Paula Kane spends nine months a year dreaming of her life in Provence and the balance of the year soaking up all the beauty that the region offers. The saying might be that opposites attract, but a Canadian girl who like to cycle, loves food, wine and Provence sounded just a …

Pass the Pastis Once you get past its slightly unappealing milky yellow colour and mild anise flavour you are either a pastis fan or vow never to drink the stuff again. However, pastis drinkers don’t care what you think about their beverage of choice. As you sip your glass of …

Now that I’ve seen the movie “Loving Van Gogh” — in French no less, with no subtitles — I remember my first visit to Saint-Rémy-de-Provence. I started my quest for Vincent Van Gogh’s trail in Saint-Rémy-de-Provence early on a beautiful, sunny morning. Temperatures were in the high 70’s, and a …

Wishing you a Perfectly Provence Holiday The holidays are finally upon us with the stockings hung by the fire and another year of terrific Perfectly Provence content is behind us. It is time to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and all the best for a joyful season. However, before we …

his is a recipe Didi and I made up (mostly Didi!) when given an enormous bag of freshly foraged Trompette de la Mort mushrooms. It’s wonderful as a starter, but could easily be a full meal when paired with a nice salad. Any mushrooms will do, but wild mushrooms do seem to really make this. If you can’t be bothered to make the béchamel, it’s fine without.

Provence in Autumn Almost anyone with an artistic eye – photographers, painters, Instagrammers – love Provence for its beautiful light. Famous artists such as Vincent Van Gogh, Paul Gaugin Paul Cézanne and Pablo Picasso all captured the ever-changing luminosity on their canvases. Provence is glorious in any season, however during …

Contributor blog post by Paula Kane: Eating out in Provence is a challenge. I leap into panic mode when someone says, “let’s go out for lunch or dinner”.  I know most people think eating out in France is a dream, and it can be. Around here it’s difficult to find simple, …

Contributor blog post by Paula Kane: Oh autumn, with your pretty colours, your shifting light and cool days. Everyone seems to be madly in love with you. “My favourite time of year” appears to be the overwhelming sentiment. So why exactly is it that I don’t feel that same way …

Truffle Markets It is more common to see summer truffles in the markets than in the past. However, this summer tuber may be related to the “Black Diamond,” but the taste is certainly not as distinctive. There is also a significant price differential between the summer and winter varieties. In …

I’ve just been to a wonderful exhibition at the Royal Academy of Arts in London. It was called Matisse in the Studio, and it shows how the objects that Matisse surrounded himself with appeared in his art. Henri Matisse was a collector: He had an array of vases, chairs, carpets, furniture, …