Feathers, Females, and Fun!

This blog entry is supposed to be about Mardi Gras time in Natchez, Mississippi, but in going through my photos of Mardi Gras past, I find that practically all of them are of females having fun!  They're throwing beads, dancing, smiling, watching parades..and acting downright queenly.
Now, if you don't think you can have just bunches of fun at Mardi Gras in a small town, just look at these pictures and be convinced.

Two big parades come through town  - one of them's a night parade with lights all over the floats.  It's a sight to behold!  Floats of all kinds, marching bands, trucks and cars full of folks throwin' wampum, just about anything that can keep up with the rest of the parade.
We show a schedule of the parades - and other Mardi Gras events - on the home page of www.NatchezMS.com.

We have Call Out Balls, Grand Balls, After-Parade Parties, and lots and lots of bead-throwin', balcony-stompin', music-blarin' good times, with men and women dressed to the nines and dancing like their pants were on fire!

You'll meet kings and queens.  That person next to you who's competing for the beads thrown from parade floats may be a prince or a pauper.  And none of that will matter, because they all want to be your friends.  I know I've often sat down to drink with people I had never met before.
And since all of this happens right in downtown Natchez, you're always within a few steps of good food, refreshing drinks, shops full of goodies and a warm bed.
Want to find out about restaurants, hotels, bed and breakfasts, attractions, and shopping in Natchez?  Go to www.NatchezMS.com!

One word of warning:  save a little room in your luggage for all the pretty beads and trinkets you're gonna want to bring back with you.  And don't worry about wearing a smile.  We'll give you one when you get here - absolutely free!

The Colorful Costumes of Pow-Wow

For centuries before the first white man laid eyes on the land that is now part of the Natchez area, the Natchez Indians lived, and celebrated, and worshipped "The Great Sun." The Natchez are all but extinct now, but several village, burial and ceremonial sites have been found here. One of those is now called "The Grand Village of the Natchez Indians." It is here that the singers, dancers, and peoples of other tribes gather to celebrate a culture that will never come again.
It's a made-for-camera weekend. The dancers flail in their bright costumes, drummers beat out their heartbeat rhythm, singers chant the ancient songs, calling the people to celebrate life the old way.

This past March I was able to be there, trusty camera in hand, to take a few photos.  Enjoy the photography, but come on down yourself next year and experience this event for yourself.  Besides the music and dancing, there's also food and Native American arts and crafts for sale.  It's a fun - and maybe educating - afternoon outing that the whole family can enjoy.
It's just one more of many reasons to come to Natchez for a weekend or so.
If you'd like to see more of my Natchez Pow-Wow photos, Go to my Flickr.com Page!
And to see more about Natchez, Mississippi, click on NatchezMS.Com, The Travel and Tourism Guide to Natchez, Mississippi.

Natchez Spring Pilgrimage

It's Spring Pilgrimage in Natchez, a time when many of the antebellum homes open their doors to tours. Visitors come from all around the world to step inside these architectural and historical wonders, and hear stories about the people who built and lived in them; stories full of humor, drama, and pathos, of great riches brought by king cotton, the devastating ravages of war and the preservation of history.

I've just spent the last 3 days taking photographs at many of those historic homes, and it was a thrill.

Taking pictures was a special treat for those 3 days. The weather was beautiful, camellias were in bloom everywhere (there's one in the first picture), hostesses wearing hoopskirts and antebellum gowns graced each home, and throngs of tourists - we like to call them 'visitors' - roamed the homes and grounds.

The antebellum home Richmond was one I'd never seen before. The mansion was built in different stages and with three distinct architectural types. The front is Greek Revival, the middle is Federal, and the back, the newest portion, is 3 stories of brick.

Elms Court was another I had not seen before, though I happen to know the owners. The massive amounts of wrought iron bordering the frame of the house set it apart from all the others.

Natchez offers morning and afternoon tours, with plenty of time in between for lunch. There's time afterward for shopping and dining, too. Dining in Natchez, like most Southern towns, is a real treat, and there are plenty of restaurants to suit just about any taste.

Evenings can be spent being entertained at the Natchez Pageant, Southern Road to Freedom, or Southern Exposure.

The Natchez Pageant is a series of tableaux, or 'pictures brought to life' representing the different periods of Natchez history, beginning with the Natchez Indians and ending with the Civil War.

Southern Road to Freedom is the story of slavery - and freedom, told with music.

Southern Exposure is a theatrical spoof of Pilgrimage. Yes, we like to make fun, even of ourselves.

Combine all that with some of the most magnificent antiques shopping in the South, a panoramic view of the Mississippi River, and the kind of hospitality that makes one wish he could live here forever, and you've got what we think is the perfect vacation.

