60 years passed now since I lived and attended Kindergarten and 1st grade in Alexandria in the late '50s Lived in a small house next to what was Rizzo's Grocery Store at Prospect and Levin. Muggy summers, 2 cent tootsie pops, swimming, the parks, Church and Vacation Bible school, never being able to stay awake through the features at the Drive-in theatre, pecans, the smiles and kindness of neighbors and strangers. Blessed to have enjoyed such a childhood...so blessed. I still have the 1959 Alexandria - Pineville phone book. Thanks for the memories, Alexa.
This kind of comment keeps us going! Looks like we brought back some good memories. Hang on to that phone book. The youngsters today don’t even know what that is!
I miss those simple things like a coke was a nickel, chips 5cents and Sunday school ,door s unlocked and the community Was all relatives it was so beautiful to have those days , I know Alexandria was much the same in the small towns around and in the area.Fishing,Dinner on the ground I certainly loved those beautiful memories.
From about 9YEARS OLD TO 35 years old I lived in Alexandria. then moved to whinnfield area in north La. Your video started at the place I lived for years . It USED TO BE England AIR FORCE BASE
@@mikeburns9293 very nice. I LIVED ON 4TH ST FOR YEARS and we were looking at the back of England air base. it was about three blocks from the front gate of the base
Myself Topsy,Louisiana about two hours from Alexandria and we go to Alexandria all the time and I love Louisiana! I went to the Alexandria Zoo as a child and I have never forgotten it I’d never been to a zoo. I used to drive my dad to the VA hospital there for his health care. It’s beautiful Town
I'm visiting Alexandria this weekend and really appreciate the street level view and commentary. The official travel video created by the city is good too, but you show what I will actually see when I visit! Thanks for posting!
We will eventually make it up there to get some road video. Sippigrrrl used to be a municipal bus driver for Metro Transit in Minneapolis before she moved down south so she knows that area pretty well.
Wish you would have slowed down so we could enjoy the video. I used to live there when the new prison opened up in 2000. Would have enjoyed seeing old places I frequented. Hope the high crime didn't deter you. You seemed in a rush 😜
This was our first "city drive" video. One day when we're out that way, I'll make a new one to play back in real time (and we use a much better camera now too).
I'm from Alexandria and I would suggest taking a tour down Georges Lane, Hill Street, Elliot Street, Jackson Street and other areas of the Garden District where there are old historic homes and large trees. There are beautiful old neighborhoods to see.
Next to the Beautiful Hampton Inn...is a Gas Station. Located at the end of the station is a BBQ Restaurant. This BBQ place has the BEST FOOD EVER. When traveling to Florida...l stayed at the Hampton Inn....and went to this little BBQ PLace.....if you ever get the chance to be in this city.....GO TO THE HAMPTON AND FIND THIS GREAT RESTAURANT. FANTASTIC FOOD.
You're mistaken in saying there are no Cajuns in Alex. I worked as a federal courier for years and made a run to Alex three days a week. Thousands of Cajun families live in Alex and the suburbs. Alex is considered the bridge between South Louisiana (French and Spanish Catholic) and North Louisiana (Anglo Protestant). Great people there of all races, nationalities, and religions. They lost their air force base, and people thought that would be the end of the old town. But the Alex area continues to grow.
Lived in Alex in 1973-75 was stationed at England AFB, when it closed there was a lot of off base housing left empty. Enjoyed living there, our oldest was born in the local hospital. Thank you for the video
At this point, I assume the Sears has either closed, or is in liquidation. Once an anchor store closes, it can be difficult for the mall to recover. Not to mention, most people don't shop in malls anymore, and it's not "the place to be" for teenagers anymore.
@@504RoadTrips You're absolutely right with your statement about our Sears; it's on its way out if it isn't closed already. PS Thanks for responding to my comment!
@@504RoadTrips You're absolutely right with your statement about our Sears; it's on its way out if it isn't closed already. PS Thanks for responding to my comment!
