Louisiana!

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Okay, so it we didn't actually stay in Shreveport, but that was the only town name that was close to where we were. Okay, if anyone has google maps, hop onto it and search "Grand Cane, Louisiana" and that is the town we stayed in.



So it was a bright and early start so that we could beat the early morning traffic… although the day after Christmas not many people were on the road, I suppose they were either still asleep (as we should have been) or extremely hungover from the Christmas celebrations.
So at 8.30am we drove out of Roxmere Drive and headed for Grand Cane, Louisiana! The drive itself was predicted to be about 16 hours total, split over two days of driving. We crammed the 5 of us, Lucky, all luggage and my squishable cow into one car. There was hardly any room, it was a little uncomfortable but somehow, we managed.
Along the way we entertained ourselves by facebooking each other (technology is amazing) and listening to doof-doof music on the radio, stopping for gas and fast food (ugh) along the way.
We finally reached our destination in Mobile, Alabama at around 4.30 and got settled in for the night. The hotel room had free wifi, which was the last little bit of internet that we were going to see for a good week. Bedtime came at about midnight, and after a truly terrible sleep it was up bright and early for the second part of the trip! We drove through the countryside and I was on the constant look out for any True Blood characters that may be lurking around the woods :P We also took a minor detour into a town called “Natchitoches” (say nack-a-dish) for their famous meat pies, but as the place was closed we had to go without.
We finally arrived at the farm at approximately 4pm and spent the rest of the day looking around, re-joining with family and hearing many stories of the farm. We met up with France’s sister Stacey and her husband David for the second time since I’ve been here, and their son Tucker that I wasn’t able to meet earlier in the year in North Carolina as he was in China at the time.
Uncle Jeff took us out to a lovely Mexican restaurant run by Chinese people in the town about 20 minutes from Grand Cane. The food was excellent, the restaurant itself is exactly what you’d imagine a small-town diner in Louisiana to look like, and while we were eating two officers came and sat down for their evening meal, they both reminded me of Sheriff Andy Balfour from True Blood !
Side note: Grand Cane itself is a tiny little town with a population of about 180 people. The “main drag” is about 50 meters long, ON the main road that runs through the town, and is only about 10 metres out on either side. That is IT. Tiny town, lovely people, beautiful scenery.

On day 2 we were able to explore the farm a little more, and having had an excellent night sleep we were all keen to make the most of our time here. As soon as we woke up, we quickly stuffed down bagels with strawberry cream cheese, and then it was out on the “rhino”.
Kind of disappointing that it wasn’t a real rhino, but this thing was just as good. A little two-seater 4WD vehicle that was an absolute monster in the fields. Sure, there were 4 of us that wanted to ride this epic piece of machinery and only two seats, but somehow that didn’t stop us. William and Adam in the bed that is actually meant for transporting various paraphernalia across the farm, Tucker driving and me in the passenger seat (I wasn’t heavy enough to stay seated in the back… I probably would have flown out haha.)
We raced out into the field with the cold Louisiana air hitting our faces. Field after field it began to rain and we called it quits after only 20 minutes. But don’t worry, about an hour later the rain had stopped, the sun was showing a little and it was time for the rhino again! This time I took my camera and we got photos and video of the various hills we each took turns in riding in pairs, there was endless laughter and “oh shit” moments. By the time those escapades had finished it was only midday, time to go into the town and eat lunch at “the Village”, the loveliest restaurant in town that is owned by Jeff’s brother Billy.
The food there was brilliant, the best burger I’ve had for a while.
After eating ourselves into a coma, we headed off to Billy’s land and he showed us the oil rigs and how they all worked and drilled under the ground, millions of dollars worth of machinery rolling the money in.
The day came to an end with another short rhino ride and a bonfire outside of the bunkhouse, a merry time to be had by all.

