A Day Off For Beignets

I woke up this morning in a soft bed in the guest room of a long-lost fourth cousin.

While in Oregon, about two years ago, a man I’d never heard of contacted me via the Ancestry website, and told me how we were related, and what connections we had in common.  I am now at his home in Covington, Louisiana, enjoying a very cordial visit with him, his wife, and their son. He was very eager to discuss our shared family legacy.

For my fellow paper map lovers, here is the route Janet and I have taken so far, with the places we spent the night highlighted, starting with the first night in Paisley, Oregon.

We went into New Orleans yesterday, and the French Quarter was gritty and intact enough to look interesting, but the ‘bon temps’ atmosphere feels a little forced to me, so much less interesting. It is certainly unique in the U.S., and I’m glad I visited.

Across Lake Pontchartrain are the suburbs of Mandeville and Madisonville, which are quaint, and comfortably attractive. The river and bayou are lined with pleasure boats. Crossing the 20+ miles of causeway across the lake was mildly adventuresome, because it’s big enough to lose sight of the horizon briefly on the way.

This is not my photo, as I was not inspired to take hardly any. I got it from some real estate website.

It is looking south across the lake toward New Orleans from very near where we sat in a bar and  looked at the LSU/Auburn game for a bit. Football and fishing are clearly enjoyed to the utmost in these communities. My cousin worked for decades for an energy giant corporation, which has a presence in this area,  and has been pretty good to him.

Tomorrow Janet and I are going back to being on our own time. I am grateful for the respite from driving and decision-making, but eager to take the captain’s seat again. We are entering a new phase of our adventure, it is clear, and I will get back on to my posting schedule the following morning. Au revoir!