Coconuts a “lucky score” at Mardi Gras of Southeast Texas
February 6, 2012 | Author Darragh
All that New Orleans research must have been so hard on Jan Walker, but her Majestic Krewe of Aurora want the 20th 
anniversary of Mardi Gras of Southeast Texas to go down right.
“We’ve reached back to the roots of Mardi Gras and will be honoring all the traditional symbols of the season. Don’t be surprised if you encounter a little Cajun Spice; a Jazz Man; some Justice, Faith and Power, and maybe even a Jester or two,” Walker said.
Wayne Toups, Kevin Fowler, Geno Delafose, Jivin’ Gene Bourgeois and Ryan Foret are among performers set for concerts Feb. 16-19 in downtown Port Arthur. Lighted parades, a carnival and bead catching make this a family affair.
“In researching fun traditions related to my Royalty costume, which harkens back to Marie Laveau, the Voodoo Queen, I was intrigued by the Mardi Gras coconuts created by the Zulu Krewe,” Walker said. “I ordered a bag of plain black coconuts from New Orleans, from the same business that supplies many of the coconuts used by the actual members of the Zulu Krewe.”
Friends adorned the treasures and Walker says that if you’re “very lucky, you just may score one during this year’s Royalty March.” The march is set for 1 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 18.
If you can tear the kids away from festival grounds, visit nearby Museum of the Gulf Coast for ¡Carnaval!, an exhibit of the festival season throughout the world.
Port Arthur’s also your home port for a Texas fishing vacation and beach bird watching at Sea Rim State Park. More info is at www.portarthur.com/mardigras, www.facebook.com/mardigrassetx and www.facebook.com/kreweofaurora.
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Come to ¡Carnaval!
January 30, 2012 | Author Darragh
Mardi Gras means parades, music and Cajun food in Port Arthur. We get all green, 
gold and purple as Mardi Gras of Southeast Texas draws revelers to downtown Port Arthur, Feb. 16-19. Across Europe and the Americas, masked good times are called ¡Carnaval!, the title for a Museum of the Gulf Coast exhibit highlighting the season where cultures let loose. The National Endowment of the Arts display shares images of celebrations that began in 12th century Rome.
In Laza, Spain, celebrants might throw dirt and ants at neighbors. On the other side of the Atlantic, in Brazil, throngs gather to play frevo music or dance the passo, while in Tlaxcala, Mexico, men dress as French dandies and perform a burlesque dance. In New Orleans, the famed Mardi Gras krewes don outlandish costumes and parade the streets.
Folk art, costumes, video, masks and memorabilia will be on view through March 18. For information, call (409) 982-7000 or visit www.museumofthegulfcoast.org.
Mardi Gras: Catch the Excitement
January 20, 2012 | Author Darragh
The ever-popular Wayne Toups will be among headliners for the 20th 
anniversary edition of Mardi Gras of Southeast Texas, the party that colors downtown Port Arthur green, gold and purple from Feb. 15-19. Lighted night parades with bead-tossing revelers fill the schedule along with chicken and motorcycle parades. Elaborate costumes , Cajun music, a carnival and street food make a family-friendly event in Port Arthur. Visit mardigras.portarthur.com for more info and make sure to visit Museum of the Gulf Coast for ¡CARNAVAL! , a traveling exhibit featuring festival exhibits from around the world.
Parades and entertainment
Thursday, Feb. 16
- 4:45 p.m. - Curir du Mardi Gras, to begin at Rose Hill and Lakeshore Drive, ending at festival grounds.
- 6 p.m. – Longneck Road
- 8 p.m. – Joel Martin Project
Friday, Feb. 17
- 6 p.m. – Longneck Road
- 8 p.m. – Joel Martin Project
- 7 p.m. - Geno Delafose and French Rockin’ Boogie
- 7 p.m. – Valero Krewe of Krewes Parade from Rose Hill to Procter Street to Houston Avenue.
- 7 p.m. - Golf card and ATV Parade, from Rose Hill to Procter Street to Houston Avenue.
- 10 p.m. – Kevin Fowler
Saturday, Feb. 18
- 1 p.m. – Krewes Royalty March, inside festival grounds
- 3 p.m., – Jivin’ Gene Bourgeois and the Ken Marvel Band
- 5:30 p.m. – Leroy Thomas & The Zydeco Roadrunners
- 5:30 p.m. – Motorcycle Showcase Parade, from Rose Hill to Procter Street to Houston Avenue
- 6 p.m. – Total Krewe of Aurora Grand Parade, from Rose Hill to Procter Street to Houston Avenue.
