Day 27 - Louisiana

Day 27

Evening

St. Francisville, LA

Dear Miss Smith,
Today was such a fun adventure. We went to visit Grandmother’s Buttons Museum.

Inside, we entered an old bank vault and saw the walls lined with buttons. Eight wall cases displayed thousands of antique fasteners dating from the 1760’s all the way through the 1940’s. 

One case held buttons that were finely crafted for men of the 18th century. 
Five cases were filled with buttons from the era of Queen Victoria.

Mom would have loved seeing them. She and I share the love for old fashioned things.

Mikayla and I were in awe at all the buttons there were. Miss Priscilla and Miss Amy enjoyed themselves too.

As we were leaving the gift shop, to my disappointment they didn’t sell any purses. 
Everything was lovely. I saw a watch for sale that Nanna would have loved but unfortunately it was out of my price range.

It’s getting late and I am supposed to cook dinner. Mikayla is out walking the dogs, and I am going to help Miss Amy cook.

Take care,

Grace Mae~ 

P.S. Miss Smith, this is Priscilla, now. Grace is allowing me the use of this last bit of her paper. I just wanted to mention what I purchased for my "50-State" hat. It is a lovely German glass cameo charm. It will remind me of the lovely plantations we have seen here in Louisiana. 

~ PDS

Day 27 - Louisiana

Day 27

Afternoon

Nov. 8

Baton Rouge, Louisiana

Dear Mrs. Smith,

            Today we went to the Enchanted Doll Museum where we saw dolls from the early years to the today like the Madame Alexander doll.

            When we got to the doll museum I was sure that if we were younger we might have thought we were in heaven.

            The exhibits were behind glass so little girls wouldn’t try and take the valuable dolls.  Some however were out so they could touch them. My favorite of the exhibits were the storybook dolls. I like the dolls' dresses mainly. 

            I think Amy liked the "Gone with the Wind." Grace liked the "Seasonal Walk Through," where there were dolls for all seasons of the year. Priscilla really liked all the exhibits especially the little baby sleeping on the moon.

            They had one-of-a-kind dolls that you can never see any more, like the Madonna and the Archangel Michael.

In the gift shop we saw little furniture and big furniture for all sizes. There were tea sets with the colors from pink to light baby blue. 

 They had dolls from newborn to teen. [For some reason that just does not sound right] but the smallest dolls were about the size of a grown woman’s hand. There were dolls that had from medieval times to modern clothing. I bought Grace a beautiful little purse, and Amy a hat, and 

Priscilla's Doll

Priscilla a doll for her collection. (The hat looked like something Priscilla would wear.)

I really enjoyed walking through the past to the future, even if it was represented with dolls.

                                                Sincerely,

                                                Mikayla 

Day 27 - Louisiana

Day 27

November 8

Vacherie, LA

My Dear Miss Smith,

We are on our way to a doll museum in Baton Rouge right now. I am letting Amy drive for she has promised not to scare me, and I wanted to get this out in the mail to you before noon.

I’m sure Mikayla told you all about our wonderful day yesterday seeing all those animals, so I won’t go into that again.

This morning Amy got us all up early. It was before six o’clock! She does like to rise early. But this morning she had good reason for we had decided to breakfast at Oak Alley Plantation and we had a ways to drive to reach there. Having spent the night and enjoyed breakfast at Nottaway Plantation, we were sure we knew what to expect.

We couldn’t have been more wrong. Yes, both are plantations restored as much like the original as possible, but Oak Alley made you feel as though you stepped back in time. I told the girls that I felt as though we should have our hoop-skirts and bonnets on. At least I wore my cream and gold hat. I offered hats to the others, but they all refused them. I’ll have to keep working on them; Amy especially needs help with her choice of hats. But I digress.

Imagine standing before a rot-iron gate and looking down a lane lined on either side by tall, spreading oaks. At the very end of the lane, framed by the arching branches, which in summer I’m sure are a mass of green, stands the mansion; its white pillars standing like sentinels before the large doors while lights glimmer through the windows. We were all speechless for several minutes. And when I say that, you can know for certain that it was all beyond description.

We took a tour and I felt as though I had stepped out of the page of a history book. The tour guides were all in period costume and, oh, Miss Smith, I am at a loss for words to describe it. I could have stayed there for weeks just wandering the grounds,

studying the decorations, the paintings, the furnishings. I would love to sit and dream. I know that were Bekah to come here she would compose a new novel, for the very air seems to inspire one with the past.

