because other than my oldest granddaughter’s high school graduation in June in Connecticut, I didn’t know where we would be going or when we would be there!

So, unless I do something really different and unusual warranting a new blog entry, I’ll be posting entries from that trip.

This entry was posted March 4, 2013…

If you remember yesterday’s Blog entry http://wp.me/pDCku-7ea

 

 

we were parked in Eunice, Louisiana. We were here in 2010 and had such a good time at the Liberty Theater…we just had to come back since we were in the area.

 

 

Normally it’s two-hours of great Cajun Music and dancing. When we put it on our schedule…we had no idea this weekend’s program was a tribute to Hank Williams, Sr. which you can read all about by clicking this link…
http://www.theadvertiser.com/article/20130301/LIFESTYLE/303010308/Tribute-keeps-legacy-Hank-Williams-alive

 

 

Much to our pleasant surprise three of our new friends from Lake Charles were also there. Ranola, Sue and Cliff…

 

 

Here are some photos that I took…

 

 

 

 

 

As always you may left click upon an image to see an enlarged view and then click once again to see an even larger view…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I just love the delightful Cajun accent. You can hear Ranola’s by clicking this link…
http://youtu.be/N6hyWDW6zSU

 

 

The program featured the Jambalaya Cajun Band with four performers doing Hank Williams songs.

 

 

The program opened with Hugh Harris…the youngest of the four…and closest to Hank’s death age…29…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

To see a brief video of Hugh Harris’s imitation…clicking this link…
http://youtu.be/mAOZU9sj6i8

 

 

Other performers included…Pope Huval…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Steel guitar player Terry Huval…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And 81 year-old D.L. Menard…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

To see a short video of all four performers closing the show…click this link…
http://youtu.be/p2plXgBBQwc

 

 

It ended up being a great program which we all  enjoyed!

 

 

Yesterday we drove the motorhome the about 40 miles southeast to Duson only a few miles from Lafayette, Louisiana.

 

 

Along the way we passed through the City of Rayne…Frog Capital of the World! To read why Rayne claims this title, click this link…
http://www.exploratorium.edu/frogs/rayne/index.html

 

 

Here’s a photo of Mary standing next to a 12 foot-high frog seen as you enter the city…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

They have frogs all around the city. Here are a few…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In Duson we ended up parking at VFW Post #9822 where we expect to stay while we explore the nearby area for the next 2-3 days. Sunday Bingo draws a big crowd…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

As usual, here’s the dinette window shot…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

After a long, full day on Saturday we enjoyed a peaceful and relaxing Sunday afternoon. Back to work today…seeing the sights!

 

 

Enjoying musical concerts is another joy in the life of a full-time RVer!

 

 

The red dot on the below map shows our approximate location in the State of Louisiana. You may double left-click the map to make it larger…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Enjoying 65-75 degree temperatures most of the year is a primary joy in the RVing lifestyle!

 

 

“Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance you must keep moving”…Albert Einstein

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

If you have not checked out my Ramblin Man’s Photos Blog, you can do so by clicking this link…
http://ramblinmanphotos.wordpress.com/

 

 

 

 

 

TWO FOR THE PRICE OF ONE! MARY WROTE A MANY GREAT BLOGS…SO WHENEVER SHE PUBLISHED A BLOG POSTING THE SAME DAY THAT I DID…YOU WILL BE ABLE TO READ HER BLOG BY CLICKING THE BELOW LINK! DO IT NOW!

https://otrwjam.wordpress.com/2013/03/04/liberty-theater-and-rayne-louisiana/

 

 

 

 

I HOPE YOU ENJOYED THE PHOTOS.

Forecast for today is mostly sunny and 73 degrees.

Enjoying nice weather is another joy in the life of a full-time RVer!

The red dot on the below map shows my approximate location in the State of Washington. You may double left-click the map to make it larger…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Enjoying 65-75 degree temperatures with low humidity most of the year is a primary joy in the RVing lifestyle!

