Memorial Day Weekend in Acadiana

    Kids are out of school, temperatures are rising and the fun keeps on this Memorial Day Weekend. There are plenty of events happening in Lafayette and surrounding area for the long weekend. Here are a few to choose from:
    The Cajun Heartland State Fair opens Thursday, May 23, 2013, and continues with live entertainment, carnival rides and more through June 2 at the Cajundome. Rides include the giant Ferris wheel, Crazy Mouse and the Mega Drop. Performers include Bag of Donuts, Wayne Toups, Geno Delafose and French Rockin’ Boogie, Louisiana’s Leroux and more. Check the web site for special offers!

Cajun Heartland State Fair

    Looking for live music? Downtown Alive!, a weekly family-friendly free concert series held in downtown Lafayette, presents Sassafras Jubilee at 6 p.m. Friday, May 24, in Parc San Souci. In Opelousas, the Music & Market Spring Series continues with Bon Soir, Catin from 5:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Friday at the Courthouse Square.
    The Okra and Creole Zydeco Festival will be Friday and Saturday, May 24-25, at 203 N. New Market St. in St. Martinville, the first year in which the two original festivals (Okra Festival and Creole Zydeco Festival) are combined into a special two-day event that supports the African-American Museum.
    For families, there’s the Downtown Lafayette Movies in the Parc on Saturday at the Downtown Drive-In Parking Lot, 725 Jefferson St. “The Neverending Story” will be shown for $2 (free for children 5 and under) and food and beverages will be available on-site for purchase.
    Outdoor enthusiasts will want to paddle down Bayou Vermilion on Saturday, May 25, leaving at 8:30 a.m. at Vermilionville. Later on at 1 p.m. Saturday, Vermilionville offers its weekly Cajun jam session, so why not stay and dance! On Sunday, May 26, Vermilionville’s Bal du Dimanche (Sunday dance) features Carl Hollier and Cajun Company from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m.
    To honor those who have served, the Lafayette Concert Band presents “Songs of Remembrance” at 3:30 p.m. Sunday, May 26, at East Bayou Baptist Church. The concert is free.

    Zydeco Extravaganza with music, food and fun begins at noon Sunday,  May 26, at the Evangeline Downs Event Center in Opelousas. The music lineup includes Keith Frank, Chris Ardoin, Geno Delafose, Brian Jack, Leon Chavis, Same Ol' 2 Step, Cupid and many more. Admission is $15 pre-sale; $20 at gate.

Lafayette’s restaurant scene continues to evolve

La Carreta

    This spring, several new restaurants have opened or announced openings, expanding the city’s already vibrant and award-winning culinary scene.
    Social Southern Table & Bar opened at 3901 Johnston St., “a chef-driven bar” that combines a sophisticated menu along with specialty cocktails and upscale beers and wines.
    La Carreta now serves up Mexican dishes and margaritas, among other drink specialties, at 400 Jefferson St. in the heart of downtown Lafayette.
     Brick & Spoon unveiled the first of what will be its five restaurants in three states with its Lafayette flagship eatery in the Grand Pointe Village shopping center of Lafayette. The restaurant offers a breakfast, brunch and lunch menu featuring fresh ingredients, local farm produce and the most elaborate Bloody Marys on earth.

Deviled on the Bayou at Brick & Spoon

    Coming up on May 20, the Lafayette version of Ruffino’s opens in River Ranch, a popular Baton Rouge restaurant specializing in steak, seafood and Italian fare. Titled Ruffino’s on the River, the restaurant’s regional specialties will include a shrimp corndog appetizer and Louisiana crawfish ravioli. Ruffino’s is helmed by Chef Peter Sclafani, named “Restaurateur of the Year” by the Louisiana Restaurant Association for two consecutive years (2010, 2011), Baton Rouge’s Chef of the Year in 2004 and the city’s Marketer of the Year in 2011.
     Lafayette was named the town “Best for Food” in America in the 2011 Best of the Road Rally by Rand McNally and the “Tastiest Town” in 2012 by Southern Living magazine.
    For information on Lafayette’s restaurants, food tours, Boudin Trail, recipes and more, visit http://www.lafayettetravel.com/eat.

Festival International de Louisiane 101

    When Festival International rolls around, Lafayette residents greet each other with smiles, saying, “Happy Festival.” There’s a lot of be happy about.

