for those of you hoping it was with a guy, i'm sorry to have to disappoint you, but it was with the wonderful place that is louisiana, especially new orleans. i knew i liked the place a lot just in very quick visit 10 years ago, but this visit confirmed what i felt then. louisiana just might have to be my next home. i've been very happy in grand rapids these last 8 years or so and i'm not rushing out and moving tomorrow, but i think i'm starting to see my time in grand rapids come to an end...though probably not for at least a year or two at the soonest.
anyway, due to a lost bet, a friend and i made a trip to see one of the above mentioned long lost friends over the last couple days. the drive down was uneventful and done quickly so we could start our vacation with a night at the fabulously beautiful nottoway plantation & resort. i would highly recommend this location as a must visit location if you every find yourself in the baton rouge area. the grounds are gorgeous, the restaurant is fantastic and the rooms are impeccable. you can either stay or just stop by for a quick tour and lunch. i don't have any of my pics uploaded to the computer yet, but here are a couple i stole from the internet to give you an idea of nottoway's splendor:
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| Plantation house....we didn't stay in the house, but rooms are available there. We stayed in the carriage house elsewhere on the grounds. |
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| Outdoor seating for the restaurant...if i remember correctly, we sat at the farthest table back in this photo when we had dinner. |
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| This is not the exact room we stayed in, but looks as similar as I could find on the website. When I get my pictures uploaded, I'll post the actual room we were in. |
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| View of the restaurant from the exterior |
after finishing up a relaxing time at the plantation, my friend and i took off to look at some other plantations. we stumbled across some pamphlets for a couple we thought would be great, turned on our french speaking, latin named GPS juanita and hit the road. laura plantation was the first stop, but i'll get to that plantation in a minute because first i want to talk about oak alley plantation.
oak alley plantation was another antebellum home that was just spectacularly beautiful. walking up the oak alley towards the front door felt like walking up the front walk into tara from 'gone with the wind'. the grounds were gorgeous, the guide was knowledgeable though very scripted and the house was amazing. definitely a stop worth making, but as it was the third such tour of the day, it just felt a bit like a let down. especially when being compared to laura.
oh laura...it was love at first sight. i actually wondered when we were leaving if i could get a job there because i didn't want to go. laura is a creole plantation run by women almost from beginning to end of it's long history as a plantation. i'll save you a lesson on creole history, but that way of life is very fascinating and worth researching a little when you're bored. but it was the creole that allowed women to control the place for so many years...and i'm talking 4 generations here. we were lucky enough to have the owner as our tour guide and norman marmillion was a WONDERFUL guide. his passion for the property and his personal insight into the plantation from it's original family to the items in the house was contagious. the grounds were lush with wonderous vegetation (the bananas were awesome to see), the house was brightly colored and beautiful. the acres and acres of sugar cane growing around us were awe-inspiring. if you're visiting lousiana and you only get to visit on plantation, make laura your choice. you will definitely not regret it...especially if norman is around to give you the tour.
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| Norman with his beloved Laura |
to be continued...
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