Category Archives: Provence

Provencal Vines Through The Seasons

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Anticipation is what Nutmeg would call this blog post. The labour of love required to persuade grapevines to produce their fruit year after year is one for only the most patient individuals. Owning a vineyard and producing your own wine certainly sounds romantic, to those who might be desk or office-bound. However, the reality of the yearlong process is one of hard physical labour and working with what Mother Nature delivers.

Ginger and Nutmeg have certainly sampled their fair share (possibly more) of wine, while in Europe. They certainly do not pretend to be experts in the field of growing grapes, nor producing wine. There is no reason to dive into the specifics of viticulture in a blog post, as there are many experts who have written tombs on the subject. Instead, here are some ABCs around wine that will make you sound like an expert (or an idiot) and some fun facts.

vines-through-the-year

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Provence’s Gorgeous Gorges du Verdon

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Nutmeg’s “Top 10” list for Provence included a visit to the Gorges du Verdon. This magnificent area is sometimes referred to as the Grand Canyon du Verdon, due to the natural chasm formed by the river. The turquoise-green Verdon River cuts a meandering path along the steep, limestone cliffs. The length of the gorge is roughly 25 kilometres (km), and at certain points, the cliffs reach 700m (2,300ft) in height.

The Gorges du Verdon is certainly extraordinary, but the comparison to the Grand Canyon might be an exaggeration. The Grand Canyon is 446km long, 29km across at its widest point and reaches depths of 1,800m (6000 ft).

Gorges du Verdon

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Mistral One Crazy Wind

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The relief palatable, the calm almost surreal, something is missing – the wind has stopped!

In France, the mistral is a strong wind that typically blows from the north or northwest.  Mistral the name for this wind means “masterly”, and in Nutmeg’s opinion, it certainly lives up that reputation.  The mistral typically blows hard, with gusts at times up to 100 km/hour as it accelerates down the Rhone and Durance rivers towards the Mediterranean.  Much like a Chinook in Calgary, the mistral brings a change in weather, in this case it is typically dry and cooler.  This can be a relief in the hot days of spring and early summer, or a curse in the later days of the fall as it creates glacial temperatures.

There are two French expressions when it comes to the mistral “le vent qui rend fou” (the wind which makes you crazy) and “le vent des voleurs” (the wind of robbers).  Nutmeg thinks both sayings are accurate.  The mistral can blow for just a couple of days or even as long as a week.  A strong mistral will typically send cafe patrons indoors and make golf games virtually unplayable.  The beautiful plane trees of Provence, with their noisy, leafy canopies provide excellent cover for robbers, as even dogs cannot hear their approach.

le Village des Bories

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Thomas Jefferson in France Part Two

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Jefferson’s voyage continued south.

He paid a visit to St Remy de Provence and Les Baux, his interest in agriculture and antiquity were the main drivers. The rural area around St Remy continues to be heavily focused on agriculture today. Although, the combination of agricultural crops has changed over the years, the enduring olive tree continues to be a strong contributor to the local economy.

Olives

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Thomas Jefferson In France Part One

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One of Nutmeg’s all-time favourite quotes is by the third United States President, Thomas Jefferson:

“In matters of style, swim with the current; in matters of principle, stand like a rock.“

Paris-tour-eiffel

Needless to say, she was thrilled to read a book by Roy and Alma Moore entitled “Thomas Jefferson’s Journey To The South of France”. The book is available through Amazon, it is a well-researched chronicle of Jefferson’s visit to the southern part of France in 1787. The book includes copies of his letters, recent pictures and some snippets of history. Jefferson was at the time the American minister to France; his journey however, was a personal one with few official obligations. He set out from Paris on February 28, 1787 and returned on June 10th, the same year.

This post is not a book review, but rather Ginger and Nutmeg’s view of some of the places that the illustrious man visited 224 years before. A note to readers, this blog post, includes several embedded links (see bold text) to photo galleries and previous posts, click away and enjoy the Thomas Jefferson tour Continue reading →

Eygalières Fete De La St Laurent

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Eygalières is a beautiful village located in the heart of the Alpilles in Provence. The town has a population of barely 1,800 souls, most of whom live in another locale on a regular basis. The number of residents swells in the spring and summer months as the homes and hotel rooms fill. Owners and staff at the local cafés and restaurants work hard during these months serving the throngs of visitors.

The setting for Eygalières is idyllic; a medieval village perched on a hill offering views of the Alpilles and Mont Ventoux. The hamlet has one bustling main street filled with three cafés, two bakeries, a butcher, two groceries, several restaurants and too many real estate agents.

Eygalieres-view

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Provence’s Antique Theatre Spectacles in Orange

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Does the colour ORANGE cause you think of your crazy Dutch friends, celebrating Koninginnedag (“Queen’s Day”) on April 30th?

Does the colour ORANGE make you cringe due to the gyrations in your trading account at ING Direct?

Does the colour ORANGE make you think of the massive mobile phone network operated by France Telecom?

Does the colour ORANGE evoke memories of the political protests in the Ukraine in November 2004 – January 2005 (the Orange Revolution)?

This post is not about any of those.

Theatre Antique d'Orange

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