Sassafras is native to eastern North America, not France.  However, she works for an airline and she has made it a personal quest to visit Europe regularly.  With Ginger away in Calgary for 10 days, Nutmeg thought that a little time with her girlfriend would be enjoyable.

The trip did not quite start as planned, Sassafras’ arrival was delayed due to an airline strike.  Then her in-country train connections took longer than the transatlantic flight.  Despite, those minor hick-ups, she arrived on a beautiful summer day, for a lot of cycling and a bit of culture. Nutmeg had packed a 7-day agenda into 5 days; here is a summary of her visit:

Southern Alberta spring is transient.

Nutmeg likes to call it the Spring Tease.

You might be tempted to clean off the deck, haul out the garden furniture and make an assessment of the damage winter did to the yard. You may even take your bike out for a spin, careful to avoid the gravel left over from the icy days. There could be an opportunity to sneak in an early season golf game.

Don’t put away your warm clothes yet!

These are the few weeks a year, when multisport enthusiasts can ski and golf in the same day, although you may be warmer skiing.

Last week the daytime temperatures in the Bow Valley hovered around 7C (45F) and Lady MacDonald was crowned with a fresh dusting of the white stuff.

Nutmeg reflected once again, that there really are places in the world, where flowers are blooming by this time.

A touch of red

Ginger and Nutmeg had spent a morning at a cooking class, and even longer consuming the tasty results. It was already 15:00 (3pm) and they needed a walk after that four-course lunch. On advice from a friend they decided to visit Chateau La Coste to answer the question; can decent wine be produced from a combination of Irish wealth and French grapes?

This vineyard is found just outside of Aix-en-Provence, near the town of Puy-Sainte-Réparade. It is not to be confused with the town of Lacoste (that will be another post). Paddy McKillen a wealthy Irishman purchased the old bastide and surrounding land in 2002. This is a man who knows about premium quality, he is the majority owner in several high-end hotels including, London hotels Claridges and the Connaught.

Ginger and Nutmeg have lived in the same house for 18 years. They had an outrageous thought. Why not rent the house?  That way they could better justify their time in France.

CRAZY!

Chamonix based mountain guide, Isabelle Santoire is part of an elite group of trained mountain guides at le Syndicat national des Guides de Montagne (SNGM).

There are about 1600 guides associated with this group in France, many of whom can be found in Chamonix. These are individuals who have all met the stringent testing criteria. Isabelle represents of small number women in this physically demanding line of work; there are only 14 females in Chamonix and even fewer who guide full-time.

Pure, simple and real…DEEP

and that is the way they like it.

Too bad for the gal who had a business trip crop up. Nutmeg happily took her spot on a girls ski weekend to legendary Whitewater Ski Resort.

Ginger and Nutmeg have had the good fortune to ski in Europe on a few occasions. On these trips, they have been largely blessed with sunny skies but strangely, almost never with exceptional snow, until this year.  In fact, Nutmeg had never noticed these signs before this visit. Watch your head!

Ginger and Nutmeg have some close friends who after living in Minnesota, Montreal, Colorado and Seattle have chosen (wisely) to live in Provence, on a permanent basis.  Now, one could question their combined level of sanity in choosing (not so wisely) to visit Calgary and Canmore at the end of January.

Nutmeg could have saved the European policy wonks and financial wizards a lot of time and energy.

The Euro began trading on currency markets, ten years ago on January 1, 1999. It was not until 2002, that hard currency, reached the hands of the inhabitants, and started circulating in the cafés, restaurants and stores. Now, the “man on the street” felt the impact of this strange new currency as they reluctantly handed over their Francs, Marks, Schillings and Lira.

Ginger’s whole family was in Canmore to celebrate belated birthdays and the New Year ahead. The house was full and there was lots of buzz around the first day of kiddie ski lessons. Just try to imagine 500 kids starting ski lessons on the same day.

Nutmeg awoke that morning with a minor version of the modern day plague – a head cold. She chose not to battle the kids and parents at the hill, but rather to stay home quietly with Jade and wait for the chef to arrive.