At last we did return to dine. The restaurant is not in the main house, but in a smaller one nearby, but still on the grounds. 

It was truly a southern breakfast complete with grits. Amy and Grace didn’t care for them, but Mikayla tolerated them while I ate them with great enjoyment.

Our stop at the gift shop caused us to leave with a few small things and then, with great reluctance, we tore ourselves away as we still had two museums to see before bed.

Mikayla just saw the sign for our turn off, so I will end this now.

With love,

~Priscilla

Day 26 - Louisiana

Day 26

Nov. 8   

New Orleans, Louisiana

 Dear Mrs. Smith,

            It has been quite fun so far, and we have been to the Audubon Aquarium, Zoo, and Insectarium. 

Golden Lion Tamarin

            First we went to the Zoo where we saw Monkeys that looked like Lions, gorillas, Flamingoes, from a bright pink color to white, and Rhino Birds.

Malayan Sun Bear

            My favorite is the Malayan Sun Bear, but Grace’s was the Miniature Donkey. It was not more than 36 inches. 

Amur Leopard

Amy however, I think she liked the Amur Leopard while Priscilla liked the blue and gold Macaw.

Macaw

            Of course they had the common ferret, found in a pet shop. But still it was fun to see the giraffe’s, and see the Lions, the Lemurs, and the alligators.

            In the Insectarium there was the Underground Gallery where we were ‘shrunk’ to the size of a bug. Priscilla thought the huge bugs were interesting, though I thought the large worm was a bit much. Amy and Grace did not seem to mind the big bugs on the walls and in the hallways.

            When we came to where real bugs were I was glad that they were small and not as big as the other ‘bugs’.  One of the prettiest was the pink Katydid. I admit it was kind of pretty but… I just do not like bugs. 

But I did like the blue morpho Butterfly.

            What was really funny was that when we stopped at the Tiny Termite Cafe to eat since Priscilla had worn her Bee Hive hat the Honey Bees in the glass exhibit on our table tried to get into her hat! 

            Then we moved slowly from exhibit to exhibit, commenting here and there on the odd bugs and butterflies we saw.

            Priscilla and Amy decided that we should move on to the Aquarium before 5:00 pm.

As soon as we got there I saw a large White alligator. “Wow, he looks like he been painted, then bleached” Grace said softly.

            “Yes and look at those spots,” Priscilla pointed out.

             We saw penguins, “African Penguins!” I gasped, looked at the board again.

             “Yep, but they are on the southwestern coast of Africa” Amy said looking down and reading.

            Then we saw the fish: Blue Surgeon, the common Clownfish, Lionfish, Potbellied Seahorse, sea Anemones, and Sharks. 

There were also some stingrays and turtles.

Smile!

 I really thought for second that the Blue Surgeon fish looked liked Dory in Nemo.

The day ended all too soon. And, to tell you the truth, I wanted to stay there longer!

Sincerely,

Mikayla

Day 25 - Louisiana

Day 25

Nov. 7

New Orleans, LA

Oh Miss Smith!

Today has been such a delight! We went to the Insta-Gator in Covington, Louisiana and got to play with and hold baby alligators. Now, Miss Smith, please don’t shake your head and call me hopeless. When I was in Egypt I got to see crocodiles in the Nile, but I never was as close to them as I was to these American cousins of theirs. I don’t know, are they cousins to each other? I should have asked. You have wondered what the difference between the two and, though there are many, one main one is that crocodiles have very bad teeth which go in every directions. Some are seriously in need of major dental work and long time braces.

Upon arriving, we decided to look through the gift shop quickly and then head on to the real fun. Our tour was quite fascinating as well as intriguing. We got to see the plane and boat used to locate alligator nests. I can’t even imagine trying to steal eggs from an alligator’s nest! Did you know, Miss Smith, that the warmth of a nest decides the sex of the babies? They are either all boys or all girls.

Also on the tour we got to walk across secure walkways above the water where alligators from one foot to four feet live. The water was very clear. They had to reassure Grace and Mikayla that the walkways were safe and that they would not end up in the water with the gators before they would walk on them. Our guide, however, jumped into the water and caught an alligator! After he was out of the water with the gator, he looked about at those of us in the tour group, and he called me to come help him tape the gator’s mouth shut! Oh, Miss Smith! I was thrilled to my very finger tips. The gator didn’t like it though and spanked me with his tail.

