Opelousas

North of Lafayette, the Cajun Prairie has been described by folklorist Alan Lomax as the “Cajun cultural heartland”. A patchwork of rice and soybean fields scattered with crawfish ponds, the region has a few tiny towns of interest. Sleepy old OPELOUSAS, twenty miles north of Lafayette on I-49, was capital of Louisiana for a short period during the Civil War, and now has several claims to fame. It was the boyhood home of Jim Bowie, Texas Revolutionary hero and inventor of the Bowie knife; the birthplace of the great zydeco musician Clifton Chenier; and is the yam capital of the universe. It also hosts some good festivals, and is a hub for zydeco music. You can find out more at the quirky Opelousas Museum, 315 N Main St (Mon–Sat 9am–5pm; free; w www.cityofopelousas.com) – which displays such relics of local history as the barber’s stool on which outlaw Clyde Barrow got his last shave before being shot dead by the FBI in northern Louisiana. The 1950s Palace Café, on the central square at 135 W Landry Ave (t 337/942-2142), offers shrimp, crawfish and gumbo in immaculate diner surroundings. Chain hotels line I-49; the Comfort Inn (t 337/942-4900, w www.choicehotels.com; $81–100), south of town, is a reasonable option.