I had thought we were done with state fairs for the year after South Carolina. I was wrong. We ended up going to the Louisiana State Fair in mid-November. It is held every year in Shreveport, LA. New Orleans I’ve been to, Shreveport I have not. We also found it was cheaper to fly into Dallas and drive 3-3.5 hours to Shreveport than to actually fly to Shreveport. We also sacrificed a tad and flew Frontier and thus only allowed a personal item.

One of my best friends lives in Dallas, so maybe there would be a chance to see her…even for a few minutes or a few hours. I hadn’t seen her in almost 2 years, I think. We met while I was living in Thailand. She came back from her adventures much sooner than I did from mine.

We would literally be in TX/LA for less than 48 hours.. The plan was to land in Dallas, rent a car and drive to Shreveport stopping for a snack and probably dinner. We stopped by Buc-cee’s on our way to Shreveport, all I can say is that it’s overwhelming and the sliced brisket sandwich was just okay. The chips were super crispy. Then head to the hotel and make have a nightcap or walk around a bit and see what’s up with downtown Shreveport. We found that it was fairly dead and a lot of things closed early. We did have a GREAT meal at Orlandeaux’s Cafe near the lake though. The food was amazing. We also learned it was shrimp and oyster season! Win for us! I got stuffed shrimp and gumbo. Ed got a platter.

So far, the Louisiana State Fair was the fair that started the latest so we didn’t have to hurry in the morning. It opened it’s gates at 11am. There was also a huge parking lot in front. The fair was split in two (mainly), the Midway and the rest of it. We spent 99% of our time in the rest of it checking out the different attractions and seeing what foods they had (it really wasn’t anything very special). At the end, before heading home, we checked out the Midway (we needed content after all). We finished the fair in about 5-6 hours and could head to Canton, TX early. This was where were were spending the night before catching our flight the next day. We got some pretty good shots and footage though. And even had time to stop at a delicious restaurant, Herby K’s, before heading to Texas. I got a shrimp buster and a gumbo and etouffee combo. We also shared some oysters.

Canton, TX – the place where I’d be able to meet up with Ashley…even though it’d just be for a while. She was able to drive out from her place in Dallas (1 hour away) and hang out for just over 2 hours. She had to work and we had to catch a flight in the morning. We brought her some gumbo from LA (it’s delicious). We just sat around and caught up. Quality time is the BEST time. We found a Chicken Express (which had fried gizzards on the menu (this would serve to be “dinner”). They were so good!

The next morning, we headed out for the airport. Waving goodbye to Ashley, who was already at work, as we passed by the Trade Center. We got some food at an airport restaurant (a tiny sports bar). We only got nachos and some bloody marys before heading to an actual lounge.