 The five-day, community-based, non-profit arts-driven festival celebrates the French culture of South Louisiana by honoring our own and those of many other countries, such as Africa, France, Canada and the Caribbean, to name only a few. Best of all, the more than 100 musical performances on five stages and throughout the festival grounds is free!
     You must see our world-renowned festival to believe it. In addition to the world music, there’s arts and crafts, a world market, special events from theater to parades and fabulous food. It’s why Festival International won Best World Music Festival in About.com’s World Music Readers’ Choice Awards for two years running!
    Here’s a primer on how to best enjoy Festival International de Louisiane April 23-27, 2014. Happy Festival!
1.    Festival always happens the last weekend in April which means it’s highly likely to be warm and sunny. Don’t leave home without sunscreen, sunglasses and/or a hat. An umbrella tote comes in handy as well. And if you don’t have any of the above items, all can be found at Festival stalls.
2.    Speaking of hats, Festival celebrates creativity so if you’ve been waiting for a good time to wear your favorite — albeit outrageous hat — go for it! The same applies to clothes. You’re here to have fun!
3.    Festival takes place throughout downtown Lafayette and parking can be an issue. Many people bike to Festival and there are plenty of secure places to park your bike. Also, a handy shuttle is available from nearby Cajun Field, allowing participants to park in a lighted, secure area. Both parking and the shuttle are free.

 4.    Things allowed include collapsible chairs, blankets and fun items such as hulla hoops (these were so popular last year!) Things not allowed include pets, ice chests, tents, carts and the like.
5.    This is a family friendly event so bring everyone. Daytime activities are more relaxed with nighttime concerts more crowded; something to consider.
    For more information, visit http://www.festivalinternational.com.

Shot in Lafayette

    Lafayette with its diverse terrain and film talent has attracted filmmakers for decades. The city offers two outstanding film festivals — the Southern Screen Film Festival held in the fall and Cinema on the Bayou in January — and is home to Pixel Magic, a production company that produces visual effects for many blockbuster films, including “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows,” “Beautiful Creatures,” “Secretariat” and “The Chronicles of Narnia.”
    On Saturday, April 20, 2013, as part of INNOV8, the Louisiana Immersive Technologies Enterprise (LITE Center) will hold an open house that includes a look inside Pixel Magic. Titled “Behind the Scenes of Hollywood Movies,” there will be a demonstration from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. for all audiences and a demonstration in the more technical side of the VFX process from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m.    
    Also this year, Festival International de Louisiane presents Soirées du Cinema, a free film series taking place Tuesday, April 23, at Cité des Arts, 109 Vine St. in downtown Lafayette. Films to be shown are “Rise Up” (Jamaica, 2012), Best Music Documentary winner at Silverdocs AFI/Discovery Channel Documentary Festival, and “Brushy, the King of One String” (Jamaica, 2012).
    Here are a few movies made in the Lafayette area:
    Secretariat (2010) with Diane Lane, John Malkovich and Scott Glenn
    The Apostle (1997) with Robert Duvall and Farrah Fawcett
    Southern Comfort (1981) with Keith Carradine, Powers Boothe, Alan Autry and Peter Coyote. (The Bayou Vermilion District’s free monthly cultural film series Les Vues presents “Southern Comfort” at 6:30 p.m. April 29, 2013, in their Performance Center with local filmmaker Zack Godshall curating.)
    Belizaire the Cajun (1986) with Armand Assante, Will Patton and Gail Youngs
    Casey’s Shadow (1978) with Walter Matthau
    The Drowning Pool (1975) starring Paul Newman, Joanne Woodward and a young Melanie Griffith
    Nevada Smith (1966) with Steve McQueen 
    Easy Rider (1969) with Dennis Hopper and Peter Fonda
    And that’s just a small selection of the many films shot in and around Lafayette. For a more extensive list, visit HollywoodOnTheBayou.com.

INNOV8: 8 days spotlighting Lafayette innovation

    Lafayette is known for its vibrant arts scene and its innovative technology, as a hub for healthcare and a strong entrepreneurial spirit. INNOV8, a project of the Greater Lafayette Chamber of Commerce, celebrates this spirit with an eight-day festival of innovation Friday, April 19, to Friday, April 26, 2013. Events focus on Lafayette’s creative economy, entrepreneurship, education, healthcare, technology and innovative endeavors from business start-ups to success stories, from digital interactive technology to art and music.

