Bastille Day (La Fête Nationale) commemorates the 1789 storming of the Bastille in Paris. Two years running, our village attempted to host fireworks on the 14th only to be stymied by the wind. Leave it to the Parisians to have their traditional parade on the Champs-Élysées. Eygalières was going to party the night before.

18h: Sounds of the band testing their equipment – CHECK!
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Recipes & Travel:
Paella, Provencal Food, Provence Travel, Spanish Food, Travel in France

Nutmeg is coffee-obsessed if a cup is not in her hands within 30 minutes of her feet hitting the ground in the morning it’s best to stay away. What is odd about her addiction is that her first encounter with coffee was while visiting her grandparents in the West Indies and she hated the bitter brew.
Now, just a few years (or so) later she’s hooked. Needless to say when a new java option appears in town Nutmeg feels it is her duty to investigate. (more…)

Recipes & Travel:
Alberta, Canmore, Coffee Shops

The centuries of Anglo-French wars are overwhelming, even for those most dedicated to the subject. Battles for geographic territory and ideological control started in Roman times. In one short post, it would be impossible to provide sufficient detail on this lengthy history of conflict.

Instead, here is a list of a few of the famous engagements:

1066 – The Battle of Hastings – the Norman conquest of England,  by William the Conqueror
1337 – 1453 The Hundred Years’ War – technically 116 years and numerous battles
1755 – 1763 The Seven Years’ War – the fight over control of North America which the British won
1779 – 1783 The American Revolution – the French aided the American rebel troops in forcing a British surrender
1792 – 1802 The French Revolution – the British were opposed to the anti-monarchical ideals of the French
1803 – 1815  The Napoleonic Wars – in 1810 the French Empire at its broadest reach, then Napoleon was defeated

And so on…
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Recipes & Travel:
France, Travel in France

The game of pétanque, sometimes called boules is a form of religion in Provence. Most villages have an official or unofficial boules pitch. The more elaborate centres will even have a “club house” offering refreshments.

The word pétanque is Provencal in origin from the word petanca, which means “feet anchored”. The game in its’ present day format started in La Ciotat (on the Mediterranean coast) in 1907. Other similar games are bocce, bowls and horseshoes.
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Recipes & Travel:
Boules in Provence, Provence Travel, Travel in France

The idea for this hike came from a friend at the International Hiking group of Provence. The twosome needed to find a short hike that was not too far from the house, so they would have enough time to get the car to the mechanic.
Nutmeg consulted her “Must Do” list for Provencal activities; it was February so a day at the beach was not rising to the top of the chart. Not too far down the list, was this walk, les Gorges de Régalon a short, challenging hike that was close to home. (Walking in Provence West Guidebook).

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Recipes & Travel:
Hiking in France, Provence Travel, Randonnee in France, Travel in France

Recently, Nutmeg introduced her friend Nancy McGee the founder and visionary behind Absolutely Southern France.
You can read the full article here.

Nancy moved to Sète, the ‘Venice of Southern France’ after 20-years in Aix-en-Provence. Here, is how Nancy describes the two areas: (more…)

Recipes & Travel:
Absolutely Southern France, Aix en Provence, Basin de Thau, Bouzigues, Custom tours, Expat, Languedoc-Roussillon, Sete

Regular Ginger and Nutmeg readers know by now that Nutmeg cannot resist creating an ABC list for a new destination. The exercise allows her to discover some unusual facts that may help her out some day when she is playing Trivial Pursuit.
Enjoy a voyage to Greece and learn a few things about this remarkable country in through the next 26 letters.
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Recipes & Travel:
Athens, Greece, History, Islands, Marathon, Ouzo, Temples, Wines, Zeus

Forget magret de canard and moules frites – couscous served with its savoury slow-cooked stews is popular in French cuisine. It was voted France’s 3rd favourite meal in a study conducted for Vie Pratique Gourmand (2011). There are references to couscous consumption in France that date as far back as 1630 (Toulon) and 1699 (Brittany).
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Recipes & Travel:
Easy Couscous Recipes, Food info in France, French Food, Travel in France

Ginger and Nutmeg hosted a July 4th dinner party while in Provence, in honour of their US friends.  The menu included traditional and non-standard elements.  Although the intent was to celebrate the US holiday, the menu might be considered a melange of Mexican, American, and French.
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Recipes & Travel:
Apples, Easy sweet tart recipes, French Recipes, Healthy Apple Recipes, Panade aux Pommes, Pies, Tart

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