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True Blood Travel Guide: Digging Deep For Voodoo Culture

You've heard of Christmas in July, but we're about to get all Halloween in June this week as we prepare for the debut of the second season of HBO's TrueBlood. Any juicy suggestions or questions? Let us know.

There is more to Louisiana than just New Orleans' French Quarter and southern cooking, and if you look to the Louisiana of True Blood, that means visits to spooky cemeteries in the middle of the night.

If vampire Bill Compton isn't sleeping beneath your feet in the local graveyard, then Tara is undergoing some voodoo rituals in the back corner. A perfect setting for all this is Oakland Cemetery in Shreveport, founded in 1847, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and boasts of a fine creepy history all its own.

Just outside of downtown Shreveport, in Oakland's earth rests the town's old notorious madam, Masons, nephews of Confederate president Jefferson Davis, and a whole patch of victims of the yellow fever epidemics. Almost no new graves have been added in the last seventy years and it is believed that "there are nearly as many unmarked graves here as marked ones." On the ones that do still stand, voodoo rituals are not uncommon and visitors will often gifts, like little necklaces, strewn about the area. A question to any potential grave robbers: do you really want stuff associated with voodoo?

Related Stories:
· Oakland Cemetery [Official Site]
· Oakland Cemetery [Haunted LA]
· Louisiana Travel Coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo: cybertoad]

Tags: One-way Road Trip / Rental Cars / Road Trips / Restaurants / Beignets / → All Tags

Driving From New Orleans to Shreveport, With a Stop for Beignets

Jaunted editor Paul Brady is back on terra firma in the U.S. after nearly a year away in South America. So how did he get back here? By taking the ultimate road-trip. All this week, he'll be telling us just how he did it. Any questions or suggestions? Let us know.

Day three of our trip dawned, and my girlfriend and I woke with a sense of dread. Another 300+ miles to cover? And on this stretch, which a number of New Orleans natives told us was mind-meltingly dull? We needed a vacation from our Road Trip.

Luckily, breakfast in Nola was much better than it was at the Coombs House. After asking the all-knowing Twitter for a breakfast recommendation--trendy, right?--we headed to Morning Call in Metairie after @alexanderbasek pleaded "Do not miss." He didn't send us there for the extensive menu: You'll be having coffee and beignets like we did. But how tasty they were--and we might've been the only tourists in the crowd of cops, little old ladies and middle-aged men mentally drowning in their tiny porcelain cups. It was, as we'd hoped, the anti-Cafe du Monde.

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Tags: Fall-TV-2008-Map / Television Premiere Travel / TV Travel / Louisiana Travel / Supernatural Travel / → All Tags

Fall TV 2008: HBO's "True Blood" Is for Suckers

Jaunted is planning our fall travel with some help from the networks. Check out our Fall TV 2008 Map to go where your new favorite characters go.

"Six Feet Under" creator Alan Ball got bit by the vampire craze and created HBO's new series "True Blood," about a small Louisiana town where vamps have come "out of the coffin" to coexist peacefully with humans.

Of course, the humans don't know the bloodsuckers walk among them: This arrangement is largely due to the invention of a synthetic blood beverage called TruBlood, which fills their need for the red stuff. When a mind-reading waitress named Sookie (Anna Paquin) sees a stranger (Stephen Moyer, "The Starter Wife") order a cold TruBlood at the bar where she works, they begin a relationship that if not forbidden, is plenty creepy.

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Missed Connections in Shreveport: Mr. and Mrs. Bush Edition

We've been captivated by news of this bar brawl involving the cast of "W." Barring the delicious humor of a drunken altercation springing from the tale of a former drinker, we can't believe it was Jeffrey Wright who got Tased. Don't you know he's playing Colin Powell?!

In any case, it's time to bring the love back to Shreveport. We need to keep the place safe for our stars, before they all go to Canada or the Czech Republic. Put your fists away and feel the love at these hot spots:

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Tags: Bars / Celeb Travel / Josh Brolin / Jeffery Wright / → All Tags

So Who Started That Louisiana Bar Brawl?

Looks like Josh Brolin and other cast and crew of the movie "W" weren't as rowdy as initial reports led us to believe. While no one is disputing that lighting tech Eric Felland got tossed from the bar, cell phone video taken at the scene reportedly shows cops using pepper spray on Brolin and fellow actor Jeffrey Wright.

When that didn't subdue them, a Taser was used on Wright, police admitted. But TMZ is reporting that racial slurs were also directed at the actor, who is black.

The city attorney plans to file charges against the actors for interfering with police officers, though a final decision on that hasn't been reached. We already knew that Shreveport was making a play to become the Hollywood of the South, but we didn't expect heavy-handed police tactics to be one of the ways the town would channel LA.

Related Stories:
· More Details Emerge on Brolin-Wright Incident [KTBS]
· Actors Tased, Pepper Sprayed [TMZ, via]
· "W" Caught Brawling in Louisiana [Jaunted]

Tags: Bars / Celeb Travel / Josh Brolin / → All Tags

"W" Caught Brawling in Louisiana

Actor Josh Brolin and six others involved in the production of Oliver Stone's new movie "W" were arrested in Shreveport early Saturday morning after starting drama at a local club.