Isn't he cute?

Our next stop was the best part of the day. At least it was in my humble estimation. They have a large, not too deep pool where they place the baby alligators to be played with. Have no fear, Miss Smith, they do tape the babies’ mouths shut. They do not want any missing fingers. We got to pet and play with them and hold them. They are very strong for their size and it takes some doing to hold them for long. I was the first one to do so, but Amy wasn’t far behind. It took Grace a little while to gather up enough courage to actually join us while Mikayla stood back and laughed at us. She does like to laugh when she is nervous. After much coaxing she finally came over, put her hand in the water and touched one of the alligators. However, no matter how hard we tried, we couldn’t get her to pick one up, so I decided to take matters into my own hands so to speak, or out of them, I should say. Turning to Mikayla, I handed her the one I was holding, telling her that I had to fix my hat. It was quite true for my green hat was slipping and I had no wish for it to end up floating with baby alligators. Those little things are surprisingly strong, as I mentioned, and that one must not have liked Mikayla as well as she liked me for with only two twists she was back in the water. I really believe Mikayla was relieved. But, she can now go home and announce that she held a baby alligator.

Something we learned during our stay was that alligators sometimes don’t eat for six months! And they don’t move when they are full of a meal. Now that would be the best time I would think to rob a nest. But how would you know when the mama was full? Tis a puzzle for other brains besides mine.

We visited the gift shop before we left, and yes, Grace bought another purse. This one was made of alligator leather. I wonder how many purses she will end up with before we are back home, since she is going to six other states with us.

It was late afternoon before we left Covington to continue on our way. Speaking of Covington, I believe Bekah has some friends with the last name of Covington. I wonder, was the city named after some ancestor of theirs? We didn’t see much of it as we headed down to New Orleans.

You want to drive over this?

Do you recall, Miss Smith, when we discussed bridges? Well, you will be interested to know that we were privileged to travel across the world’s longest bridge. We had to cross Lake Pontchartrain in order to reach the zoo, aquarium and insectarium we will visit tomorrow. I drove since I didn’t trust Amy quite enough for crossing the 23.83 miles of bridge. There were many exclamations after we had paid our toll and were actually on the bridge itself. But, it wasn’t long before a dead silence filled the RV. At last Mikayla spoke in a quiet voice.

“What would happen if the bridge broke?”

Grace gave a gasp and Amy hastened to say, “It won’t.”

Since I didn’t want any panic stricken girls causing tension while I drove, I quickly had Amy put on a CD with songs from Broadway musicals. That distracted them enough to take their mind off the thought of danger.

At last we reached the end of the bridge and there was a collective sigh of relief. Now we are parked near our morning destination for the night. The three girls, having first taken the dogs for a long walk, are preparing supper. There seems to be less confusion in the kitchenette (that is what Amy calls it) than when Joseph and Levi were helping.

I wish, Miss Smith, that I could have taken a baby alligator home, but there were several reasons why I couldn’t.

1- We have no place to keep him here in the RV.

  2- Amy would have had a fit had I tried to find a place for one. She probably would have gone right home and left me to continue alone.

3- The dogs would have kept up such an incessant barking I’m quite sure that we never would have been able to sleep.

4- Baby alligators don’t mail very well or I might have tried to send one to you through the post office. I don’t believe the U. S. Postal service would have taken kindly to that package.

5- There was absolutely no way Mikayla or Grace would take one back on the plane with them even if security would let them.

And 6- Alligators can grow up to four feet in a year and would soon outgrow our bathtubs. (Can you imagine having a child grow that much in a year? Think of all the clothes you would have to buy!)

Therefore, I have left all the baby alligators behind. Perhaps we can see some more in Florida or Georgia.

Penelope or “Nellie” as Amy has taken to calling her, is curled up on my lap dozing, but I smell something good cooking; therefore, I will end this and prepare to enjoy the meal.

Much love,

~ Priscilla

Day 24 - Louisiana

Day 24

Nov. 5-6

White Castle, Louisiana

Dear Miss Smith,

I am very happy to announce that my hand has recovered enough to allow me to write. I still have to be careful though. I can’t lift much of anything heavy but a pencil is light enough, I think.

