Slovenian tourist Breda Kutin is among 23 passengers stewing in the cauldron of an open metal boat in the Honey Island Swamp east of New Orleans. The boat glides through an unbroken surface of duckweed that you'd swear was Astroturf. It burrows into the narrow bayous of a watery forest of ash, tupelo and cypress, where tendrils of Spanish moss brush the black soup of the swamp. Small alligators, best seen in the heat of summer, swim toward the boat for handouts of marshmallows. Great blue herons soar low.
Turtles bask on rocks.
And a couple of domesticated pot-bellied pigs trot out from behind a waterfront fishing shack. If you're going to see something, you have to accept it as part of the environment. Try that during Mardi Gras. Ind. Moreover, in summer, you can get a table in a top restaurant with short notice. And there's breathing room at area attractions.