LITE (Louisiana Immersive Technologies Enterprise) Center

    Here are a few spotlights. For a complete list of events, visit http://innov8lafayette.com.
    Beginning at 2:30 p.m. Friday, April 19, Peruvian artist Grimanesa Amoros presents a lecture on how she uses sculpture, video and lighting techniques to create amazing works of art at the LITE (Louisiana Immersive Technologies Enterprise) Center. Registration is requested for this free event, visit http://liteuroshouse.eventbrite.com.
    The LITE Center is a 3-D immersive visualization resource center located at the Research Park of the University of Louisiana Lafayette. LITE is the only facility of its kind in North America open to both industry and academia.
    Some of the clients at LITE will be giving demonstrations at the iOpener from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, April 20. There will be Pixel Magic’s “Behind the Scenes of Hollywood Movies” (did you know the 3-D of Harry Potter was created here?), demonstrations on underwater robots and a view inside the 3-D computer known as the “Egg.” Visitors may also play interactive video games against music and lift more than 5,000 pounds in a human-powered crane.
    More iOpener events include the neighboring Picard Center and the UL main campus. For more information on iOpener and a schedule of events, visit www.lite3d.com/iOpener.
    INNOV8 includes the Louisiana Soundtrack Experience, starting a music career, business workshops and the Cajun Code Fest coding competition, among many others.

Cycle Zydeco beings Bicycle Month!

            Lafayette Parish celebrates Bicycle Month in April with Cycle Zydeco as the kickoff event.

            Cycle Zydeco, scheduled for April 4-7, 2013, is a bike tour through Acadiana complemented by live Louisiana music and zydeco lessons, local cuisine and special events such as swamp tours, among much more. The four-day, 200-mile bike tour will be ridden at a moderate or leisurely pace in order to absorb the unique Cajun and Creole cultures and food. Bikers will travel from Lafayette, through St. Martinville, Breaux Bridge, Henderson, Arnaudville, Opelousas, Mamou and Eunice.

            Sponsored by TRAIL (Transportation Recreation Alternatives In Louisiana), this year’s riders will visit from 47 states and Canada. 

             The Cycle Zydeco bike tour will end on Sunday, April 7, 2013, at FestiVÉLO at Parc Sans Souci in downtown Lafayette. There will be food and drink, live music, a customized and restored bike show, group bike rides, springs and cycling skill classes from 10:30 a.m. to 6 p.m.  

            For more information on Cycle Zydeco, visit www.latrail.org. For more information on FestiVÉLO, visit http://goo.gl/YCGby.   

            Lafayette is a biking city! Beginning at the heart of downtown at Parc San Souci and traveling throughout Lafayette to Beaver Park is the Atakapa-Ishak (AI) Trail, a multi-phased, shared-use recreational trail named for the Atakapa-Ishak Native American Tribe who inhabited Southwest Louisiana coastal regions and prairies. Phase 2 of the Al Trail will continue through Beaver Park, underneath the US Hwy. 90 bridge at the Vermilion River and continue past Vermilionville to the Jean Lafitte Acadiana Cultural Center. More bike trails are also in the works.

            At the University of Louisiana-Lafayette, there is a University Commons multi-use path with plans for expansion, one of which is to link up with the Al Trail.

            For information on biking events, trails, bike safety and more, visit latrail.org/web/.

Lafayette and Acadiana a birder’s paradise

    Lafayette and South Louisiana is a birder’s paradise, offering some of the best bird watching opportunities in the nation.
    The terrain ranges from prairies and live oak cheniers to wetlands, bayous and lakes. Rice farms attract ducks and other waterfowl, while wetlands provide food and shelter for rookeries. There are resident species, such as wading birds and waterfowl, that visitors can spot year-round and migratory birds flying through on the Mississippi Flyway.

    The America’s Wetland Birding Trail consists of 115 bird watching sites in 12 trails within 22 Louisiana parishes. The Atchafalaya Loop, for instance, takes birders through the largest river swamp in North America, and includes bottomland hardwood ecosystems, wildlife management areas and the Atchafalaya National Wildlife Refuge. Be sure and visit Lake Martin-Cypress Island Preserve, one of the largest bird rookeries in North America with its approximate 20,000 nesting pairs of spring wading birds. Now and through late spring look for all kinds of egrets, great blue herons, little blue herons, roseate spoonbills, warblers, vireos, white ibis and anhingas, among others.
    At Lafayette and heading south is the Vermilion Loop, which takes visitors through marshlands toward the Gulf of Mexico. In the spring and fall birders may spot migratory neotropical songbirds. Waterfowl may be seen year-round within the rice farms and coastal prairie lands. 
    Local bird-related festivals include the winter Eagle Expo in Morgan City, the spring Bayou Teche Black Bear & Birding Festival in Franklin (April 29-21, 2013) and the Lafayette Hummingbird Day in the fall.
    This Saturday, March 30, 2013, at 9 a.m., Dr. Jay Huner of the University of Louisiana-Lafayette will speak on his challenge to see as many bird as possible in Louisiana in 2012, known as “The Big Year”at the Lafayette Wild Birds Unlimited. Other events happening this spring at Wild Birds Unlimited include a bird chat with field trip April 6 and May 4, shorebird identification with Clint Jeske of the National Wetlands Research Center on April 11, and a discussion of edible plants with Charles Allen on May 11.