 

 

“Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance you must keep moving”…Albert Einstein

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

My current travel rig is a 2006 Fleetwood 26′ Class A Motorhome and a towed 1986 Ford Bronco II, Eddie Bauer Model. This photo was taken in the desert at Slab City near Niland, California…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

On October 27, 2012, I created a two-minute video titled America The Beautiful. The music America The Beautiful is by Christopher W. French. The photos, which I randomly selected, are from the states of Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Mississippi, Montana, New Mexico, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Texas, Tennessee, Washington and West Virginia (not shown in that order)…are mine. Yup, That’s me standing in front of the Post Office in Luckenbach, Texas…Y’all!

Click this link to start the video. Make sure you have your speakers turned on and go to full screen asap.
http://youtu.be/FfZUzEB4rM8

 

 

If you would like to see my YouTube videos, click this link… http://www.youtube.com/user/JimJ1579/videos

 

 

There are more than 700 photo albums in my Picasa Web Albums File. To gain access, you simply have to click this link… https://get.google.com/albumarchive/110455945462646142273?source=pwa

 

 

If you have not checked out my Ramblin Man’s Photos Blog, you can do so by clicking this link…http://ramblinmanphotos.wordpress.com/

 

 

For more information about my books, click this link:
http://www.lulu.com/spotlight/panamaorbust

 

 

All original works copyrighted – Jim Jaillet -2018

Eunice, Louisiana (GA415)

Mary is no longer available for RV traveling, but we remain good friends.

Because we have 4,000+ postings, I’ve invited her to continue posting entries on this blog.

I’m currently in my 23rd year of full-time RVing and my lifestyle is changing, For more info click Here

---

The motorhome is parked at Thousand Trails RV Resort in La Conner, Washington. I’ll depart here August 13th.

 

 

 

If you remember yesterday’s Blog entry http://wp.me/pDCku-7dN

 

 

we were parked in Mamou, Louisiana. Shortly after the doors opened 7:30 AM Mary and I enter Fred’s Lounge…the Cajun Music Capital of the World!

 

 

Fred’s is in its 67th year of business with continuous live radio broadcasts for the last 51 years. It is only open Saturday’s from 7:30 AM until 2:00 PM.

 

 

Here are some photos that I took…

 

 

 

 

 

As always you may left click upon an image to see an enlarged view and then click once again to see an even larger view…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Only a few folks were around as the band began their set-up…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

During the course of the morning Mary had two large Bloody Mary’s and I had three Miller lites. Twice during the morning the staff came around handing out the delicious French Cajun sausage…Boudin… which you can read about by clicking this Wikipedia link…
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boudin

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Soon people were dancing…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Even though she recently retired, Taunte Sue made an appearance with her legendary holster that holds a flask of cinnamon schnapps…

 

 

By 10:00 AM the place was fairly packed which you can see by clicking this link…
http://youtu.be/Xi5gZN6tRQU

 

 

The Cajun band played really loud and really good music and combined with really friendly people made for a really good time. Despite my aching right hip which remains from last year’s may 27th accident, Mary and I enjoyed a couple of dances together. It was a most enjoyable morning!

 

 

Since we needed to drive the motorhome to Eunice, we left Fred’s about 11:00 AM. After lunch we drove the motorhome about 10 miles south where we parked in the rear parking lot of a fire station…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

As usual, here’s the view from the dinette window…

 

 

If you want to see and read about what we did on Saturday night in Eunice…you’ll have to read tomorrow’s Blog posting.

 

 

As they say here in Louisiana…Laissez les bon temps rouler…which means…Let the good times roll!

 

 

Enjoying local partying spots is another joy in the life of a full-time RVer!

 

 

The red dot on the below map shows our approximate location in the State of Louisiana. You may double left-click the map to make it larger…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Enjoying 65-75 degree temperatures most of the year is a primary joy in the RVing lifestyle!

