The Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist

As per our custom, our day started with food.  Poche’s Meat Market and Smokehouse serves tasty Cajun style lunches and also has a large range of meat for sale.  Several of us bought food souvenirs for after the caravan.

At the Cathedral, we met our docent, Jan MeKree, under a 500-year-old cypress tree.  It is the third oldest in the US.  It is 9 feet 9 inches in diameter and 126 feet tall.  One main branch weighs 72 tons.  Father Barriere came from France and chose this site to establish the church.  The land was donated by Jean Mouton.   

This is the third building on this site, the first one destroyed by fire and the second by hurricane.  The current one was built in 1916 in the Dutch Romanesque style for $75,000.  To keep it safe, it is build on the high ground, 17 feet in elevation.  The color of the bricks is vermillion.

The stained glass windows tell events from Jesus' life. 

The fourteen Stations of the Cross are shown in small pictures around the apse.  The organ has 3038 pipes and was made in Canada.  The pelican represents the church feeding the Eucharist to the congregation and is symbolic of the state of Louisiana.

The carillon chimed as we entered the museum.  The replicas of the three churches are made of such materials as popcicle sticks and oatmeal boxes. 

Display cases are filled with artifacts from the earlier churches and from the bishops.  The shoes of one bishop were made by Prada and worn at Vatican II.

The main feature in the room is a Nativity scene made of 18th century figures.

The cemetery has been used since before the Civil War.  We found one grave of a soldier of the Confederate States of America.

After leaving the church a few of us went geo-caching.  The cache was near this Liberty Road Marker that honors the road from Normandy during WWII.

To tide us over until dinner we stopped at Poupart Bakery for a tidbit and some more food souvenirs.  Here are some mouthwatering mice that we found in the bakery.

 

Then it was on to Nash’s for a lovely dinner.

 The owner Miss Jenny, called the 1908 house “Cinderella’s Castle” when she was a child.  We ate in the St. Julian Room, originally a boys’ bedroom. 

Jenny told us that she found the glass chandelier in the women’s restroom ugly until she learned it was worth $5000.  Now it is so beautiful even the men want to go in to see it.

Our caravan leaders, one of whom is a retired teacher, want to confirm that we are gaining culture on this trip.  We were given a test on our knowledge of Cajun food (what could be more important?).  Scores ranged from Cajun to Coonass to Redneck.

Jack attempted to read T’was the Night Before Christmas in Cajun but was stopped mid-page.

The evening ended with a lagniappe surprise for each couple.