So we'd like to know, have you been to Natchez, especially for Spring or Fall Pilgrimage? What did you think? And how can we improve your experience?

What did you like best? Is there anything you didn't like?

And personally, I'd like to know what websites you looked at before you came to Natchez.

That's a lot of questions, but if you'd like to just make a comment about your experience, that's ok, too. But please, make a comment - let us know something about your experience. Better yet, take another look at the questions and answer a few of them.

You'll be helping us make Natchez a better, more fun, more interesting place to visit. And that's what it's all about!

Thanks!

Sam

See more photos of Spring Pilgrimage

>NatchezMS.com, Travel & Tourism Guide to Natchez, Mississippi

Look Who's Marketing Now!

First off, this is not a rant. I love what I do, and what I do is website development. The creativity and detail of my job make me happy, and I'm happy to help my clients.

But I've got to talk to more clients about their commitment to the internet.

Some think that once they've got a website their troubles are over. The website does all the work, the great Google god shines his blessing, and customers flock to them by the thousands.

But here's the reality: Your website just doesn't do everything automatically. You have to be paying attention and do some things that help your web presence grow.

As a developer, it's my responsibility to go through the Search Engine Optimization process with you by researching keywords, optimizing the meta tags, submitting to search engines, consulting with you on the best online directories for your business, and other technical stuff.

You, on the other hand, should be using social media like Twitter, Facebook, and any others that you have time for, to make your business shine. Sign up with business-related directories so that you can log on when you like, making changes when needed to be sure that everything is accurate.

Write a blog.

Your developer may be great at designing and SEO, but you're the one who sees your business day in and day out. Blogging about interesting customers, strange requests, a new sales tactic you tried, or even a troublesome problem you've come across can be a really good marketing tact.

Here's an example: A good friend and client who owns a bed and breakfast bragged a bit about the quality of the breakfast he served. When I checked his reviews on TripAdvisor, sure enough people were praising his food as some of the very best they'd ever had at a B&B. Now that's bragging rights! How much more could he have gained by blogging about it and linking right back to his site so folks could make reservations and taste for themselves?

It doesn't have to be bragging, it just has to be interesting enough for people to want to click the link. Another visitor and potential customer added.

And my web developing skills had nothing to do with it.

He could have done the same on Twitter or Facebook, having his followers and friends see what great hospitality he offers with just a few sentences.

My point is, a website by itself just isn't enough. It's an extremely important tool that offers information, pictures, and a sales pitch, but you are the one who makes your business shine.

If your business is important enough to have a website, then it's certainly important enough to spend a few minutes a day or a few times a week making it shine.

And if you'd like some help learning how to do that, call me and I'll offer my fabulous consulting services for a nominal fee.

What, you thought I'd do that for free? Silly earthling.

By the way, if you want to know who makes the fabulous breakfast, email travel@natchezms.com and I'll tell you.

Now for the cheap plug.

Go immediately to www.natchezms.com, see what a great getaway a visit to Natchez, MS would be, and tell the folks you make reservations with who sent you.

Ghosts in Natchez? Plenty and How!

Do you believe in ghosts? Soon it will be the season for them whether you believe or not, what with Halloween and all, and Natchez certainly has its share.
For instance, there's an article about the ghosts of Historic Jefferson College in the local paper today. It seems they're inviting "ghost hunters" to bring their paranormal-seeking equipment to look for evidence of the spirits seen and heard in the buildings and on the grounds around the old school. Here's a link to the article: http://tinyurl.com/ljubbh. I've seen the photo of the 9-year old boy and it's pretty convincing.
Natchez has a lot of antebellum homes (for you yankees, that's homes built before the Civil War) and you can bet nearly every one has a few stories about the doors shutting when no one's around, ghostly figures walking the halls, and other fairly domestic stuff. Haller Nutt is seen wandering the gardens of Longwood and his wife, Julia, climbs the unfinished stairs. The man with the top hat floats through the guest rooms of Linden, and Madeline plays tricks on the guests of King's Tavern. It's said that the woman was murdered and bricked into an old fireplace. They found her skeleton and the bones of two men. We don't know who the guys were, but you can bet there's lots of speculation about how they died. Ooh scary, very scary.
Walt Grayson of "Mississippi Roads" made a video of the walking ghost tour that existed a few years ago, but only caught a few globes of light on film.
Now the ghost tour is aboard a bus, with some stops along the way to see if you can scare up a spirit or two.
Ghost Tales Around the Campfire takes place at Jefferson College the 29th of October. Bring your blanket and/or lawn chair and sit around the bonfire while story-tellers try to scare the bejeesus out of you. Now that's fun, especially if you're the scarer not the scaree.
Intentionally made un-scary, is Angels on the Bluff. This event, held at the City Cemetery the first weekend of November, has local actors portraying the folks who reside in the graves. We've got Revolutionary War soldiers, Confederate generals, gypsies, artists, and every other kind of interesting folk, all with their own stories to tell. See more here: http://tinyurl.com/mguy7y.
So if you're a ghost hunter or just a curious visitor with a hankering to meet someone from the great beyond, come on down. Whether you see spirits or not, you're bound to have some fun trying. Visit www.natchezms.com to see lists of the hotels, bed and breakfasts, restaurants, attractions, and lots more!