 

 

“Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance you must keep moving”…Albert Einstein

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

If you have not checked out my Ramblin Man’s Photos Blog, you can do so by clicking this link…
http://ramblinmanphotos.wordpress.com/

 

 

TWO FOR THE PRICE OF ONE! MARY WROTE A MANY GREAT BLOGS…SO WHENEVER SHE PUBLISHED A BLOG POSTING THE SAME DAY THAT I DID…YOU WILL BE ABLE TO READ HER BLOG BY CLICKING THE BELOW LINK! DO IT NOW!

https://otrwjam.wordpress.com/2013/03/03/freds-lounge-mamou/

 

 

 

 

I HOPE YOU ENJOYED THE PHOTOS.

Forecast for today is partly sunny and 73 degrees.

Enjoying nice weather is another joy in the life of a full-time RVer!

The red dot on the below map shows my approximate location in the State of Washington. You may double left-click the map to make it larger…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Enjoying 65-75 degree temperatures with low humidity most of the year is a primary joy in the RVing lifestyle!

 

 

“Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance you must keep moving”…Albert Einstein

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

My current travel rig is a 2006 Fleetwood 26′ Class A Motorhome and a towed 1986 Ford Bronco II, Eddie Bauer Model. This photo was taken in the desert at Slab City near Niland, California…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

On October 27, 2012, I created a two-minute video titled America The Beautiful. The music America The Beautiful is by Christopher W. French. The photos, which I randomly selected, are from the states of Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Mississippi, Montana, New Mexico, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Texas, Tennessee, Washington and West Virginia (not shown in that order)…are mine. Yup, That’s me standing in front of the Post Office in Luckenbach, Texas…Y’all!

Click this link to start the video. Make sure you have your speakers turned on and go to full screen asap.
http://youtu.be/FfZUzEB4rM8

 

 

If you would like to see my YouTube videos, click this link… http://www.youtube.com/user/JimJ1579/videos

 

 

There are more than 700 photo albums in my Picasa Web Albums File. To gain access, you simply have to click this link… https://get.google.com/albumarchive/110455945462646142273?source=pwa

 

 

If you have not checked out my Ramblin Man’s Photos Blog, you can do so by clicking this link…http://ramblinmanphotos.wordpress.com/

 

 

For more information about my books, click this link:
http://www.lulu.com/spotlight/panamaorbust

 

 

All original works copyrighted – Jim Jaillet -2018

Eunice, Louisiana

Mary has safely returned home from a trip to Turkey. She’s resting and editing the many photos she took on the trip.

The motorhome is parked at Thousand Trails Seaside RV Resort in Seaside, Oregon. I expect Mary to catch up with me here around May 25th. I expect to depart here in early June.

I have stayed at this resort several times before and have thoroughly explored the area as far as tourist attractions go. While I wait for Mary’s arrival, I’m occupying my time with some light routine maintenance, cleaning, reading, walking, computer work, listening to music, etc..

A more relaxed mode..

After our 682 day on-the-go 2011-2013 circumnavigation of the United States, we have decided to slip into a more relaxed mode. In the next few months we will be traveling through areas previously explored. Unless we do something unusual, this Blog will feature a photo album from the circumnavigation and will change daily.

To read about today’s photo album location, click this link… http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eunice,_Louisiana

CLICK ON THE BELOW PHOTO. ONCE YOU ARRIVE AT THE PHOTO ALBUM, SIMPLY CLICK “SLIDESHOW” AND ENJOY!

Eunice, Louisiana

I HOPE YOU ENJOYED THE PHOTOS.

Yesterday was a cloudy/sunny day at 63 degrees. Forecast for today is cloudy with showers at 60 degrees.

Enjoying nice weather is another joy in the life of a full-time RVer!

The red dot on the below map shows our approximate location in the State of Oregon. You may double left-click the map to make it larger…

Enjoying 65-75 degree temperatures with low humidity most of the year is a primary joy in the RVing lifestyle!

“Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance you must keep moving”…Albert Einstein

On October 27, 2012, I created a two-minute video titled America The Beautiful. The music America The Beautiful is by Christopher W. French. The photos, which I randomly selected, are from the states of Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Mississippi, Montana, New Mexico, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Texas, Tennessee, Washington and West Virginia (not shown in that order)…are mine. Yup, That’s me standing in front of the Post Office in Luckenbach, Texas…Y’all!

Click this link to start the video. Make sure you have your speakers turned on and go to full screen asap.
http://youtu.be/FfZUzEB4rM8

If you would like to see my YouTube videos, click this link… http://www.youtube.com/user/JimJ1579/videos

There are more than 500 photo albums in my Picasa Web Albums File. To gain access, you simply have to click this link… https://picasaweb.google.com/jimjrver

If you have not checked out my Ramblin Man’s Photos Blog, you can do so by clicking this link…http://ramblinmanphotos.wordpress.com/

For more information about my books, click this link:
http://www.lulu.com/spotlight/panamaorbust

All original material Copyright – Jim Jaillet 2014

Duson, Louisiana

If you remember yesterday’s Blog entry http://wp.me/pDCku-7ea

we were parked in Eunice, Louisiana. We were here in 2010 and had such a good time at the Liberty Theater…we just had to come back since we were in the area.

Normally it’s two-hours of great Cajun Music and dancing. When we put it on our schedule…we had no idea this weekend’s program was a tribute to Hank Williams, Sr. which you can read all about by clicking this link…
http://www.theadvertiser.com/article/20130301/LIFESTYLE/303010308/Tribute-keeps-legacy-Hank-Williams-alive

Much to our pleasant surprise three of our new friends from Lake Charles were also there. Ranola, Sue and Cliff…

Here are some photos that I took…

As always you may left click upon an image to see an enlarged view and then click once again to see an even larger view…

I just love the delightful Cajun accent. You can hear Ranola’s by clicking this link…
http://youtu.be/N6hyWDW6zSU

The program featured the Jambalaya Cajun Band with four performers doing Hank Williams songs.

The program opened with Hugh Harris…the youngest of the four…and closest to Hank’s death age…29…

To see a brief video of Hugh Harris’s imitation…clicking this link…
http://youtu.be/mAOZU9sj6i8

Other performers included…Pope Huval…

Steel guitar player Terry Huval…

And 81 year-old D.L. Menard…

To see a short video of all four performers closing the show…click this link…
http://youtu.be/p2plXgBBQwc

It ended up being a great program which we all  enjoyed!

Yesterday we drove the motorhome the about 40 miles southeast to Duson only a few miles from Lafayette, Louisiana.

Along the way we passed through the City of Rayne…Frog Capital of the World! To read why Rayne claims this title, click this link…
http://www.exploratorium.edu/frogs/rayne/index.html

Here’s a photo of Mary standing next to a 12 foot-high frog seen as you enter the city…

They have frogs all around the city. Here are a few…

In Duson we ended up parking at VFW Post #9822 where we expect to stay while we explore the nearby area for the next 2-3 days. Sunday Bingo draws a big crowd…

As usual, here’s the dinette window shot…

After a long, full day on Saturday we enjoyed a peaceful and relaxing Sunday afternoon. Back to work today…seeing the sights!

Enjoying musical concerts is another joy in the life of a full-time RVer!

The red dot on the below map shows our approximate location in the State of Louisiana. You may double left-click the map to make it larger…

Enjoying 65-75 degree temperatures most of the year is a primary joy in the RVing lifestyle!

“Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance you must keep moving”…Albert Einstein

If you have not checked out my Ramblin Man’s Photos Blog, you can do so by clicking this link…
http://ramblinmanphotos.wordpress.com/

All original material Copyright – Jim Jaillet 2013
For more information about my three books, click this link:
http://www.lulu.com/spotlight/panamaorbust

Picture A New York Subway Train At Rush Hour Crammed Full Of…

Very friendly people and a French Cajun Music Band out in the middle of Nowhere, Louisiana and you’ve got Fred’s Lounge in Mamou, Louisiana…the Cajun Music Capitol Of The World!…at least that’s what the sign on the outside of the building says.