Day 3 was the best by far, the 4 of us got our hands on “the mule”, billy’s version of the “rhino” and we spent about 2 hours riding around in the woods and almost killing ourselves (only kidding… we were relatively safe :P)
Although the mule was considerably slower than the rhino, speed was not needed when driving through the woods. I had my eye out for any True Blood characters running around the forest too.
So, after a day of careening around fields, being sprayed in the face with cow shit, thinking we were going to be run down by a bull and having mini-heart attacks each time we drove over a bump, it was time to call it a day. We ate some of Frances’ amazing lasagne with the leftover spaghetti sauce from the night before and ate until it was bed time.

Thursday met us with a family lunch at Billy’s restaurant again, although this time we met his wife and family and all gathered for fish fry, gumbo and bean soup- the typical southern meal! Having never tried gumbo before, I was pleasantly surprised by the combination of chicken and sausage in a thick sauce served on rice (okay so it doesn’t sound so good, but take my word that it was amazng.)
Soon after getting back from a lovely lunch, we had planned to drive 2 hours out of Grand Cane and into Pineville where Frances’ aunt Jan lives, and of course it was time for more food. This time around I got to meet Will’s uncle Charles and his wife, and many more lovely people that are somehow related into the family but I just can’t for the life of me remember. It was a great night nonetheless, filled with more fish fry (although this time it was Aunt Jan’s famous fish fry) served with fries, “hush puppies”, spinach casserole and many other southern dishes that were an interesting combination.

So it was finally time for new years eve- we had nothing planned but to sit around a campfire and have a couple of drinks before midnight. But before that could happen, we had the whole day ahead of us with Uncle Jeff, who spent the day with us taking us on horse rides and showing us the evidence of either a bob-cat or a cougar.
Adam and Tucker went first on a couple of horses named Joe (the old reliable, slow, good horse) and Tuck (the slightly unreliable, easily-spooked horse) and spent about an hour riding around the farm with Uncle Jeff and a lovely young boy named Jacob. Upon their return, Jeff informed us that there was a wounded bull out in one of the fields that he had to round up, closely followed by the question “do you want to help?”
At first, Will and I were a little hesitant to get on a couple of horses and chasing a bull, but when we actually got there, all we actually had to do was follow Jeff and Jacob and act as that extra pressure. I rode on Joe and felt completely comfortable, having not ridden a horse for at least 2 years. That left Will with Tuck, and we were soon off into the woods to find the bull. In reality, the bull had “hoof rot”, which means that it was incredibly slow and had no chance of charging, not to mention the fact that it was de-horned. Jeff and Jacob did all the work, cracking the whip like real cowboys that I’ve only ever seen in movies. Will and I followed at a distance, taking in the entire experience. The whole situation only took about 20 minutes, from getting on the horse to herding the bull into the truck. But how many people can say that they helped round up a bull in the woods, on a horse, cracking whips? I did it :D
Not too long afterwards, while Jeff was taking the Bull back to headquarters, Jacob was instructed to herd a bunch of cows in the field opposite into a “pasture over yonder” and so Adam and Tucker volunteered to help. It was definitely a day filled with farming work, and I loved every minute of it.

The day came to a close by going out for dinner in a town about 45 minutes away from Grand Cane called Shreveport, the restaurant was called Ralph and Kacoo’s and it served me the most amazing steak I have ever eaten. Although it was a seafood restaurant, those of us who ordered the steak were all as impressed and hastily passed on our compliments to the chef. I honestly don’t think I’ve ever eaten so much food in my life, not only did we woof down the main meal, but there was the entrée that came before it (crab claws, onion rings, and other various things) but we then ordered dessert- the Godiva Cheesecake, which I have to say, was the best cheesecake I’ve ever eaten. We were all thoroughly
impressed.
I have to say, I’ surprised we all had room for drinks around the fire later, but drink around the fire we did and had a very relaxing new years. At 12 on the dot, we each decided it was time for bed, as we had a long drive home the next day beginning at 8am and all had to be somewhat cognitive.

So here I am, back in the same hotel we stayed in mid-drive on the way up to Grand Cane, writing this blog. It was definitely an experience and a half, living the real cowgirl life for a week and loving it. I’ll come back here one day, and hopefully do it all again- I recommend it!

Photos are on facebook!

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