I Wanna Sleep All Day and F(ish) All Night

Lend me a few bucks?
A friend of mine has some property for sale that I would dearly love to own. It's a little more than 1800 acres bordering the Mississippi River up in the Delta around Addie, MS. It's got its own oxbow lake as well as having easy access to the river, so you just pick the kind of fish you want to set out for and choose your spot. I do love to fish, and this place has got to be like fishing in Heaven. Rick shared some of his experiences fishing the lake, and described slab crappie bigger than his construction worker-sized hand. Now, every fisherman has his tall tales, but judging by the gleam in his eye I think he wanted to be there right then, catching some more.
The property has plenty of beautiful timber land as well, and everyone knows how big the Whitetail get in these parts. Now, I'm not a hunter anymore, but I would love to roam that countryside just to get a peek at the big bucks that roam that neck of Mississippi woods.
Speaking of peek, I've seen a few pictures of the duck and geese that come into the area. The property is right on the Mississippi flyway. My friend took some pictures of the geese coming in and showed them to me. The earth was literally white with them. It looked like it had snowed geese.
I was impressed.
"Rick, when are we gonna go up there so I can see it in person?" I asked excitedly.
"Nope, I don't have time to go up there just to show it off. Besides, if I spend too much more time up there I might not have the heart to sell it." 

Rick was serious, especially about the last part. There are a few areas in Mississippi and Louisiana that are still pristine and full of wildlife, and when you're in one of those places, well, the sights, sounds and even smells are inviting, invigorating - they bring out the country boy in all of us.  It's adventure, peace, and some primitive longing to just be simple again and part of nature instead of staring at pictures and computer screens.

Now, the purpose of his showing me all this was so I could help him sell it, but I couldn't help but daydream a bit about owning it myself.  Truly, I've not often thought about leaving the Natchez/Vidalia area, with its own beauty and the people I've come to know as friends, but this was tempting.

So I'm not in the market myself, but in case you are - or if you're just curious enough to want to see some of it, go to www.deltahuntingland.com and take a peek. 

And if you end up buying the land, maybe you'll take pity on us poor folks and invite me up for some fishing?  I'll cook!

Cool Down During Southern Summer

The temperature quickly warms here in the South, but we-all have lots of ways to cool down. If you're thinking about sitting on the porch, watching life go by while fanning yourself with one of those "church fans," well, that's one way. Another way is to have a large glass filled with ice and your favorite libation. We like a tall glass of iced tea, sweet of course, but there are other favorites as well. That brings me to the source of my post.
"Jeff" emailed me asking about some Mint Julep mix that he had purchased somewhere in Natchez. Could they ship more to him, and how much would it cost, he asked. While I was happy to ask the local merchant about this, I also gave Jeff a recipe - one of many I know of - so he could make his own. It's not particularly difficult, but depending on your geographical area you may not have a ready supply of mint leaves. If you can get those, here's the recipe as I told it to him:

-Take a few leaves of mint (it grows like crazy here) and put them in the bottom of a tall glass. A really good julep goes in a pewter cup to keep it cold.
-Muddle the leaves with some simple syrup. Simple syrup is just sugar water cooked down a bit to make it concentrated - syrupy.
-FILL the glass with crushed, or better yet - shaved, ice.
-Pour at least 2 ounces of good whiskey over the ice.
-Stir gently so you mix the ingredients without melting too much ice.
-Sip like a gentleman (or a lady).
Of course, you can play with the amounts of the different ingredients to suit your own taste. Some like more mint, some like more sugar. I like more whiskey.
In the way of background, allow me to offer a few explanations of the procedure:

• "Muddling" is just kind of crushing the leaves and mixing them so the flavor comes out without leaving too many tiny green specks all in your drink.


• Before the days of refrigerators, you can imagine that ice was precious. The pewter cup kept your drink cold and let the ice slowly dilute the drink.


• Some have made the julep with Southern Comfort. I prefer the taste of good whiskey instead.


• Some cheat and make their julep with Creme de Menthe. I suppose that in a pinch I'd understand that, but my first response would be "Yechhhhh!"

Be aware that some folks take such a liking to mint juleps that they find themselves spending a lot of time sipping one under the oak tree, watching other people work, making their womenfolk wear big hats and dresses, and calling their dog "Beauregard."

You've been warned.