Today we have a very busy day ahead
We started by driving to Sulphur, which is a nearby city
in southwestern Louisiana
And there are two very interesting things
you can do here
One is to explore the Creole Nature Trail, which is where you can see all the
amazing wildlife in Louisiana
And then you can also go explore the Boudin Trail, which is related to food, totally different
I'll explain more when we get there
But here, what is cool is that we stop at this Adventure Point and it's like a place where you stop for
information, where you can learn all about the Creole Nature Trail and also about the Cajun culture
This is where you learn how to catch a crab. Look at this.
This is supposed to be chicken and then there's a crab
You know, in real life the crab would be fighting a little bit more, but it should be that simple
This is how to pronounce the words in Cajun French, which is different, so let's see
Calcasieu
I'm trying. I'm trying to speak it. I'm trying to learn!
Calcasieu
_ Getting there _ You're getting there
The one that most people have problems with is Boudin.
Boudin
Have you tried that yet?
I did. I loved! Our first night here.... Loved Boudin.
You can have it frozen and take it home in dry ice
It takes 4-6 hours to drive the main part of the trail (depending on stops)
So now let's try some boudin
There are over 30 mom and pops making it their own, their own way. And we're going to
one of the best ones now. They all have those little stickers in their windows, like certified boudin stop
So we're gonna get to see it made and maybe try some cracklins too
It's really, really... Those down-home flavors, so...
That's where we're headed next
Cool!
Right here, two places side by side, to try boudin
Things you only find in Louisiana. Crawfish, crab and shrimp oil
What's this here for? Is it oil?
Yes! So it's a seasoning, so you basically... When you're cooking or boiling crawfish and pour it in there,
and it seasons the water, that you boil it in.
Ah, interesting! Ok!
Here they have this big window where you can see them preparing the boudin inside
He's blending the seasoning a little bit. Some people do boudin blanc,
which is real white. Steak shrimp's are white.
The Boudin Trail has 7 other stops in Sulphur and 27 in nearby cities
Recipes vary. That's why the idea to try various boudins
Come hungry
Boudin is cajun rice sausage. Very popular here in southwestern Louisiana.
Sorry for the noise, I guess their fridge just started
Just like in the first day that we had. It's so delicious.
What makes your boudin special here?
It's just family recipe. Just good quality product.
Try to make sure everything we use is fresh ingredients.
Gotta make sure it's as fresh as we can
What is the one people like most here?
Is it the regular? The hot?
Probably the regular mild. That's our most common seller
Most popular
You get a few that like it spicy.
You get a few that like your smoke
But normally it's the mild and then like the boudin balls. Boudin balls is a big seller
Which would basically be the boudin rolled into a ball and then deep-fried, the batter...
Ok. Good to know. Thank you.
I love this.
I actually forgot to mention the most important ingredient in boudin: pork!
You guys probably realized the amount of French words here in Louisiana.
That's because of the French colonization. And then there's also Creole French
Talking about history, we're gonna tour a neighborhood that has the most beautiful historical
constructions in Lake Charles. The name of this place?
Charpentier - That's carpenter in French
Most of the houses are from the late 1800s
So now we're picking up a historian to explain us everything
We are not really part of the deep South, we're more
sort of where the South meets the West
For a long part of Louisiana's history, this part of Louisiana wasn't even part of the state
This was no man's land. This was officially the frontier between the United States and the empire of Spain
It's been a place that's always been very
interesting and a little bit of unusual
We'll see a lot of architecture that is wood base. And now it is, it's not a museum
It's an actual living neighborhood. People live there and you can see construction projects
You can see people putting their trash out because today happens to be trash day
You'll be seeing all sorts of things. Not just Mardi Gras, life goes on through Mardi Gras
At the time this area was being developed,
it was very rural and very away from the rest of Louisiana
There were no commercial architects in Lake Charles until the 20th century
And because of that, these houses were built by carpenters using pattern books
They would use a pattern because... "Oh, I like that porch, I like those windows,..."
Here's a good example of that. This house would be much more at home in New England. It has shakes
And that's a Lake Charles thing. We have a lot of shakes because we produce shakes here
And that makes a difference
This house is a fabulous house. A particularly wonderful house here
It's called... locally called the Flanders house
And it's the product of two great lumber families
marrying their first born children and putting the absolute best in the house.
You'll notice the shingled corners here. The tympanum are all shingled
This is a great house inside too, its central hallway...
It's a fabulous, fabulous property. And one of the signature properties of Lake Charles.
A very photographed house
There are 400 buildings here. Not all buildings contribute to the historic district. But most of the buildings do.
The blue on top of the porch is a very southern thing
That blue ceiling fights the... supposedly fights mud dauber nests
and paper wasps from putting their nests there. It's supposed to keep it clean
At the time of the great fire, the jailer in 1910
happened to be Reid. And when the jail burned down
downtown, he had to do something with the prisoners
So he decided to take matters into his own hand. He brought them here to this house
Put them up in the attic for 11 months
And that's where they lived. So it was a temporary jail for Calcasieu Parish
for a long time
There is a story. A local ghost in this neighborhood is
the ghost of that of one of the prisoners who tried to make an escape by jumping
from the top window from the attic. He got out of his shackles
He jumped out of the window and died, unfortunately
But around April 23rd
every year, this neighborhood for the last
one hundred years or so has reported that
they hear the sound of breaking glass and a long pitiable scream, so they assume that it's the
ghost of the prisoner that tried to make an escape from the temporary jail here at Calcasieu Parish
Anyway, that's kind of cool. Just a little sidelight there for you
Wow, that was a lot of information, huh? Our guide is a true expert in Louisiana's history
We're now going to dig deeper into the music and Mardi Gras culture in Lake Charles
But I'm gonna save that for the next vlog.
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Arsène Pujo was the first congressman from this corner of Louisiana
And Arsène Pujo in 1914 was the...
he was the...
He broke the tie which created the income tax to help pay for World War I.
So when you're paying your taxes you can thank the Pujos because they created that.
Again, you'll notice...
_ Nice... _ Yeah...