Louisiana is one of the 50 states of the United States of America. The state is located in the Southern region of the US and has 4,574,836 inhabitants (2011). The capital is Baton Rouge and the standard abbreviation for the state is LA.
The state has two official languages. These are English and French.
Louisiana is bordered by the state of Arkansas to the north, Texas to the west and Mississippi to the east. To the south, the state is located on the Gulf of Mexico.
Louisiana has many islands, such as Marsh Island and the Chandeleur Islands.
The highest point of relatively flat Louisiana is Driskill Mountain (163 m) with a height of 163 meters. A large part of the coastal areas is formed by swamps.
Lakes and Rivers
The most important river in the state of Louisiana is the Mississippi. This river forms a large part of the border with the state of the same name. The river flows into the Gulf of Mexico 150 kilometers beyond New Orleans.
Louisiana has many lakes. There are saline inlets along the coast, such as Lake Pontchartrain, north of New Orleans, Lake Maurepas, and Lake Sabine.
A number of lakes are located in the vicinity of the Red River. These are Grass Lake, Black Lake, Lake Bistineau, Catahoula Lake, and Cannisia Lake.
Climate and holidays
Louisiana has an even subtropical climate. Most rain falls in the summer. On average, the coast of the state is hit by hurricanes once every 4 to 5 years.
Major Louisiana tourist attractions include the Vieux Carré in New Orleans, Cajun Country, centered on the city of Lafayette, and old plantations in the Baton Rouge area.
Beautiful national parks include the Cane River National Heritage Area with the Cane River Creole National Historical Park at Natchitoches.
Cities Louisiana
Besides the capital Baton Rouge are a number of other important cities in Louisiana: Alexandria, Bossier City, Hammond, Houma, Kenner, Lafayette, Lake Charles.
Monroe, New Iberia, New Orleans, Opelousas, Ponchatoula, Ruston, Shreveport, Slidell.
Louisiana parishes
Unlike other states in the US, Louisiana is not divided into counties but into parishes. According to countryaah.com, the state is administratively divided into 64 parishes.
Louisiana
Louisiana borders the states of Arkansas, Texas and Mississippi. The state is located in the south on the Gulf of Mexico. The capital is Baton Rouge.
New Orleans Jazz National Historical Park
This port city is located in South Louisiana on the Mississippi River and Lake Pontchartra. The city is therefore constantly threatened by floods, the most recent catastrophic floods here in 2005 killed around 1,300 people and destroyed a large part of the city. The flood occurred as a result of the ravages of Hurricane Katrina. Many residents have left the city and do not have the courage to ever return, due to an uncertain future. Insurance companies refuse to insure property in a flood zone.
This tragedy significantly reduced tourism in the city and thus the flow of necessary money, yet the city retained at least part of its unique atmosphere. In places you will feel as if you are walking in European streets, originally a French colony here. The most famous historical district today is therefore the French Quarter.
The most famous street is Bourbon Street, where people gather to listen to music, dance and drink alcohol on the street (public drinking is prohibited elsewhere in the US). New Orleans is also known as the city of jazz, which you can hear almost everywhere and which is inherent to it. This is also why parts of the city have been declared the New Orleans Jazz National Historic Park, which charts the history of this unique style.
Jazz itself was created here at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries, a combination of several musical styles, among which are blues, gospel, spirituals and also black worksongs. Later, black folkloric influences began to mix with the white music of immigrants from Europe. The originality of jazz lies mainly in the fact that the musicians specialize primarily in improvisation.