The last Sears in New Orleans is in its final days. We also walked through a Sears in liquidation in Nashville a couple of weekends ago. Most people stopped shopping at Sears years ago, but each time they close a store, they put the mall in jeopardy because they leave an empty store behind. Sears owns all of the buildings their stores reside in, even though they’re usually attached to a mall, so it’s not just a matter of the mall renting it out. The mall either has to buy the building back from Sears, or Sears has to find another retailer to buy the building from them.
11:58 Overton St. is officially US 167 BUSINESS. Main US 167 stays on the Pineville Expressway, merges onto I-49 SOUTH, then exits onto US 71 SOUTH/MacArthur Dr. I remember there being more houses on Overton when I was a child (all were run down & scary-looking). I also remember when there used to be 3 of those square traffic circles in Alec before I-49 came into being. You could get turned around & going the wrong direction quick if you weren't careful. I have been binge-watching your channel this week. Great videos! Keep up the grind! 💯💯👍👍🍻🇺🇲🇺🇲🇺🇲
@@504RoadTrips it’s all good. Even people from here don’t know how to make this turn. I have several dash cam videos where I lay on the horn with them doing that.
at 1:09 you can see to your right, the old abandoned showtown drive in theater behind the hotel. You can just make out the old sign for the place. I went there a few days ago and took video/photos.
Interesting. One of these days, I'm going to come upon a drive-in that's still open. Haven't been to one since Star Wars premiered in 1977, and I was too young to remember any details.
If you're interested in what that one looks like I posted a short video of my visit the other day. Another lady told me she say Star Wars at that theater in 77.
@ 6:10 Aww, JasonH made a major boo boo by not turning. He entered the Sonia Quarters - luckily in the daytime - and managed to get out to complete this video.
Wow,what a racist comment. There are some wonderful people there. I have worked with clients in the area and visited homes multiple times. As a teen, we played basketball there in the light of our headlights. Never have I had one issue.
Wow! 9,861 per 100,000 people. That's unbelievable. 85% of it is property crime, which isn't figured into most lists. But 1,450 per 100,000 is really high for violent crime, compared with 1,121 for New Orleans, and 2,082 for St. Louis. The worst for Property Crime is Albuquerque, at 7,365/100,000 and Alexandria is at 8,411/100,000. Alexandria doesn't make any of the lists because it's not in the 100 most populous cities.
There are plenty of cajuns in alexandria. To effectively capture alex u need to start on the levee in the hood, work your way toward horseshoe and deer field and then come out near twin briges and jackson and then come back toward texas ave. Also include elliot and macarthur st. U need to show the whole of the diverse environments. Also most of alex near downtown is poor ppl so there are many homes that are run down, have flood damage or arent well maintained. But there are also beautiful family homes with magnificent gardens that have been kept up for generations.
Alexandria, LA is just outside of the Acadiana Parishes and there are many Cajuns who live near, such as Avoyelles and Evangeline Parishes. A lot of Cajuns from Avoyelles and Evangeline Parishes work and own businesses in Alexandria, LA. I do believe Alexandria's Mayor Jacques Roy has family roots in Avoyelles Parish. Therefore, it wouldn't be odd if the owners of Cajun Pawn Shop were Cajun. But you are right, Alexandria is neither south or north Louisiana. It is CENLA, which is short for Central Louisiana. Actually, the southeast part of Rapides Parish is within Acadiana, which would be the Town of Cheneyville, LA. Cheneyville is approximately 5 miles from Bunkie, LA.
Michael Cooper you’re right, but the point being that you’d think they would have picked a place in the heart of Acadiana. There was a mass migration of Cajuns to the New Orleans area in the 1940s, including my own father, but New Orleans isn’t Cajun country. I guess it’s TV though, so any place in Louisiana is fair game. At least they were close.
