Mardi Gras and much more: Louisiana's best festivals
The Mardi Gras floats just keep coming, swathed in colour, giant flowers and flashing lights. Their themes may vary – from animals and clowns to mythological creatures – but they are unified by a spirit of boisterous exuberance.
New Orleans' most famous festival is gloriously over-the-top, with several weeks of Mardi Gras parades and balls leading up to Shrove Tuesday, known locally as Fat Tuesday. While the UK rustles up a few pancakes, Louisiana embraces vibrancy, with 'krewes' in colourful costumes throwing gifts from their floats and hundred-strong marching bands blasting brass renditions of traditional classics and subverted pop hits.
The Mardi Gras balls were a European tradition that came to Louisiana with French settlement in the early 18th century, but the carnival-style parades developed later. Dozens of private membership clubs and organisations formed in the 19th and 20th centuries, creating the krewes that drive the Mardi Gras festivities today. Traditions, such as the 'throws' of gifts to the crowds and Rex, the King of Carnival, emerged over time.
But when the Mardi Gras floats return to their garages at the end of the celebrations, the festival scene in New Orleans and Louisiana doesn't wind down one bit. The state is home to more than 400 different festivals across the year, celebrating music, food and culture. Such events are a key part of Louisiana's character.
Making music
The New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival is the best-known of Louisiana's music festivals, and it has morphed into something more than a few jazz concerts. In the last weekend of April and the first weekend of May, massive outdoor gigs spanning the genre take place at the Fair Grounds Race Course and the temporary villages showcasing traditional Louisiana life and Native American customs play an important role too.
April also plays host to the Baton Rouge Blues Festival, which embraces the seductively swampy side of the blues in the state capital. Later in the month, Lafayette opens itself to the planet at the Festival International de Louisiane. The focus for five days is on world music, although there are distinct Francophone leanings, with plenty of musicians from Canada and West Africa.
Time to feast
Music may be the food of love, but Louisiana firmly believes food can be the food of love, too. The lines between a food festival and a music festival are often hazy.
Mudbug Madness is an excellent example of this. Taking place in late May, the musical side of things concentrates on zydeco music, a blend of Afro-Caribbean, African-American and French influences. The food is also resolutely Cajun, and while there is variety among the food stalls, most revellers come to feast on crawfish.
In October, the Oak Street Po-Boy Festival embraces another Louisiana speciality – the po' boy sandwich. Oak Street in Uptown New Orleans sees numerous venues serve up a tantalising variety of fillings inside baguettes that are crispy on the outside and fluffy on the inside. Shrimp and crawfish are, of course, the options with most local flavour.
Cultural celebrations
Louisiana's cultural festivals tend to celebrate a particular strand of local culture. The Italian Festival in the town of Tickfaw honours the waves of Italian-American immigrants that settled there. Taking place at the end of April, the festival combines pageants, parades, Italian food and live music.
The ESSENCE Festival of Culture in July, meanwhile, is largely about African-American music and culture. Big-name acts play at the Superdome in New Orleans, while several venues downtown open their doors for inspirational speakers.
Holiday spirit
In October, Houma in the bayous of southern Louisiana, holds Rougarou Fest, which gets its name from the mythical werewolf-like creature supposedly spotted amid the swamps. The festival leans into local folklore and general spookiness, but the activities and events are family-friendly.