- 8:30 p.m. - Champagne Room
- 10 p.m. - Stoney Larue
Sunday, Feb. 19
- 2 p.m. – Munchkin Parade, costumed children, inside grounds
- 3 p.m. – Ryan Foret and Foret Tradition
- 4 p.m. Richard Industrial group Motor Parade, from Rose Hill to Procter Street to Houston Avenue.
- 6:30 p.m. – Wayne Toups & ZydeCajun
Tickets range from $5 to $15 and are available at the gates and at The Mardi Gras Store, 3830 FM 365, (409)721-8717.
“Southern Discomfort”
January 12, 2012 | Author Darragh
Museum of the Gulf Coast will present several showings of the BBC documentary
“Southern Discomfort” to celebrate what would have been Janis Joplin’s 69th birthday. Showings will be at 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. each day beginning Thursday, Jan. 19 through Sat., Jan. 21. Film attendance includes complimentary admission to the Museum’s many exhibits including the Gulf Coast Music Hall of Fame featuring 65 artists of different genres. The first 10 people to attend each day will receive a free itunes compilation CD featuring the music of Joplin as well as artists who either inspired her or were inspired by her.
Janis Lyn Joplin was born on January 19, 1943 in Port Arthur, Texas. She would later become one of the most influential musicians in American music history. This iconic singer and artist has been given the informal title “Queen of Rock.” Although Joplin’s early years which included attending Port Arthur Schools, Port Arthur College and Lamar University in Beaumont were not uncommon, Joplin was a true individual. Stepping out from the conformity of the 1950s, she eventually found herself in California.
The Museum’s Music Hall of Fame features a permanent exhibit on the life and career of Janis Joplin with a wide array of artwork, personal effects, photographs and memorabilia as well as a replica of Joplin’s painted Porsche. Audio-visual touch screens as well as an old fashioned juke box allow visitors to see and hear Janis’ soulful performances. The Museum’s gift shop offers a wide variety of souvenirs commemorating Joplin’s influence and worldwide impact.
Visitors may also enjoy seeing Port Arthur sites related to the life of Janis Joplin. A downloadable driving tour brochure is available on the Museum’s website: www.museumofthegulfcoast.org and hard copies are available at the Museum and the Port Arthur Convention & Visitors Bureau located at 3401 Cultural Center Dr., Port Arthur, Texas 77642.
The Museum of the Gulf Coast is owned and operated by the Port Arthur Historical Society in partnership with Lamar State College – Port Arthur and the City of Port Arthur. It is located at 700 Procter Street in downtown Port Arthur. The Museum is open daily from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 1 to 5 p.m. on Sunday. For more information or to schedule a tour, call 409-982-7000.
Thin walls of wood hold wine
January 10, 2012 | Author Darragh
People want to know how Earl Rutherford gets his wood work so shiny and smooth. Then they want to touch it. The wood turner exhibiting at Texas Artists Museum said he doesn’t know what the grain will look like until the bark comes off, then
the wood will reveal its character. Admire, handle and even purchase his impossibly thin-walled goblets and wine glasses, boxes, eggs and interlocking pattern pieces. Don’t ask to go home with the ice cream scoop. It’s for his wife. The Groves native now lives in Beaumont, where the Woodworkers of Southeast Texas meet each fourth Monday at his workshop.
In January, Texas Artists Museum is also hosting Lamar University Students and work of Slava Protopopov. For more art in Port Arthur, visit Museum of the Gulf Coast, and remember Mardi Gras of Southeast Texas is set for Feb. 16-19 in downtown Port Arthur.
Tet preview part of library holiday fare
January 3, 2012 | Author Darragh
Vintage prayer cards from a Cajun collection and fava beans to remind Italian 
Americans of plentiful crops are featured in the Port Arthur Public Library’s holiday display, up through Jan. 10. Tet, the Vietnamese New Year, is represented in a colorful Asian display from Buu Mon Buddhist Temple in Port Arthur. In 2012, The Year of the Dragon will be ushered in on Jan. 23.
“It’s a huge success,” Carolyn Thibodeaux , library organizer, said of the collection reflecting the area’s cultural diversity. Kawanzaa candles, Mexican bingo and paper flowers and Jewish dreidels help show how cultures decorate, eat and worship during holidays.
