Louisiana

Nobody told me that entire towns in Louisiana still operate in French. Not a few street signs or…

By Dane Ashford · Aug 14

Renting a cabin on a lake sounds like the kind of vacation that should cost a small fortune,…

By Laura Benton · Aug 13

Bread has been the daily rhythm of this state since the first French bakers set up shop in…

By Dane Ashford · Aug 13

Some parks announce themselves with dramatic overlooks and crowded trailheads. This one works more quietly. Perched above a…

By Dane Ashford · Aug 13

Every antique store promises treasures. This one actually delivers them by the truckload. Walking through the doors felt…

By Dane Ashford · Aug 12

Walk in for a sandwich and walk out with a bag of groceries, an olive oil you cannot…

By Laura Benton · Aug 12

Restaurants that opened last month cannot compete with restaurants that opened before my grandparents were born. There is…

By Dane Ashford · Aug 12

Plenty of steakhouses serve good cuts. Very few serve them with the weight of history behind every plate.…

By Laura Benton · Aug 11

Some of the quietest places in this state are so peaceful on a weekday that you might think…

By Dane Ashford · Aug 11

Spanish moss frames the roads like nature built its own movie set. Every time I drive through these…

By Laura Benton · Aug 11

Nobody drives an hour for catfish. But that is exactly what I did, and the catfish was not…

By Laura Benton · Aug 11

Alligator sausage in a cheesecake. I read the menu three times to make sure I was not imagining…

By Laura Benton · Aug 10

Louisiana has a habit of hiding its biggest surprises in plain sight, and this vast wetland is one…

By Dane Ashford · Aug 10

The building looks like it belongs on a postcard. Elegant Spanish colonial arches. Iron balconies. A prime spot…

By Laura Benton · Aug 10

I drove past the empty parking lot last summer and felt that particular sadness you get when a…

By Dane Ashford · Aug 10

I told myself I would browse for an hour. I closed the place down instead. The aisles twist…

By Laura Benton · Aug 9

My first visit, I waited in a line that curled around the parking lot for a king cake…

By Dane Ashford · Aug 9

I had eaten king cake before. Always sweet, always frosted, always the same cinnamon filling. Then I walked…

By Laura Benton · Aug 9

I spent well over forty minutes in the spice aisle alone. Not because I am an indecisive shopper,…

By Dane Ashford · Aug 9

I struck a wall and it sang back at me. That is not a metaphor. My afternoon at…

By Laura Benton · Aug 8

I never thought I would find myself waist-deep in a pool while a curious otter circled my legs.…

By Dane Ashford · Aug 8

I first heard about the turducken on a football broadcast and spent years assuming it was a myth.…

By Dane Ashford · Aug 8

Water so still it reflects the trees like a mirror. That was the first thing I noticed when…

By Dane Ashford · Aug 7

There is a specific kind of relief that hits when you park the car and realize you will…

By Laura Benton · Aug 7

I did not know what a French table lunch was until I sat down at one. The long…

By Laura Benton · Aug 6

The ceiling curved above me like the inside of a wooden ship. I had to tilt my head…

By Dane Ashford · Aug 6

Three dollars. That is what it costs to walk inside. I have paid twenty times that for experiences…

By Laura Benton · Aug 6

I walked past the building twice before I realized what was inside. From the outside it looks like…

By Dane Ashford · Aug 6

I drove past the marshland for what felt like an hour before the road finally dumped me onto…

By Laura Benton · Aug 5

I almost drove past it. The sign out front says world famous, but the building looks like every…

By Dane Ashford · Aug 5

I have spent embarrassing amounts of money on observation decks across the country. This view cost me pocket…

By Laura Benton · Aug 5

My harness clicked into place and my stomach dropped before I even left the platform. Sixty feet above…

By Dane Ashford · Aug 5

I ordered through a window the size of a mailbox, waited ten minutes, plus received a paper bag…

By Laura Benton · Aug 4

I almost drove past it. The turnoff sits along a stretch of Highway 22 where most people seem…

By Dane Ashford · Aug 4

Louisiana’s biggest Asian supermarket hits you with the smell before you reach the door. Inside, the produce section…

By Laura Benton · Aug 4

Louisiana’s oldest cafeteria does not try to impress you, which is exactly why it works. I slid my…

By Dane Ashford · Aug 4

I turned off the highway onto a narrow road that felt like it was leading nowhere. Then the…

By Laura Benton · Aug 2

The line started forming before the shop even opened that morning. I knew I was in the right…

By Laura Benton · Aug 2

My friend told me about a lake park with disc golf. I nodded politely and expected nothing special.…

By Dane Ashford · Aug 2