Rainy Saturday, Hammond and Mandeville, LA

The rains came as predicted and I was kept inside the minivan in the morning. During a lull in the weather, I tried to get on the trails at Fontainebleau State Park, but found that they were too wet and muddy. But I did get a nice photo of Millie under a big oak tree with spanish moss hanging from it, as well as a few photos of the trail heads. The alligator boardwalk was still closed from last year.

I decided to head out to visit the nearby town of Hammond where I discovered a branch of the Cafe du Monde was located. It was pouring by the time I got there, and I was very happy to warm up and relax with coffee and beignets that were just as good as the iconic store in New Orleans, minus the crowds.

Spent most of the afternoon around the shopping area in Hammond, checking out fabric and craft stores. I stopped by Don's Seafood for some takeout dinner. Don's in Lafyette was my favorite Cajun restaurant and I had fond memories of their gumbo, crawfish etouffe, eggplant casserole and fried catfish. This time around I got some seafood gumbo which was as good as I remembered. Love this sign at the parking spot, they like to "Frenchify" the spelling of words!

On the way back to the campground, I stopped by Mandeville and checked out the Louisiana Northshore area. It was beautiful with lovely houses, too bad that it was cold and windy. Still, not a bad day despite the weather.