I know it's late April but this ridiculous Winter has put off Spring here in South Louisiana until now. But here it has finally arrived, Spring! Usually, in this part of the country we get very little Winter conditions. Some off and on cold fronts in December, then a fairly cold January leads to a February that starts with a freeze or two. Then by March 1st we are experiencing early Spring in Cajun land. But for this year it has been a different story. Winter started in late October and stayed all the way through until the first week of April. Not off and on like usual. Also, we had three snow/ice events. We average one snow event every five years down here. It's really a big deal because we don't know how to deal with the snow and our entire state shuts down. I don't think there is a single snow plow in the state.
Although it usually starts on March 1st, Spring has finally arrived and that's means lots of good things in Cajun land. It means the start of Fairs and Festivals. You name a native food and we have a Festival for it. Anything from Tomatoes to Alligators we have a food festival for that. It also starts the season of music festivals, including the world famous New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival and the growing Bayou Country Music Fest. But to me by far the best the about Spring in Louisiana is that fact that it is Crawfish Season. As the temperature rises the mud bugs come out and grow. By the end of April and the beginning of May there will be a crawfish boil to attend almost every weekend. That's the good life in Louisiana.
Sure there are plenty of other things to do in the Spring. There are company picnics, camping trips, gardens that need to be tended to, and lots of other family events. Spring represents a rebirth and a renewal a things from the long cold Winter. Especially after this insane Winter. And those that know me and my family know we have big plans with graduation on our plate this May in our home. It just seems the higher that Sun gets in the sky and the warmer it gets the more I think about soaking those crawfish in some cayenne pepper! So I hope you enjoy your Spring Festivals, the warm Spring breezes, and your boiling pot is filled with hot, spicy, plentiful, delicious,crawfish. Happy Spring everybody!