Alexandria is definitely not within the Acadiana Parishes, but it is the heart of Louisiana. Even though they are not considered Cajun, the original aristocratic French Creoles settled in Natchitoches, LA, which is also outside of the Acadiana Parishes and just northwest of Alexandria. Natchitoches is the oldest French settlement in Louisiana. There are many Creoles that live within the Acadiana Parishes, but the original French Creoles still have many descendants that reside in Natchitoches, LA aka 'The Creoles of Cane River'. The big difference in the Creoles of Cane River and the Creoles that live in Acadiana is that Cane River Creoles typically don't speak with a strong French/Creole accent, but they definitely have the Creole French surnames, such as Metoyer, Brevelle, Roque, Beaudoin, Rachal, LaCour etc. The television station in Alexandria, LA (KALB) did a story on them. ruclips.net/video/28S6YnufoxY/видео.html
Also, there have been many documentaries done on the Cane River Creoles. The French definitely left a cultural mix in Louisiana. ruclips.net/video/426uRCLW4gM/видео.html ruclips.net/video/qCRD46tIfME/видео.html
I miss Alec. I lived all over there and Pineville. Marye, Jackson and Hill Streets and many more. Oregon needs actual Human beings. That doesn't make it any less shitty out here. And the food is boring as HELL here. No flavor, no...nothing.
Can't say I have any experience with food in Oregon, other than a middle of the night stop at a Denny's in The Dalles about 15 years ago. But you can order Zatarain's products online and spice up the food up there to make it more tolerable.
Alexandria is such a stunning city! The people of Alexandria are so blessed!
It’s a shithole, a lot of abandoned buildings and there’s way to much crime
A-Town!!!!!
I Was Born and Raise In Alexandria,Louisiana...Louisiana is a Good City
Born and raised in Alexandria La, Forever a Louisianan
Thanks for watching! Be sure to subscribe for more!
I’m from California but I went to Bolton H.S. Class of 95
60 years passed now since I lived and attended Kindergarten and 1st grade in Alexandria
in the late '50s Lived in a small house next to what was Rizzo's Grocery Store at Prospect
and Levin.
Muggy summers, 2 cent tootsie pops, swimming, the parks, Church and Vacation Bible school, never being able to stay awake through the features at the Drive-in theatre, pecans, the smiles and kindness of neighbors and strangers. Blessed to have enjoyed such a childhood...so blessed.
I still have the 1959 Alexandria - Pineville phone book. Thanks for the memories, Alexa.
This kind of comment keeps us going! Looks like we brought back some good memories. Hang on to that phone book. The youngsters today don’t even know what that is!
I miss those simple things like a coke was a nickel, chips 5cents and Sunday school ,door s unlocked and the community Was all relatives it was so beautiful to have those days , I know Alexandria was much the same in the small towns around and in the area.Fishing,Dinner on the ground I certainly loved those beautiful memories.
wish it was still like that. minus the racism
From about 9YEARS OLD TO 35 years old I lived in Alexandria. then moved to whinnfield area in north La. Your video started at the place I lived for years . It USED TO BE England AIR FORCE BASE
@@mikeburns9293 very nice. I LIVED ON 4TH ST FOR YEARS and we were looking at the back of England air base.
it was about three blocks from the front gate of the base
Myself Topsy,Louisiana about two hours from Alexandria and we go to Alexandria all the time and I love Louisiana! I went to the Alexandria Zoo as a child and I have never forgotten it I’d never been to a zoo. I used to drive my dad to the VA hospital there for his health care. It’s beautiful Town
I'm visiting Alexandria this weekend and really appreciate the street level view and commentary. The official travel video created by the city is good too, but you show what I will actually see when I visit! Thanks for posting!
Hope you have a good trip. Thanks for watching!
Born and raised in Pineville! Now living in Cali, you made me miss home even more!
Just moved back from Arkansas I know Louisiana aint the fanciest state but I think that's why I love it
@Justinthe Comments yup your right
I now live in Minneapolis Minnesota for over 4.5 yrs. I watch this and it reminds me of my life a friends all through this lovely, flat city.
