hmmmm

seems my last post didn't "stick"....well here's the 411 - I spent the day on Wednesday checking out the downtown area of Baton Rouge, which isn't that big but is pretty cool but I am guessing like Ottawa empties out at night. The State Capitol is the tallest in the US; on the 27th floor there is an observation deck that allows one to see all around Baton Rouge including the Mighty Mississippi, I am deathly afraid of heights and much to the chagrin of myself and the amusement of the attendant I forced myself to go out on the observation deck. Which is not like the Empire State Building which had a mesh netting around it, rather a shoulder high bar, ugh. Thank goodness for the amazing view - pure beauty. The building was constructed in 1932 and houses the State Senate and the State Legislature. I noted and took pictures of the pictures of the State Legislators that in 1968 there were not black elected legislators but in 1972 there were four and it continued to grow from there.

I went to the "old" state capitol from there and it was exactly what I expected from an old southern building, opulent and grand. It has one of those swirl staircases in the middle which conjured up images of Gone With the Wind (though I never have watched that). There are some awesome exhibits of Louisiana politics housed in the capitol - like a lecture one can stand at and press a button and listen to old speeches from politicians. I listened to all the ones from the 60's and the importance of the black voice I wonder if a lot has changed.

Also is a exhibition on Huey Long, former governor of Louisiana who despite what one thinks of his politics made an impressionable impact on the current state of Louisiana. He was assassinated perhaps he was a southern Tommy Douglas American style? In any case I enjoyed learning about him. There was also an exhibit about a confederate girl's perspective on the Civil War, which I really need to know more about, which was quite interesting to say the least.

From there I checked out the boat casino...ha I am not entirely comfortable in casino's so to be on one that was a boat was not my thing and it was difficult as they allow smoking in the boat so that visit lasted 6 minutes :).

I found the best part of the day walking around the downtown and looking at different monuments like what's called Indian Mound, which is a mound of dirt that the Indian Chief of the area lived on until I guess the newcomers killed them? Likely. During the Civil War it was used as a shooting gallery by the north and there are still two cannons on the mound.

It was a great day and I thoroughly enjoyed my political tour of Louisiana.