At the end of the year, however, the place to be is in Louisiana's oldest European settlement, Natchitoches. Here, the Natchitoches Christmas Festival has become a six-week affair. 300,000 lights and more than 100 set-piece artworks line the historic centre, while the biggest set-piece event is a lighted boat procession along the Cane River.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Mirror
2 hours ago
- Daily Mirror
EasyJet rules for visiting major holiday hotspots in Europe this summer
easyJet states that post-Brexit, Brits travelling to the EU will need to ensure their travel documents meet certain requirements - specifically when it comes to their passport's validity If you are one of the many sun-seeking Brits preparing for a European holiday, there are some rules that you should know. easyJet has shared its guidance for those travelling to certain countries in the EU to ensure all passengers have a smooth flight. Under the ' travel documents and information' section of its website, easyJet states that passengers 'need to have some form of identification on both domestic and international flights'. Below are the specific guidelines for travel to Spain, Portugal, Greece and France. Spain Under post-Brexit regulations, easyJet confirms UK passport holders travelling to the EU (except Ireland), or Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, Andorra, Monaco, San Marino, the Vatican City or Switzerland need to meet certain passport criteria. UK passport holders travelling to Spain must have a passport that is valid for 'at least three months after the day you plan to depart from the EU or above countries'. Additionally, passports 'must be no more than 10 years' old on the date of travel to the EU or above countries'. According to the UK government's latest guidance, those with a full British citizen passport from the UK can travel without a visa to the Schengen area, which includes Spain, for up to 90 days in any 180-day period. Portugal easyJet passengers flying to Portugal are also reminded that entry is permitted for a maximum stay of 90 days in a 180-day period without a visa. Portugal follows Schengen area rules as well, meaning your passport's validity must fall within the prescribed 10-year and three-month rules. Your passport must have a 'date of issue' less than 10 years before the date you arrive and have an 'expiry date' at least 3 months after the day you plan to leave the Schengen area (the expiry date does not need to be within 10 years of the date of issue). easyJet also states that extra documents are required for children entering or leaving Portugal without a parent or guardian. According to the airline: 'Children aged 17 and under, must carry written authorization to be able to travel to and from Portugal if they are travelling without their parent or legal guardian.' easyJet's guidance continues: 'The letter must include the details of the adult who will be responsible for them during their stay in Portugal. For full information about the requirements please see the web pages of the Government of Portugal and the Government of the United Kingdom . Greece Given that Greece is also part of the Schengen area, easyJet passengers that are UK passport holders are subject to the same passport and visa regulations as those travelling to Spain and Portugal. Meaning that those with a full British passport will also be able to travel without a visa for up to 90 days in any 180-day period. Additionally, the UK government website advises that even if you are visiting multiple countries 'your total stay in the Schengen area must be no more than 90 days in every 180 days. 'It does not matter how many countries you visit. The 180-day period keeps 'rolling',' the website confirms. Additionally, if you are considering adding on a trip to Cyprus on your Greece journey, remember that Cyprus is not in the Schengen area. That said, the UK government confirms that British passport holders can stay up to 90 days in a 180-day period in Cyprus without a visa. More importantly, any time you spend in the Schengen area does not affect the number of days you can spend in Cyprus. France France, also being part of the Schengen region, does not require British passport holders to travel with a visa for stays under 90 days. Non-EU passport holders travelling to the Schengen area are once again obliged to ensure that their passport is valid for at least three months from the date of their departure from the Schengen member country, according to the UK government website. Though this requirement does not apply to holders of a Schengen issued residence permit or long-term visas.
Daily Mirror
4 hours ago
- Daily Mirror
'We made a change after Covid that's let us quit our jobs to travel the world'
Ryan Losasso and Jade Beaty, 30, are now known as Live The Dash and travel across the world filming their exploits for their TikTok account, which is followed by 505,000 people A couple quit their desk jobs and now travel the world full-time after discovering what they had captured on holiday. Ryan Losasso and Jade Beaty, 30, are now known as Live The Dash, one of the biggest UK travel creators with 505,000 followers on TikTok. They live a life many dream of, getting paid to whizz around the world to intriguing destinations. The advertising workers had not planned to become full-time TikTok content creators. In fact, it wasn't until they returned from a big six-month trip at the turn of the Covid lockdowns that they realised what they were sitting on. "We had all this video content when the world shut down, and we had a lot of time on our hands. So we turned to this huge stock of footage," Ryan told the Mirror. "We set ourselves a challenge of posting a video every day for 30 days. Then when some of that did really well, it spurred us on. We continued to post every day for six months." Do you have a travel story to share? Email webtravel@ READ MORE: Tourist warning to 10 million as Europe's hottest capital on alert Jade added: "It was surprising how quickly we got through that content. On a walk in Spain, the videos were doing quite well, and we realised we were going to run out of content soon. We started joking that we'd start going on trips." At first, the couple juggled their desk jobs with travel, booking themselves onto the cheapest flight out after they clocked off on a Friday and returning on Sunday. Two years ago, they decided to go full time. The risk has clearly paid off, as Jade and Ryan are among the most watched travel TikTok channels and won the platform's Travel Award for 2024. Part of the secret to their success is putting in the research hours before they go on a trip and then only travelling when they've landed on a great idea. That might be heading to New York to see if the hallowed 'dollar slice' of pizza can still be purchased, or around the UK in search for a genuine 99p 99 whippy. They've also spent the night on the fastest sleeper train in the world, which rushes snoozing passengers from Hong Kong to Shanghai. "Was it amazing? The tech is amazing, but you're sharing with three other strangers. It reaches 270 mph, but it's super smooth," Ryan explained. "For TikTok specifically, we have our hooks before we go. We film all we can, we film the journey, we film two intros, two hooks. We bet on all the horses." The search for something new that will engage their audiences takes the pair to places they might otherwise not have visited, which often turn out to be the most enjoyable. READ MORE: Brits warned of travel chaos as European airport hit by 10th walkout in 45 days "Somewhere I wasn't expecting much from was Weston-super-mare. It had a lot of cheap whippies. It is obviously a faded Victorian seaside town, but the beach is gorgeous," Ryan said. Jade added: "We also like to hunt out weird hotels. We stayed in a cow cabin with unlimited free milk, near Ed Sheeran's hometown, called Easton Farm Park. We also stayed in these huge tree houses in Derby." The old adage of 'if you do what you love, you'll never work a day in your life' seems true in the couple's case. They still have the travel bug and are hugely excited by their trips. Part of that means pushing themselves to engage with people they meet along the way. "We have this rule that whenever we're on the plane, we have to speak to the person next to us. One guy told us 'do what excites you'. Six years later, we still tell ourselves that. We call it Conrad's message." The couple also recommends running every day and practicing good communication for travelling couples who want to avoid arguments while on the road. In terms of finding inspiration, they recommend using the adjustable 'For You' feed on TikTok. It is now possible to customise content preferences so you can see more or less of certain content in topics from over 10 categories – including travel, sports, nature, and food and drink An AI-powered 'smart keyword filter" that allows users to limit content they don't want to see'. "The For You feed is the heart of TikTok, a way for us to discover new content. We use the new features, manage topics, and think it's really cool that you can filter which topics you want to see more or less of."
