  |        |   |
Bayou, By MeSlidell and Larose, LouisianaThis part of Louisiana is famous for its bayou. That's an area of really slow-moving water - like a swamp. The bayou is famous for two things: crabs and alligators! Okay, and maybe swamp monsters, too.  Los Viajeros wrote Bayou, By Me. It's a zydeco-style song. Zydeco music began in Louisiana. It's catchy, and usually features accordion.
Jude and his sister Morgan took Dad and me around the bayou in a pirogue, a flat-bottomed boat. Their friends Diego and Ulysses speak English and Cajun French. That's a kind of French that's special to this area.
We went crabbing while we were there. You attach a piece of chicken to a net, then drop the net into the water. Then you wait a few minutes, pull up the net, and see if you have a crab!
 Muffy e-mailed to say she has a better way to get a crab: you ask your butler to bring you one! I guess I could try that next time, but I didn't see many butlers in the bayou.
My favorite part of the trip was a big crab dinner! The crabs are boiled with lots of spices. It's tough to crack the crab's shell, but once you do that, it tastes great! It's like eating and exercise all at the same time.
We visited Dylan and his family, too. Their house is in the bayou, up on stilts to keep it dry. Every August the swamp floods - as high as Dylan's shoulders! Then they use canoes to get out of their house.
I went catfish fishing with Dylan at night. You bait your line with a piece of hotdog. It would have been fun, except... I didn't ask Dad's permission, and I felt guilty, so we came back early. I told Dad about it the next day.
|
|
All animated characters and underlying materials (including artwork) © Marc Brown.
Buster and the other Marc Brown characters are trademarks of Marc Brown.
©2008 WGBH