We will eventually make it up there to get some road video. Sippigrrrl used to be a municipal bus driver for Metro Transit in Minneapolis before she moved down south so she knows that area pretty well.
504RoadTrips they’re in need of bus drivers at the moment. The city is having a shortage.
Glad to see you back, Sir. You have a most pleasant sounding voice and I particularly enjoy the historic facts that you point out in your travels.
Wish you would have slowed down so we could enjoy the video. I used to live there when the new prison opened up in 2000. Would have enjoyed seeing old places I frequented. Hope the high crime didn't deter you. You seemed in a rush 😜
This was our first "city drive" video. One day when we're out that way, I'll make a new one to play back in real time (and we use a much better camera now too).
I'm from Alexandria and I would suggest taking a tour down Georges Lane, Hill Street, Elliot Street, Jackson Street and other areas of the Garden District where there are old historic homes and large trees. There are beautiful old neighborhoods to see.
Next time we're in the area, we'll be sure to do that!
Not just those areas but church is a major thing here on Sundays lol... But don't forget Coliseum Blvd...
and brick streets. They are coming up on 100 years old and the city is probably going to asphalt over them.
I recognize all of these places. I ❤ LA.
have been living in Alec for almost 10 yrs.now.pretty cool place.
Love my city
Sonya Quarters
Next to the Beautiful Hampton Inn...is a Gas Station. Located at the end of the station is a BBQ Restaurant. This BBQ place has the BEST FOOD EVER. When traveling to Florida...l stayed at the Hampton Inn....and went to this little BBQ PLace.....if you ever get the chance to be in this city.....GO TO THE HAMPTON AND FIND THIS GREAT RESTAURANT. FANTASTIC FOOD.
But give us the name!
You're mistaken in saying there are no Cajuns in Alex. I worked as a federal courier for years and made a run to Alex three days a week. Thousands of Cajun families live in Alex and the suburbs. Alex is considered the bridge between South Louisiana (French and Spanish Catholic) and North Louisiana (Anglo Protestant). Great people there of all races, nationalities, and religions. They lost their air force base, and people thought that would be the end of the old town. But the Alex area continues to grow.
Im from there , live in Ohio now , miss my city . .
I am also from that area and now live in Cincinatti Ohio.
I’m also from there and now live in Northwest Ohio
I lived in Pineville for a year back in 1989. I loved that area!
Lived in Alex in 1973-75 was stationed at England AFB, when it closed there was a lot of off base housing left empty. Enjoyed living there, our oldest was born in the local hospital. Thank you for the video
We're glad you enjoyed it, John. Thanks for watching!
Thank you for your service Letart.
I live in Alexandria Louisiana
lucky!
Live in Pineville work in Alexandria
At 6:28 if you look to the right there's my barber shop
Live just down the street from St.Frances Christus Cabrini Hospital and the Zoo
The thumbnail is that fire station and the pawn shop right by the Alexandria zoo
Yes, right down the street.
I live in Alexandria, and the mall actually is pretty dead most of the time.
At this point, I assume the Sears has either closed, or is in liquidation. Once an anchor store closes, it can be difficult for the mall to recover. Not to mention, most people don't shop in malls anymore, and it's not "the place to be" for teenagers anymore.
@@504RoadTrips You're absolutely right with your statement about our Sears; it's on its way out if it isn't closed already. PS Thanks for responding to my comment!
@@504RoadTrips You're absolutely right with your statement about our Sears; it's on its way out if it isn't closed already. PS Thanks for responding to my comment!
The last Sears in New Orleans is in its final days. We also walked through a Sears in liquidation in Nashville a couple of weekends ago. Most people stopped shopping at Sears years ago, but each time they close a store, they put the mall in jeopardy because they leave an empty store behind. Sears owns all of the buildings their stores reside in, even though they’re usually attached to a mall, so it’s not just a matter of the mall renting it out. The mall either has to buy the building back from Sears, or Sears has to find another retailer to buy the building from them.
