Afternoon: Hotel check-in time is 3:00.

Dinner: Dinner at the hotel or local restaurant.

Evening: We will meet promptly at 4:30 for the program orientation. We will go through the itinerary for the week, engage in a fun colloquial vocabulary/language exercise, and have a general Q&A session. Individuals will introduce themselves to the group. It's a lively beginning to the program that is not to be missed!

Lodging: Hotel Acadiana

Meals Included: Dinner

Breakfast: Included.

Morning: Field trip to Jean Lafitte Acadian Culture Center to view films on the deportation of the Acadians, as well as a film about the Atchafalaya Basin. There will also be time to see the on-site museum. Afterwards, on to Vermilionville for a guided walk through the folk life village.

Lunch: Lunch at La Cuisine de Maman (on-site cafe at Vermilionville).

Afternoon: Delve into the fascinating and complex history of Louisiana. Current day Cajun culture is a result of not only the arrival of the Acadians, but also other groups whose cultures had an impact on the Cajun way of life. Be mesmerized by the tale, as told by a local historian.

Dinner: Included.

Lodging: Hotel Acadiana

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Breakfast: Included.

Morning: Classes: Learn the Cajun waltz and the two-step in an entertaining dance lesson. Even if you think you don't want to dance, you will enjoy the toe-tapping Cajun music ... and before you know it, you will be on your feet, unable to resist!

Lunch: Local Cajun restaurant.

Afternoon: Cajun food is often one pot, rustic cooking. Learn more about local food-ways, pantry ingredients,and the plate lunch culture, as related to you by your group leader and coordinator, Patti Daigle, a lifelong resident of south Louisiana. A wonderful documentary (made by grad students at UL Lafayette), "Raised on Rice and Gravy," will also be shown.

Dinner: Local Cajun restaurant.

Evening: Take a trip to a local accordion factory. This family run business may well be the highlight of the trip. Meet the Martin family. Patriarch, Junior Martin, his daughter, Pennye Huval, and grandson, Joel Martin. You will be informed, entertained, and touched by this heart-warming experience. Laissez les bons temps rouler!

Lodging: Hotel Acadiana

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Breakfast: Included.

Morning: We’ll take a trip to New Iberia to see the Shadows-on-the-Teche, where we will learn about the history of this beautiful old home, as well as the influence of sugarcane farming in the area. Afterwards, we’ll travel to Avery Island, the home of Tabasco.

Lunch: Included

Afternoon: Class: Life and Culture of the Atchafalaya Basin. Greg Guirard is a Cajun, a crawfisherman, a cypress salvager, a photographer and author. He has been following families of the Atchafalaya Basin for years. He tells their stories in photographs as well as sharing funny and interesting anecdotes. Greg is a champion of the Atchafalaya and a wonderful storyteller. Come and hear his stories and enjoy his photographs.

Dinner: Local Cajun restaurant

Lodging: Hotel Acadiana

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Dance Lesson Review/Pont Breaux's Cajun Restaurant for Dinner & Dancing

Breakfast: Included.

Morning: Take a driving tour of the Lafayette downtown area to see a number of murals by local artist Robert Dafford. Visit the 500 year old oak on the grounds of the St. John Cathedral.

Lunch: Local specialty, tba.

Afternoon: We'll have a second dancing lesson to review the waltz and the two-step. Perfect your skills before going out for a night of dinner and dancing. Graduation before leaving for dinner.

Dinner: We'll go out to a favorite restaurant/dance hall for dinner and dancing to live Cajun music.

Lodging: Hotel Acadiana

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Breakfast: Included

Morning: Breakfast is served from 6:00 - 9:00. You are free to depart after breakfast. Check out of hotel. Have a safe trip home!

Meals Included: Breakfast