This morning was our swamp tour! Eryn, John, and I were
all looking forward to this day because this was a new experience that we had
never done before. The company that we placed our tour through was called Cajun
Experiences and the nice part about this company was that they picked us up the
hotel directly. The actual swamp that we were visiting was called the Honey
Swamp. After we had boarded the bus, our bus driver was telling us history as
he was passing certain buildings and crossing certain bridges. There was an
empty parking lot and he told us that Sears, Walmart and a couple other stores
used to be there but they were damaged by the hurricane so they moved
elsewhere. Six flags was also abandoned because after the hurricane, they never
renewed their contract but he said there is rumor that a new amusement park is
coming soon. He also showed us where the levies were for support on the bridges
so that was neat to see as well. When we arrived at Cajun Experiences, we
checked in and were given wrist bands to wear and ours were blue. Then we just
had to wait for the boat to come and pick us up. While we were waiting, there
were cats everywhere! I love cats so I was very excited about this but they
were very skittish of people and I do not feel that they were being treated
properly so that made me sad. There was one cat who let me give him loves but
then another cat came up and both of them got in a fight. When the boat
arrived, we boarded and the boat took off going at a high speed and then once
we reached the wood-swamp area, he slowed down and was letting us look all
around. Right off the bat, we saw a great blue heron bird and he was beautiful.
The captain told us that he was already preparing for his spring mate because
the feathers around his face were turning more blue. We also saw snowy egrets
and cormorants. We traveled down the swamp some more and then when he stopped
he was trying to get the boars to come out and they all had names! One of their
names is Oreo he also said that there was a mom that had just had a litter.
Unfortunately, none of the pigs came out. Our last main stop on the swamp tour
was going to see the homes that people live in. I had no idea that people lived
in the swamps. Why someone would want to do that is behind me! Some of the
homes were flooded and there was a sign that said “tourist made good eatin.” I
am sure that they do get annoyed with people looking at their houses all the
time. However, they are choosing to live in a very odd area so they should
expect it. The weather today was too chilly for the alligators so maybe next
time!
My overall
thought for the day is that I am amazed at what hurricane Katrina really did.
When the hurricane hit New Orleans, I was eight years old and I remember
hearing about the hurricane and what was going on but I did not understand it.
Today, I saw what an impact it had made. There was a house on the swamp tour
that was built on stilts and our captain told us that the water rose ten feet
on the sixteen foot stilts. The man had rebuilt his home after the hurricane
and also purchased flooding insurance and he was told to build the stilts
eighteen feet. Refrigerators also float down the river or are found in the
water to this day. There were other spots along the swamp tour that the captain
said never regrew and he said there used to be way more people living down
there and they have all left as well. My heart really goes out to all the
people who had to endure this hurricane. I can’t imagine my entire house going
under the water and losing everything that I have. The fact that we can still
see damage twelve years later says something. However, I feel that the people
here have handled it very well and that they have brought beauty from all the
damage. Another thought I had today was just how pretty the swamp actually was.
I never thought of a swamp being beautiful but it was so peaceful out there
even though it was so chilly! Next time I come down south in the winter, I am
bringing my winter coat! Besides the point, the birds and turtles that we saw
really had no distractions, they are away from most civilization and the trees
are unique and they are called gum trees. They have dark green moss leaves that
grow from the branches and the termites eat the stumps so most of those trees
had giant holes in them. The other cool part about the tour was the people who
were on the boat with us. We had a large group from Australia and they had
questions for us and we had lots of questions for them. I learned that they
have an over population of kangaroo’s and apparently kangaroo meat is some of
the best meat that you can order there. We saw a racoon on the swamp tour and
they were so amazed by the racoon but I told him that those are one of our pain
in the butt animals. We have them get in our garage and every time we set a
racoon trap, my cat gets in there, eats the food and then just chills in there
until we let him out. It was just interesting to me that we both had different
views on the animals due to our difference in culture. Overall, I had a really
amazing day and I am very thankful for this opportunity.
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