I live here
I live in meterie
Oh
What part of Alexandria? I’m originally from Alexandria on Richard avenue.
11:58
Overton St. is officially US 167 BUSINESS. Main US 167 stays on the Pineville Expressway, merges onto I-49 SOUTH, then exits onto US 71 SOUTH/MacArthur Dr. I remember there being more houses on Overton when I was a child (all were run down & scary-looking).
I also remember when there used to be 3 of those square traffic circles in Alec before I-49 came into being. You could get turned around & going the wrong direction quick if you weren't careful.
I have been binge-watching your channel this week. Great videos! Keep up the grind! 💯💯👍👍🍻🇺🇲🇺🇲🇺🇲
Killer's Opinion thanks for watching!
Amo Louisiana
My family is from there! Both sides of the family!
Dang ! yellow light means Yield, not blast off in the hammer lane . haha . made delivery once on the truck in this area .
In Louisiana, if you take your foot off the gas for anything but a very stale yellow, you’re likely to get rear-ended.
Turning off of Masonic into Overton was an accident waiting to happen. You can tell people who aren’t from here when they make that left turn.
You don't have to be from an area to know your way around. Sit down.
@@12trijavirgo18 but you do have to be from here to know how to make that turn correctly or as least know some traffic laws and arrows.
@@RamBayou1 that's in so many cities. Sit down.
I just re-watched the video for the first time in several years, and I see what you're talking about. I can't believe I did that!
@@504RoadTrips it’s all good. Even people from here don’t know how to make this turn. I have several dash cam videos where I lay on the horn with them doing that.
you do SUCH a great job Jason!
Thank you so much, Nick!
at 1:09 you can see to your right, the old abandoned showtown drive in theater behind the hotel. You can just make out the old sign for the place. I went there a few days ago and took video/photos.
I can see it. Is that the sign visible or was that the screen?
well you can see both in your video. The sign for the place is on the frontage road. The screen is visible for a second too.
Interesting. One of these days, I'm going to come upon a drive-in that's still open. Haven't been to one since Star Wars premiered in 1977, and I was too young to remember any details.
If you're interested in what that one looks like I posted a short video of my visit the other day. Another lady told me she say Star Wars at that theater in 77.
I have visited there,i liked it but that circle thing had me all confused,im not good with directions
I miss home....
Hi! How do u add this navigation here in ur video ?
They're added in post-production. Templates that I made.
@@504RoadTrips oh ok any app u used ? Thank you for ur reply
@@QamarAdnanBH the templates are designed in CorelDraw. Exported to transparent PNG files and overlaid over the main track.
I live there
I'm from Alexandria, I miss it. I'm in lacombe now between slidell and mandeville.
@ 6:10 Aww, JasonH made a major boo boo by not turning. He entered the Sonia Quarters - luckily in the daytime - and managed to get out to complete this video.
That was intentional.
@@504RoadTrips Courageous!
Wow,what a racist comment. There are some wonderful people there. I have worked with clients in the area and visited homes multiple times. As a teen, we played basketball there in the light of our headlights. Never have I had one issue.
Alguien que hable español😢
Mi aerodeslizador está lleno de anguilas!
A tour at 200 miles an hour. I'm dizzy 🤪
Don't let this fool you we have one of the highest crime rates in usa 😂
Wow! 9,861 per 100,000 people. That's unbelievable. 85% of it is property crime, which isn't figured into most lists. But 1,450 per 100,000 is really high for violent crime, compared with 1,121 for New Orleans, and 2,082 for St. Louis.
The worst for Property Crime is Albuquerque, at 7,365/100,000 and Alexandria is at 8,411/100,000.
Alexandria doesn't make any of the lists because it's not in the 100 most populous cities.
