Day 19 New Orleans

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Today was tour day. We decided to get an air boat through the bayous and swamps of the Mississippi River. On the way down to the river to board our boat the tour guide explained how things were from Katrina. We learnt that the actual hurricane didn't cause all the damage. The real problem was the fact that over the years man made canals had caused the bayous and swamps to erode. This together with inadequate levees caused the problem. Most of the damage was after the actual hurricane. The biggest problem however was the lack of cohesion between the government overseer (FEMA) and the local authorities and emergency services. As a result, adequate sewage, water and power services (whilst running as the result of short term fixes) were not as they were before the storm (two years down the track). Shame on you Mr Bush.

Upon arriving at our airboat we had to sit out a huge electrical storm and wait for the lightning to subside before setting off. What an experience!. Whilst driving sideways through the bayous at high speeds with wind driven rain (sorry - insurance terminology) being blown into our faces we all thoroughly enjoyed the ride. Stopped in various areas and were given great commentary by our young tour guide, Felix the Cajun, who later pulled out his alligator (Henry) who Jolene kissed (refer to photo - Henry appeared to resist her charms). We did the tour with about 7 hoochy mama black girls from Baltimore who were just hilarious and a New York couple. The whole experience was one to remember forever, but the alligators didn't seem as scary as our crocodiles. Apparently the Louisiana alligators are the laziest from the South. They only attack if they are starving. Felix fed them marshmallows and they took ages to get to them and eat them. We also learnt about other native wildlife including Nutria rats, which apparently are the size of medium sized dogs. They were imported for their fur, however cause massive problems (like the cane toad back in Oz) and now have a bounty on their head. Apparently Felix and his mates can pay for the incurred fuel, beer and bullet costs when heading out for a Nutrirat bounty hunt on the bayou. They get $5 a rat.

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