So we’re back to an all-girl crew (with the exception of Timber who is still here as bodyguard). I miss the boys’ rowdiness but I’m sure we’ll be seeing them again. And it’s great having Grace and Mikayla with us.

The omelet festival was great fun but I think Grace planned on writing about that so I shall content myself with telling about Nottaway Plantation. It took us about 2 hours to get here. ‘Cilla drove this time. I think she’d had enough of my driving for a while after the other day when she fancied I drove the RV a bit too much like I would drive my brother’s truck back at the farm. I suspect I scared her just a bit. Oops! I wasn’t going to mess anything up though! I was in perfect control, I assure you!

But anyway, we got to Nottaway Plantation in time for a slightly late dinner. Just the little bit of the place that we saw when we first got there was stunning! I couldn’t imagine actually living in a place like that!

For dinner we had the option of an appetizer but decided to skip that and go straight on to the salad or soup and main course. I got the Corn and Crab Bisque just because it had brie cheese in it (I know, I’m hopeless when it comes to cheese). It was delicious! The main course was hard for me to choose. I always had trouble when it comes to making a choice like that. I finally decided to go for the Parmesan and Herb-crusted Chicken. I can’t tell you just how delicious it was! ‘Cilla got the roasted duck. Don’t ask me WHY she wanted that one. Just seeing that it contains lemon grass turned me off. I don’t have a very good relationship with lemon grass, I’m afraid. She says it was delicious though. Mikayla went for the Shrimp and Grits and Grace chose the St. Louis Ribs.

After dinner we got to see our rooms. We’re all in different rooms tonight so we decided to go look at all four of them before settling down in our separate places. I almost chose a room in the Overseer’s Cottage but then decided it would be less of a hassle if I were to pick on in the mansion… not to mention I found a room I liked better.

'Cilla's Room

Priscilla and I are both on the second floor so we saw our rooms first. ‘Cilla has the Ella Eugenia Randolph room. It’s very pretty, decorated with lots of red. She’s lucky she chose first otherwise she would’ve had to give that one up to me. Ella Eugenia was the oldest of the Randolph children. She later married and lived in Mississippi.

There is a veranda from her room looking out into a beautiful courtyard sporting one of the most beautiful fountains I’ve ever seen! Since our rooms are right next to each other we share the same view of the courtyard. Since the night wasn’t too cold I left my windows open so I could hear the water all night. There is just something about running water that seems to draw people to it. Have you ever noticed that?

My Room

My room was Mary Augusta Randolph’s room. She was number five of the eleven Randolph children and married a prominent New Orleans lawyer. The room is darker than ‘Cilla’s but still has the touch of red in the antique bed, though I think black would be the more prominent color.

Mikayla's Room

Mikayla and Grace were both on the third floor. Mikayla’s room is the Cornelia Randolph room, quite girly and elegant. The four-poster bed is mahogany with pink bedding. Cornelia was the seventh of the children and actually published a diary called “The White Castle of Louisiana” about her life there. I wonder if it’s still in print. If it is, I think I shall try to find it to read.

Grace's Room

Grace’s room was the one named after Sarah Virginia Randolph. It is definitely a girly room, practically all pink! While Mikayla’s room looks out on the river Grace had a view of the gorgeous gardens. Sarah Randolph was the only one of the Randolph sisters to never marry, I think due to an unknown disease that she suffered from most of her life. It is suspected that she may have been engaged though as her nickname (Sally) can be seen etched into one of the windowpanes in the girls’ wings. You may ask what this would have to do with her being engaged as I asked myself. It was customary then for a betrothed woman to write her name with her diamond ring. Did you know that? I had never of this!

After we’d seen all of our rooms ‘Cilla and I left Grace and Mikayla and went to check on the dogs. They aren’t allowed inside, of course, so they’re staying in the RV tonight. After making sure they were settled for the night we came inside to start getting ready for the night.

It’s been a long day so we were all somewhat tired. I’m sitting out on my veranda right now as I write this. Priscilla was out here with me for a little while but she just went inside a few minutes ago. Since we have good internet service here my family and I planned a webcam call. We’ve talked on the phone numerous times since I left but it’ll be good to actually see them again! After that I think I shall take a soak in the great tub and then go to bed.