True, one of the most dangerous cities in the country. I grew up in Alexandria and now live in St. Louis.
American "standards" of "crime" these days are "laughable."
#MyCity
Thanks for watching! I'm still surprised at how frequently watched this video is. Must be a lot of Alexandrians (Alexandrites?) on RUclips.
#Texas
one of my homes
There are plenty of cajuns in alexandria.
To effectively capture alex u need to start on the levee in the hood, work your way toward horseshoe and deer field and then come out near twin briges and jackson and then come back toward texas ave. Also include elliot and macarthur st. U need to show the whole of the diverse environments. Also most of alex near downtown is poor ppl so there are many homes that are run down, have flood damage or arent well maintained. But there are also beautiful family homes with magnificent gardens that have been kept up for generations.
Latifa has my voo Doo bear
I would like to see the Pentecostal church of Alexandria.
Ive been there
Alexandria, LA is just outside of the Acadiana Parishes and there are many Cajuns who live near, such as Avoyelles and Evangeline Parishes. A lot of Cajuns from Avoyelles and Evangeline Parishes work and own businesses in Alexandria, LA. I do believe Alexandria's Mayor Jacques Roy has family roots in Avoyelles Parish. Therefore, it wouldn't be odd if the owners of Cajun Pawn Shop were Cajun. But you are right, Alexandria is neither south or north Louisiana. It is CENLA, which is short for Central Louisiana. Actually, the southeast part of Rapides Parish is within Acadiana, which would be the Town of Cheneyville, LA. Cheneyville is approximately 5 miles from Bunkie, LA.
Michael Cooper you’re right, but the point being that you’d think they would have picked a place in the heart of Acadiana. There was a mass migration of Cajuns to the New Orleans area in the 1940s, including my own father, but New Orleans isn’t Cajun country. I guess it’s TV though, so any place in Louisiana is fair game. At least they were close.
Alexandria is definitely not within the Acadiana Parishes, but it is the heart of Louisiana. Even though they are not considered Cajun, the original aristocratic French Creoles settled in Natchitoches, LA, which is also outside of the Acadiana Parishes and just northwest of Alexandria. Natchitoches is the oldest French settlement in Louisiana. There are many Creoles that live within the Acadiana Parishes, but the original French Creoles still have many descendants that reside in Natchitoches, LA aka 'The Creoles of Cane River'. The big difference in the Creoles of Cane River and the Creoles that live in Acadiana is that Cane River Creoles typically don't speak with a strong French/Creole accent, but they definitely have the Creole French surnames, such as Metoyer, Brevelle, Roque, Beaudoin, Rachal, LaCour etc. The television station in Alexandria, LA (KALB) did a story on them. ruclips.net/video/28S6YnufoxY/видео.html
Also, there have been many documentaries done on the Cane River Creoles. The French definitely left a cultural mix in Louisiana. ruclips.net/video/426uRCLW4gM/видео.html ruclips.net/video/qCRD46tIfME/видео.html
The most boring place i ve ever lived in.
That's the neighborhood I grew up in and yes they have let crime destroy the neighborhood in hopes of running I49 through it
This city looks depressed!
Very depressed.
Baker, Louisiana raised me but Alexandria birthed me. Alexandria forever!
I miss Alec. I lived all over there and Pineville. Marye, Jackson and Hill Streets and many more. Oregon needs actual Human beings. That doesn't make it any less shitty out here. And the food is boring as HELL here. No flavor, no...nothing.
Can't say I have any experience with food in Oregon, other than a middle of the night stop at a Denny's in The Dalles about 15 years ago. But you can order Zatarain's products online and spice up the food up there to make it more tolerable.
@@504RoadTrips Hahaha, nice! Thank you. 🥃
Also, if you're anywhere near the Southeast, be careful and take care.
I will have some cracklin and boudin in your honor lol
Dude you cut off those pedestrians. Not good 😌
I had a green light and they had a Don't Walk signal.
Slow down