Inside a sign says…

The sign says it all!

Yesterday (Saturday) morning, Mary and I left the motorhome at 7:00 AM for the about 20 mile drive to Mamou, Louisiana. You’ve got to arrive when they open the doors at 7:30 AM if you want one of the 12 seats at the bar. In addition the lounge sits an additional 25 people and about 150 with standing room only. At 7:35 AM, Mary ordered a scotch and water and I ordered a Miller’s Lite Beer. The band starts at 9:00 AM and plays wild and crazy Cajun Music non-stop until 1:30 PM and the lounge closes at 2:00 PM.

To see the other 14 pictures I took, click this link…
http://picasaweb.google.com/jimjrver/MamouLA2010#

For a great history and more pictures of Fred’s Lounge, click this link…
http://web.lsue.edu/acadgate/mamou.htm

We left a little after noon and returned to the motorhome to work on our Blogs and get some rest for the afternoon/evening activities which were…

Mary had been craving Crawfish and finally was fulfilled at Nick’s Restaurant…

Mary finally gets her Crawfish!

Then on to the big weekly Saturday Night event at The Liberty Theater…The Rondez Vous de Cajuns…

This was the 1,158 performance of the Rendez Vous de Cajuns at the Liberty Theater.

We had front row seats and sat next to a French-speaking couple who have been married for 60 years. They have attended this event for every Saturday night for more than 20 years and have the only two reserved seats in the place! She reminded me very much of my Mother who passed away April 3, 2003 at the age of 83.

This couple has been attending the Rendez Vous de Cajuns every Saturday night for more than 20 years.

One sad comment as it relates to current times… I was last here in the year 2000 and the place was jammed-packed…standing room only! Last night it was only about 10% full. It appears to be a combination of tough economic times and lack of heritage interest by younger people. According to this older couple…the younger people are not attending because they are out in the bars drinking and doing drugs. A really sad statement about the world we live in!

The Liberty Theater has been there since 1927 and has been hosting the Rondez Vous de Cajuns for more tha 20 years…Here’s their website…
http://www.eunice-la.com/libertyschedule.html

This completed our second and last day in Eunice, Louisiana. Today we’ll depart by 10:00 AM for the about 175 mile drive to New Orleans for a two-week Mardi Gras stay.

All original material Copyright – Jim Jaillet 2010
For more information about my three books, click this link:
http://www.panamaorbust.com

Eunice, Louisiana – Day 1

Mary and I spent the day wandering around downtown Eunice, Louisiana. The first stop was at the Prairie Acadia Cultural Center where….aghhhhh!…I discovered I had left my camera in our motorhome! Duhhhhhhh! Mary took this one photo for me.

The center is one of six parts of the Jean Lafitte National Historical Park and Preserve located in Southern Louisiana and has wonderful exhibits explaining the cultural history of the Cajun people. Mary and I are both from French-Canadian backgrounds. While there we viewed an hour-long film entitled “Dance With The Chicken” which identified the cultural heritage behind the Mardi Gras celebration.

I expect we will get to the other five elements of the Jean Lafitte National Historical Park and Preserve before leaving Louisiana. Here’s the official government link…
http://www.nps.gov/jela/prairie-acadian-cultural-center-eunice.htm

In addition we also visited in Eunice…
* Cajun Music Hall Of Fame And Museum,
* Railroad Depot Museum,
* Radio Station KBON Studio, 101.1 FM…where hundreds of Cajun Musicians have autographed the walls over the years, and…
* A Cajun store where Mary bought a quasi Mardi Gras costume.

For a more complete description of our day, see Mary’s Blog at http://marysramblins.blogspot.com

All original material Copyright – Jim Jaillet 2010
For more information about my three books, click this link:
http://www.panamaorbust.com