Hank – The Bayou Teche Museum was a lucky visit for us. It was actually closed because they were cleaning up after the big gala they had last night. Upon hearing we were traveling by bicycle and wouldn’t be able to return later in the day the ladies relented and let us in for free. There was plenty to learn about the local area and we enjoyed our visit very much. One of the auction items during last night’s gala was dinner for eight with Shaquille O’Neal for a minimum bid of $5,000. Had we only known.

We went to Victor’s Cafeteria for lunch. I had the fried fish and steamed broccoli and a broccoli salad. Everything was delicious.

When we left the cafeteria a couple stopped us and the guy said, “The word on the street is that you are from Oregon.” I was surprised at there being word on the street about us. It was the ladies at the museum. James and Annie of Atlanta had stopped at the museum but we’re turned away because they were closed. And then the woman politely asked if they were with the couple who were riding their bikes. How funny. James spent six years of his childhood in New Iberia. Annie is from Los Angeles. They were so nice. We enjoyed meeting them and included an obligatory photo of them for this blog.

We headed northwest on state highway 182 to Billeaud. (No, I don’t know how it’s pronounced.) We stopped at what we thought was going to be a Shell gas station but was really the Macro Oil/Transmission company. We met Melanie Bourque, Ricky Daigle, and Victoria Cornier. They were amazed at what we were up to and were a pure joy to meet. 

The conversation started something like this:

Melanie – “It’s a good day for a bike ride.”

Us – “Yes, it’s a beautiful day.”

Melanie – “Where’re ya’ll from?”

Us – “Spokane, Washington.”

Melanie – “Wait. Ya’ll didn’t ride your bikes here from Washington? Like the northwest Washington?”

We talked a while and they checked out our bikes. Again, we included another photo of great people we met. Melanie highly recommended the boudin balls at Billy’s Boudin and Cracklins, which is next to the KOA campground we’re staying at tonight. The what balls?

We pressed on to Lafayette. Kathy’s tire pump is shot so I wanted to pick up a new one. We split up and met at the KOA. I arrived first and the woman there took pity on me. She offered me a cabin for ten bucks over the cost of a tent site since it’s going to be so cold tonight. I don’t consider 38 degrees to be that cold but it was quite the bargain so I took it.

After we cleaned up I rode over to Billy’s Boudin to pick up some food. The drive up window had a huge line of cars, including a police car. I bought a regular boudin ball, a pepper jack boudin ball, and some cracklins. The boudin was good but too spicy for Kathy. The cracklins were tasty and crunchy. But with all of that being deep fried, I felt very uncomfortable eating it. Points for trying them, I guess.

Kathy – Our short 34-mile ride today was much better than yesterday. We started out cold at 31 degrees, but the sun was shining so it didn’t feel as cold as some of our recent days. Minimal winds and elevation made for a better ride today too. We only had 3.5 miles of really horrible roadway, so overall I consider this a good day.

The Bayou Teche Museum in New Iberia was pretty spectacular. We have seen many local museums during our travels, but this one is really is top notch. We enjoyed learning the city’s history along with learning about the local impacts with sugarcane field and Tabasco sauce that this region is known for. What a really cute small town. Everyone here was extremely kind and willing to assist us in any way possible. Too bad we did not know about the big fund raising gala last night at the museum, because we would have surely been there. Wished I had more time in New Iberia, Louisiana, what a great place. I will miss this beautiful city.

Things were going really well as we traveled on to other small towns today. We met some really awesome folks at the Macro Transmission truck stop near Billeaud, Louisiana. We really enjoyed our time chatting with these lovely people. I could have continued it conversations for hours, but we had to move on and they had to work. Such great people!

Later in the afternoon Hank and I went our separate way for the last eight miles or so. He hit the local bike shop in search of a new bike pump, whereas I hit the Piggly Wiggly to pick up a few groceries. Since it’s gonna be a cold night (35 degrees predicted) I was pleasantly surprised upon my arrival to the KOA to see we had a cabin rather than tenting it tonight. Lucky us! Thankful for a much better day than yesterday. 💗

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