We left Natchez, Mississippi along Highway 61, which is also called the Blues Highway (and is part of the Great River Road system). Running from north to south along the Mississippi River, the stretch of the Blues Highway from Memphis down to the Mississippi Delta is considered the region where Blues music originated (along with its various related styles like Funk, Jazz, Rhythm and Blues, Dixieland and so on). Blues historians claim the sound emerged from a combination of gospel songs, field-hollers and the music of the 'creole people' of the area, a mix of African, European and Native American folk music strains. We followed Highway 61 all the way to Baton Rouge, the capital of Louisiana, for a short visit. We stopped in the downtown civic center area to see the Old State Capitol Building and the Old Governor's Mansion along North Boulevard. We also visited the Capitol Gardens to see the current Louisiana State Capitol Building. It was adorned with hundreds of small American flags for Memorial Day. Next to the Capitol Gardens we visited the Pentagon Barracks, a former garrison built in the early 1800s in the shape of a pentagon that is now used to house government offices. Afterwards, we continued south from Baton Rouge along U.S. Highway 10 to tour the Whitney Plantation located near Wallace, Louisiana roughly 45 minutes west of New Orleans. The Whitney Plantation is a former slave plantation dating back to 1790 that today is preserved by the Whitney Institute, a non-profit organization whose mission is to educate the public about the history and legacies of slavery in the Southern United States. The compound includes the main house and its outbuildings. The National Geographic Society has stated that this is the plantation to see if you want to get a solid glimpse into what slavery was really like back in the early years of our nation's history. Today, there are many renovated former plantations that look nice but do not actually show the evils of slavery the way this one does. I'll be totally frank, this was not an easy stop on our road trip. It was like visiting a holocaust museum, it pulls one into a very uncomfortable emotional space. But I told my brother prior to our trip that I wanted this journey to be one of discovery and learning. I wanted to experience as much of the culture and history of the mid-West and deep South as we could, both the good and the bad. The Whitney Plantation has many exhibits (in the form of various structures) and offers a realistic look into what life on a real working slave plantation was like. After our self-guided tour (I downloaded their free app on my smartphone) we continued on to New Orleans for a two-night stay at the Crowne Plaza in the French Quarter. After reaching the Big Easy we had a fantastic dinner at the swanky Hotel Monteleone and visited the Caesars Casino New Orleans where the table minimums were so outrageously high we opted not to gamble. The following day was spent sightseeing in and around the city.