Wow! I didn’t realize how long this had become. No wonder my wrist is starting to hurt a bit. I should probably stop before I really overdo it. So, for now, good night, Miss Smith!

Despite staying up a bit too late last night I woke up bright and early this morning so, since I correctly guessed that Priscilla and the girls were all still in bed or, if they were awake, they weren’t awake enough to do much of anything, I went out and invited the dogs for a walk. We went all around the grounds. Since it was still pretty early we didn’t meet many people out and about.

After putting the poor dogs back in the RV I went back to my room to get cleaned up a bit before breakfast. I met the girls in the dining room. I must say, breakfast was just as good, if not better, than dinner last night. To begin with we each got a delicious yogurt and granola parfait with strawberries. After that I got Brioche French Toast and sausage. Grace and Mikayla both had buttermilk pancakes and bacon while ‘Cilla, ever for the strange-sounding foods, got Tasso Benedict with grits. And then to drink I had orange juice, of course. I’ve never been able to pass that up.

After breakfast we went out for a tour of the grounds. Did you know that during the Randolph's time it was customary for a young man, once he reached about fourteen years of age, to be housed separately with his servants and tutor, because he was then considered an adult? I did not know this before.

After the tour we ended up in the gift shop. There are all sorts of trinkets and books there. While there I found a perfect gift for Caleb… but I’m not telling what it was as I daresay he’ll read this.

We’re back in the RV now, on our way to see a bunch of alligators (THAT was ‘Cilla’s idea). I think I shall end this quickly so we can drop it in the mail at the next opportunity.

~Amy~

Day 22 & 23 - Louisiana

Day 22

November 5

Abbeville, Louisiana

Dear Miss Smith,
I arrived safely at the airport. Miss Priscilla and Miss Amy met me there. I am so excited about this trip. I met Mikayla and got to know her as we flew in. We headed back to the RV for the night.


The next day we went to the Great Omelette Festival here in Abbeville, Louisiana. We arrived in the afternoon. They make the world’s biggest omelette. 

According to legend, when Napoleon and his army were traveling through the south of France, they decided to rest for the night near the town of Bessieres. He feasted on an omelette prepared by a local innkeeper which was so delightful that he ordered the people in the village to gather all the eggs they could to make a huge omelette for his army the next day.

We went to see the art booths. Mikayla and I stayed together while Miss Priscilla and Miss Amy walked around. There were so many things to see and do. I bought some homemade soap and a purse. If I told Mom she would say, "You bought another purse?" I guess I am addicted to them. I bought Mikayla one too.


Later, we headed back to the RV for a while. I played with the dogs some. I can tell you that Miss Amy’s hand looks better than I had thought. She is using it more. After supper we all turned in for the night.
Talk to you later and look forward to hearing from you. I bought you something at the one art booth. Miss Priscilla said you would love it. I’ll mail it to you soon.

Love,

Grace Mae~

Day 23

Nov. 6

Today we enjoyed the celebration. It all started with the members of the Omelette celebration marching down the streets to greet the crowd. After that they started to make the omelette.

They used 5,027 eggs this year, Isn’t that a lot? I thought it was. They have a big fire going underneath this big, big, metal skillet. It is a 12 foot pan!

They add the butter, chives, and then the eggs. When it is done they gave us all some samples with bread. It was delicious. After that we walked around and talked some.


Miss Priscilla said it was getting late, and we should head back to the RV so we can get to Nottoway Plantation.

Love,

Grace Mae~

Day 21 - Texas

Day 21

Nov. 4

Houston, Texas

Dear Miss Smith,

 We visited the Johnson Space Center today. The visitor’s center is actually called Space Center Houston. All the exhibits are very interesting. My favorite was the tram tour, where we were able to go through parts of the Johnson space center and the Apollo Mission control. 

It also took us through the Saturn V complex. The other interesting part was the Astronaut Gallery. It had a lot of space suits on display, including John Young’s.

It is too bad we couldn’t stay two days instead of one, but Miss de Silvosa has to stay on her schedule. As I write this we are on our way to the airport for Levi and I to catch our flights for home. It has been lots of fun, but it will be good to get home and caught up on sleep. (Miss de Silvosa should have gotten a RV with a bigger grannies attic. It’s kind of hard to sleep in such a cramped spot.)

Regards,

            Joseph