Along the Mississippi River
In Thibodeaux we chat to a ranger about the ecology of the area. The Mississippi Delta is draining 31 states and a couple of Canadian provinces. The outlet of the river changed 5 times in the past 3500 years. The irrigation and drainage reduced its flow in the outlet to 1/10 of what it originally was. In addition, the oil companies built extra waterways. In consequences, the plants and trees lack freshwater, suffocate in saltwater and die. The soil, unprotected, is washed up, the result is a loss of one hectare every 30 minutes.
The abundance of water in the area allowed the plantations to be fruitful. There were hundreds of sugar cane plantations along the 70 miles of River Road in the ninethinth century. West of New Orleans, this road along the Mississippi river is now a popular attraction for tourists. We decide to visit Whitney plantation, now a museum dedicated to slavery’s sad history. This plantation used 354 slaves during its working years.
Slaves where brought to America by ship, conditions were harsh, 10 millions out of the 12 made it alive. Importation of slaves was made illegal in 1808 and domestic trade accelerated from North to South where the cotton industry needed labor. Lincoln won the election in 1860. His will to end slavery lead to the civil war between the US and the southern states. The North won and the abolition was official in 1865.
From the buildings still standing on the Whitney plantation we can see the contrast between the slaves cabins and the owner’s house. When they could finally break free a lot of slaves remained working in the plantations because they had no other skills and no shelter, food and clothes supplied to them anymore.
Further down the river is our next stop: New Orleans.
Driving into the city we can clearly tell its lack of money, surely because of hurricane Katrina -the roads are in really bad shape. We park on Magazine Street and stroll along it and back. It’s a beautiful street filled with typical houses, antique shops, local designers stores, bars and restaurants, and it’s a nice first feel of the “Big Easy”.
