Congratulations, ladies and gentlemen, you have made it to April: the great doldrums of the academic world. The easy, free sailing days of the early semester are past. Now, there is nothing to do but buckle down and sweat and toil all the way to and through exams.
It’s common knowledge that this is the worst time of year to be a student. Not only is all possible schoolwork due right now, but, with the exception of Mardi Gras and the recent Super Bowl, this is by far the most distracting time to live in South Louisiana.
Ah, yes, April, the mixed blessing of living in South Louisiana: all the distractions in the world and not near enough time to enjoy it.
Not only is the weather the best it will be all year — in the 80s, breezy, blue skies — but flowers are blooming and the birds are chirping. That’s right: prime season for crawfish boils, barbecues and time at the Fly. Strawberry Abita beckons and we can’t answer.
At least not as much as we might like.
Granted, this is the last chance to do all that work we’ve been putting off for the last semester, and all of our projects and papers are coming due, and the professors are realizing how far behind they are and so are squishing as much material as possible in the next few weeks.
It’s all enough to drive a person insane. In fact, insanity might seem preferable when faced with reality.
Please, though, don’t despair. If you feel yourself starting to crack, take some time off and indulge in the best of what April has to offer.
This weekend, if you are willing to venture across Lake Ponchatrain, the Ponchatoula Strawberry Festival kicks off in Ponchatoula, La. Strawberry candy, strawberry pastries, strawberry snacks, strawberry beer, strawberry wine, strawberry lemonade, strawberry smoothies, strawberry love: it’s all there. Plus there’s a fair and a couple of music stages.
Also this weekend is the best in New Orleans’ street festivals, the French Quarter Fest. This free festival runs throughout the streets of the French Quarter and features 150 bands, mostly local bands that never hit the pop charts.
So, while this festival might not feature the big names brought by Jazz Fest, it is a place where all of the best jazz, blues, classical, brass and New Orleans rock, rap and funk can be found. To make it even better, fairgoers have access to all that the French Quarter offers on a normal weekend.
During the third and fourth weekends of April, of course, is the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival. For those who are uninitiated, Jazz Fest is one of the nation’s best and most well known music festival.
Though tickets can be pricey, the festival is packed with big name bands that can’t be found playing together at any other times. This year, the festival will be headlined by the duo Simon and Garfunkel.
If you have it in you to be a bit more adventuresome than required to go to Jazz Fest, wander down I-10 to Lafayette, where you can enjoy, for free, Festivale International de la Louisiane – the biggest international festival in the states. The city of Lafayette shuts down their three square mile downtown for five days to host about 100 bands, acres of open markets and food from all over the world.
Despite the 2 1/2 hour drive, Festival International is well worth it. It, and the Lafayette area in general, often prove far more interesting than Jazz Fest. At Jazz Fest, you know what to expect.
Whatever you choose to do, don’t go crazy. Yes, April is stressful and there is a lot of work to do. But sometimes, you’ll be served better by taking sometime off and getting a couple of hours of sleep than you would by pulling an all nighter.