Ahsan Tariq, a native of Pakistan and a library employee, helped assemble a display that includes dolls in traditional garments. He said he hopes Holidays Around the World will promote a better understanding of people who call Port Arthur home. Port Arthur Noon Sertoma Club sponsors the exhibit.
The library is at 4615 Ninth Avenue. While in town, soak up more history at historic homes along Lakeshore Drive, such as Pompeiian Villa and Rose Hill.
Villa shares Santa, holiday tin collection
December 20, 2011 | Author Darragh
The newest Christmas draw to Pompeiian Villa, Port Arthur’s pink house on the 
sea wall, is a collection of Victorian-style porcelain hinged tins. Tiny gold-rimmed circles are adorned with red and green seasonal images including a tree, flowers, reindeer and frolicking children.
The Villa has again set out its collection of hundreds of Santa Claus figurines. Docent Pamela Walters says children and their families are welcome to admire Santa in poses from pilot and golfer to beach lover and list maker. Eudora Haber left her collection to Pompeiian Villa and it comes out each Christmas.
“We’re usually pretty busy at this time of year,” Walters said.
Admission is the usual $2.
The Port Arthur Historical Society operates the Villa. For group tours, call Walters at (409) 983-5977.
For more on the museum, visit www.museumofthegulfcoast.org or call (409) 982-7000.
Hundreds of luminaria light the way
December 14, 2011 | Author Darragh
Join Las Posadas/Bethlehem on the Boardwalk along Port Arthur’s boardwalk 
on Saturday, Dec. 17. The Hispanic tradition recreates the Holy Family’s search for shelter. Families proceed around the sub-courthouse, aglow from hundreds of luminaria, then witness angels, music and Wise Men in a costumed pageant as they rejoice Christ’s birth. The procession will begin at 5:30 p.m. Our Lady of Guadalupe youth choir will perform. The boardwalk is at the recreational dock on Lakeshore Drive, behind City Hall and the Sub-Courthouse.
Call Maria Block at (409) 365-8772.
Museum of the Gulf Coast is a Port Arthur highlight in any season. A collection of hundreds of Santa Claus figurines at the Pompeiian Villa is a seasonal bonus.
Hotel lobby a winter wonderland
December 13, 2011 | Author Darragh
Mrs. Claus has booked a bed in the lobby of Holiday Inn Park Central. The 
anticipated annual display features Santa offering his wife both a hot water bottle and a gift in her cozy quarters. A new feature is an old fashioned TV set, which actually affords a view of a moving holiday village behind its screen.
Hotelier Kathy Rachwal revamps her Christmas drawing room party, kitchen bakery and Nativity scene each year. Elaborately coiffed and dressed figures are posed about detailed settings, such as a ‘50s-style kitchen overflowing with realistic “baked” goods. This season look for a lighted sleigh, toy soldiers and even more settings in the bar. Bruce Oler of guest relations says both local and out-of-town visitors come with cameras every year to capture the festive display.
Holiday Inn Park Central is at 2929 Jimmy Johnson Blvd. Oler says that when the Christmas scenes come down, the Mardi Gras float will go up. Mardi Gras of Southeast Texas is Feb. 16-19 in downtown Port Arthur. Museum of the Gulf Coast will feature “Carnival” from Jan. 28-March18 2012.
City parade, Bethlehem on the Boardwalk top festivities list
December 12, 2011 | Author Darragh
Port Arthur’s Cultural Lighted Holiday Parade will begin at 6 p.m. Thursday, 
Dec. 15, in downtown Port Arthur and will feature the Memorial High School Titans football team.
On Saturday, all are invited to join Las Posadas/Bethlehem on the Boardwalk, recreating the Holy Family’s search for shelter. Families proceed around the sub-courthouse, aglow from hundreds of luminaria, then witness angels, music and Wise Men in a costumed pageant as they rejoice Christ’s birth. The procession will begin at 5:30 p.m. Our Lady of Guadalupe youth choir will perform. Meet at the boardwalk, at the recreational dock on Lakeshore Drive, behind City Hall and the Sub-Courthouse. For details, call Maria Block at (409) 365-8772.
Museum of the Gulf Coast is a Port Arthur highlight in any season. A collection of hundreds of Santa Claus figurines at the Pompeiian Villa is a seasonal bonus. Holiday Inn Park Central has a winter wonderland display in its lobby.
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