Paulina, Louisiana 2011 Christmas Eve Levee Bonfire Party -- Traditional Christmas Eve!

The Levees along the Mississippi River prepare for Christmas in their special way - uniquely! Communities in St. James Parish have been preparing for what may be the area's quirkiest tradition to welcome Papa Noel on Christmas Eve. Carefully constructing Christmas tree-shaped stacks of sawn logs on the top of the Mississippi River levees line the River Road, as they have for man years.

More than 100 stacks dotted the levee from Gramercy to Convent, and starting at 7 p.m. on Christmas Eve, they all begin to burn to the ground, with an accompaniment of fireworks. Once the big bonfires get going, the sight is breathtaking. And this video only touches on the spectacle.

The process involves families dragging huge logs to the top of the levee, sawing them into pieces, then neatly arranging the wood into steep stacks, many reaching 20 feet in height, the maximum allowed.

It's a lot of hustle and bustle. The children start working on their bonfires after Thanksgiving. It takes a long time to gather enough wood. Even adult children are involved!

On Christmas Eve, a party starts that would not be complete without a large pot of gumbo. Around 6 p.m. or so, the normally low-traffic road will be bumper-to-bumper with cars.

Out-of-towners wander toward the river, inevitably they will stumble upon a family gathering -- You can meet a stranger, but after a few minutes of talking, you feel like you've known them for a long time. If a visitor plays his cards right, he may leave with a full belly!

Once the fireworks have been spent, the fires have died down, the locals head to midnight Mass with their families. There's drinking and eating to excess, kind of like Mardi Gras and Ash Wednesday -- but it's a special time.

Once you get those ashes, it's the end of the party. It's one of the few times of year people come to church smelling of alcohol and smoke.

If you know someone down there, make plans to attend -- You'll be glad for the experience! Thank you for sharing.

A revision will be coming at a later date - but I wanted to allow the participants to see the video while it was still fresh in everyone's memories.

Category:

Entertainment

Tags:

• Paulina
• Christmas Eve
• Levee Party
• St James Parish
• Papa Noel
• Gumbo
• Nut crackers
• Bonfires

[MrBobForward]

What a wonderful evening! We truly enjoyed ourselves and everyone we met. You were all so friendly. Everyone should spend a little time on Christmas Eve experiencing he history and culture of south Louisiana.

[BrianNock]

Great video!!! We came from Bunkie La this year to see it for the first time. Most amazing thing we ever seen!!!! We will be back. Check out our video "Bunkie to Lutcher bonfires"