Category: Provence

Millions of years of seismic activity, tectonic plate movement and freeze-thaw cycles created the diverse geology of present-day Provence. The region is also known as the Bouches de Rhone where the Mediterranean shoreline runs the gambit of beaches, brackish wetlands and vertigo inducing cliffs. Other natural phenomena in the area include the steep contours of the Gorges de Verdon and the volcano shaped Mont Ventoux.

The caves of Villecroze are carved into the side of a sheer limestone cliff. A grotto formed by hundreds of thousands of years of water flowing over porous rock. The continuous water created tufa rock-hard calcium carbonate deposits along the cliff face. Cycles of natural erosion and deposits formed caves of smooth stone and flowing stalactites.
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Recipes & Travel:
Caves, Grottos, Provence, Var, Villecroze

A.A. Milne may have made Eeyore famous in his Winnie-the-Pooh books, however in reality the hardworking donkey has been helping humans out for thousands of years.

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Recipes & Travel:
Donkeys of Provence, Provence Travel, Travel in France

The fruit is put into jail in May when the Manguin Distillery imprisons roughly 1400 pears in glass bottles in their orchard. Nutmeg had to see for herself how the new owners at this distillery were re-crafting a traditional industry into more of an art form.
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Recipes & Travel:
Avignon, Avignon Distillery, Île de la Barthelasse, Manguin Distillery, Poire Williams

L’Abbaye du Thoronet was first classified as a historic French monument in 1840. Restoration work started the year after and still continues today. Nutmeg wanted to visit the Thoronet Abbey as they had already seen the “sister” abbeys Silvacane and Sénanque. The straightforward design of these buildings produced volumes of space where the only adornment would have been the harmonic chanting voices of the monks. These religious structures are stark and somber yet at the same time refreshing, no marble, no gold, no organ pipes, just natural light and acoustics.

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Recipes & Travel:
Abbaye du Thoronet, Abbeys, Provence, Travel

Nutmeg walked every aisle in the grocery store looking for salt – it was not with the spices, but rather in its’ own section near the aged balsamic vinegar. Where is the logic?
This pile of sea salt is 70 metres high
Treasured since antiquity, salt is used in kitchens around the world, to enhance flavour and preserve food. Salt also plays a medicinal role in maintaining the life sustaining salt/water ratio in the human body. Formed by the earthly elements sodium and chloride (NaCl), salt comes from two sources, underground mineral deposits and seawater.
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Recipes & Travel:
Camargue, Camargue Salt Flats, fleur de sel, Provence Travel, Salt Production in Provence, Travel in France

Nutmeg agreed to accompany Ginger to the medical clinic in Arles so he could get a yellow fever vaccination for his Africa trip, but only of they could visit Alyscamps afterwards.
Alyssii campi is Latin for Elysian fields – the road leading to the kingdom of the dead.

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Recipes & Travel:
Alyscamps Arles, Camino de Santiago, Facts about Vincent Van Gogh, Provence in Autumn, Provence Travel, Travel in France

Nutmeg got a little lost on her way to this hike. Given the religious significance of the location, maybe she was not the first lost soul during the long history of the Sainte Baume grotto.
View of Monastery & Massif Ste Baume
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Recipes & Travel:
Pilgrimage site in Europe, Provence Travel, St Baume Monastery, Travel in France

Writer Alphonse Daudet described his affection for the town of Fontvieille and its windmills as follows:
“Ce coin de roche qui m’etait une patrie et dont on retrouve la trace – êtres ou endroits – dans presque tous mes livres”
This corner of rock was a homeland to me, one which can be traced to beings or places in almost all my books.

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Recipes & Travel:
Fontvielle, Provence, Windmills

“To Joan. A loaf of bread, a jug of wine and thou, plus a house in Provence.”
Dedication: The Provence Book.
It was a perfect Provencal day, the kind where the cobalt-blue morning sky turns white by noon under the sun’s intense rays. Nutmeg arrived at Provence Paradise an enclave of self-catering accommodation in St Remy for a tour of the villas. You can read more about William Moore’s sublime corner of Provence here.
It was time to leave, but not without a copy of The Provence Book.
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Recipes & Travel:
Provence Travel Books, The Provence Book, Travel Guide to Provence

A few years ago, a group of Provencal pastry masters called les Artisans Pâtissiers Chocolatiers du Vaucluse got together with a concept in mind, their project was to make a cake that is representative of Provence. As you can likely tell, from their official title these artisan bakers know what they are doing when it comes to creating tasty treats.

Their criteria were straightforward:
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Recipes & Travel:
Food in France, Le Ventoulet, Provence Pastries