Scottish Sun
6 hours ago
- Scottish Sun
Roger Moore's favourite James Bond car hits auction… but the motor used in an iconic chase scene is not an Aston Martin
Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) BOND star Roger Moore's favourite James Bond car, seen in iconic chase seen, is due to be auctioned. It's not a vintage Aston Martin due to sell but a small French hatchback used in the iconic For Your Eyes Only chase scene. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 8 The little motor was scene in the iconic Roger Moore 007 film For Your Eyes Only Credit: Shutterstock Editorial 8 Its not a vintage Aston Martin up for sale Credit: Shutterstock Editorial 8 Each of the six 2CVs used for filming were fitted with bigger engines Credit: HeritageAuctions/BNPS The tiny Citroen 2CV is currently available for purchase after it was rescued from a French scrapyard. Six of the little motors were destroyed during the filming of the chase scene. This is the only one of the six to ever be offered up for sale at auction. A month long online bidding war has been started for the little car with bids already reaching $120,000 or £89,000. It's hoped that the motor will fetch a price of about $500,000 or £370,000 by the time bidding closes on July 17. The iconic chase scene featuring the little 2CV sees Moore jump into the passenger seat of Melina Havelock's (Carole Bouquet) Citroen to escape the gun fire of villain Hector Gonzalez's goons. In the ensuing chaos of the chase the 2CV ends up flipping onto its roof to avoid a bus. It's then flipped back onto four wheels by Bond and some helpful locals before fleeing once again. The small 2CV is eventually rolled down a hill by one of the pursuing Peugeot's, ending up partially crushed before being reversed off towards a sharp turn by 007. In the iconic chase scene Bond takes the tiny Citroen off-road through olive groves and says the famous line: "I love a drive in the country, don't you?" Iconic 90s Ferrari Jeremy Clarkson dubbed the 'greatest car in the world, ever' up for sale for eye-watering price Six bright yellow 2CV's were left damaged in the filming process of the chase scene which sees Bond jump one over the last pursuing Peugeot. The 2CV up for auction is one of only three to avoid complete destruction. All three surviving 2CVs received a few dents and scrapes with the model up for auction boasting a missing headlight and a fair few scratches in the paintwork. The models used for filming were fitted with more powerful engines not available in standard 2CVs. Standard 2CVs were powered by a 602cc flat-twin engine mustering around 33bhp. 8 Moore said the car was his favourite and wrote in his memoirs about the fun he had driving it Credit: HeritageAuctions/BNPS 8 The motor sustained some damage during filming Credit: HeritageAuctions/BNPS 8 Bidding for the car will close on July 17 Credit: HeritageAuctions/BNPS The six Bond vehicles used in filming featured a larger 1.1-litre engine that was lifted from the Citroën GS. No roll cage was fitted to the one up for auction as it was used specifically for driving shots with Moore and Bouquet. Moore gave a Top Gear interview stating the little French hatchback was his favourite Bond car writing later in his memoir about the fun he had driving the small motor. The three surviving motors were split up after filming with one sold off to a UK collector. One was taken by Citroen for the firm's private collection and the third, which is now up for auction, was sent to a recycling facility in Paris. The famous little car was rescued from the scrapyard and sold to its current owner in 2004. It has been fitted with replacement yellow doors and boot lid, yellow roof, and seats. The car is being sold for display purposes only and is not considered to be roadworthy. A certificate of authenticity will be provided to the winning bidder. 8 The iconic chase scene saw six of the small cars get wrecked Credit: Shutterstock Editorial 8 Only three survived the filming