The Stray Cat bar had to call in the cops when lighting technician Eric Felland wouldn't leave quietly; things really got out of hand when his fellow cast and crew tussled with police trying to toss the tech.

Unfortunately, Kid Rock wasn't involved in this one, so we can't update that map.

Related Stories:
· Police: "W" Actors, Crew Arrested [CNN]
· Film Crew Arrested [KTBS]
· The Stray Cat [Myspace]
· Bars coverage [Jaunted]

Tags: Movie Set Travel / Restaurants / Botanical Gardens / → All Tags

Movie Set Travel: Mad Money

Money drives people to do crazy things--like rip off the Federal Reserve Bank. Wait, actually, that only happens in the movies, like in this week's pick Mad Money. When Bridget (Diane Keaton) finds out her cushy life will be a bit less cushy now that her husband can't find a job, she's forced to go to work at the bank as a janitor. There she meets Katie Holmes and Queen Latifah--both of whom are far too attractive to be working as janitors--and the three mastermind a plot to rip off the "old money" the bank supposedly shreds up at night.

Given that fact this was directed by the same woman who did Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood, something tells us its a serious chick flick, replete with empowering music and all. Just a warning to leave your ultra-manly friends at home.

It was shot entirely in Shreveport, Louisiana, part of the Ark-La-Tex triangle bordering the Red River. Here are some cool things to do around town:

Where To Stay: Fairfield Place Bed and Breakfast Check into these elegant two adjoining mansions built around 1870 and steep in the southern charm. Rooms are cozy and have cutesy touches like claw foot tubs and towel warmers. We hear the baked apple french toast isn't too bad either.

Where To Snack: The Blind Tiger Right at the foot of the Texas Street bridge, you'll find The Blind Tiger which serves up traditional po' boys, fried catfish fillets and blackened Creole shrimp. Step up to the pool table for a round with the locals. Wondering about the name? "Blind Tiger" was what folks called illegal bars during Prohibition thanks to the tiger trinkets they placed on tables alerting customers that alcohol was in fact available on-site.

What to See: Azalea Gardens at R.W. Norton Art Museum Go see the 10,000 stunning azalea plants that bloom in the museum's gardens every spring. This has been voted one of the South's loveliest gardens by Southern Living for good reason, so spend an afternoon exploring its 40 acres.

Related Stories:
· Movie Set Travel coverage [Jaunted]
· Shreveport Hotels [HotelChatter]

Tags: Movie Set Travel / Sienna Miller / → All Tags

Movie Set Travel: Factory Girl

Sienna Miller hit screens on Friday in the much-awaited Edie Sedgwick biopic Factory Girl, with Guy Pearce as Andy Warhol. Already the reviewers have been panning it, but hey, use your time off this week wisely and go enjoy the rest of the cast in this one--everyone and their sister--including MK Olsen, Mena Suvari, Jimmy Fallon, and Hayden Christensen.

The plot's pretty easy: It's the '60s, Edie drops out of Radcliffe and runs away to NYC where she meets Andy, who decides he'll make her a star. She takes off, and her career and personal life explode, so she loses a grip on reality.

As much of the film was shot in Louisiana, specifically Shreveport, we offer you some cool things to do in LA-land. We will not insult Pittsburghers by further associating their city with the film, since Sienna didn't show it enough respect.

Where to Gamble Your Life Away:
Harrah's Lousiana Downs
Roll the dice a la Edie and take a chance. Sneak off a few miles to Bossier City, LA, and take on a Vegas behemoth southern-style. This one's got all the standard casino perks, and also a full racetrack for travelers who like the ponies. Keep in mind that you can't book rooms here though: you must travel 10 minutes to the nearby Horseshoe Casino to spend the night.

Where to Eat:
Strawn's Eat Shop & Eat Shop Too
Opened in 1944, this family-run local diner-like spot has some of the best chicken fried steak, black eyed peas, and cornbread you've ever eaten. It's so popular it was featured in Southern Living and the owners were forced to open other locations. Don't expect four-star service, but know you'll leave full.

Where to See the Art:
R.W. Norton Art Gallery
Head to the Norton and view works of some of the classic American masters (Remington, Audubon, Thomas Cole), and afterwards take a stroll through the 40 acres of amazing azalea gardens out back. The best part? It's all free. But if you go on a weekend, it's only open from 1-5 p.m.

[Photo: Rotten Tomatoes]

Tags: Celeb Travel / Jessica Simpson / Luke Wilson / → All Tags

Jessia Simpson and Luke Wilson Head Out in Shreveport

Jessica Simpson is re-bounding, and re-bounding, and re-bounding...and spent last week proving it in Shreveport, Louisiana.  

She popped up there with Luke Wilson, and the two hit up Phoenix Underground, a local evening hotspot. The pair have been in town a short time, and are filming together, co-starring in Blonde Ambition -- a modern re-make of the popular Working Girl due out next year.

Patrons said Jessica was quite nice, posing for pics and chatting with the locals. Luke had apparently been in for about four hours the previous night and wanted to take Jess there to "show her the place."

[Photo: TMZ]

Related Stories:
·   Jessica Simpson, Luke Wilson Hit Louisiana Hotspot [People]