My French TV Debut When a producer from the France Canal 3 called me up to ask if I would participate—as the expat writer—in a segment of the travel show Chroniques Méditerranéennes (show details below) with Nathalie Simon, I was ecstatic. A French TV show planning to feature St. Rémy …

Festivals and Fall Events in Provence Fall in Provence directs you towards a heartier menu. Enjoy meat (lamb, wild boar, taureaux, rabbit, fowl) roasted with herbes de Provence, root vegetables and delicious red wine blends. At this time of year, the hiking is fabulous, biking is possible, and golfers might …

Often, comfort food is what we crave the most or maybe your Provencal mama’s cooking. The following recipe for Mama Régine’s Ratatouille comes from Cassis Bistro’s owner/operator Gilles Brassart. Cassis Bistro in Calgary, Alberta, delivers “South of France Flavour with Local Flair.” Originally from the Aix-en-Provence area, Gilles Brassart arrived …

A Quick Visit to Marseille Guest post and photos by Renata Haidle: Not sure the above is a thing, but every time I visit a place for a very short time I think of speed dating. The anticipation. The pressure. Showing your best assets in a very limited time. Not …

Luxury Entertainment Luxury living and Provence go hand in hand: the region boasts incredible scenery, beaches, weather, food, wine, and so much more. But the area is also home to some fantastic entertainment options. If you’re looking to indulge in some of the finer things in life, here is a …

Memoirs Inspired by Provence For many, Peter Mayle’s best-selling novel A Year in Provence was their introduction to the Provencal countryside. Images of the Côte d’Azur have long covered the pages of travel magazines. Still, Mayle’s descriptions of bumbling through a home renovation in the arrière-pays (translation: backcountry or hinterland) shifted …

Provence Food Trucks When you think of Provence, it’s unlikely that a food truck is a culinary image that springs to mind. However, the number of food trucks in the region is exploding. Most of these trucks are mobile, available to travel to private venues, public gatherings, markets and festivals. …

Family Day at the Sea A trip to Les Goudes, the tiny fishing port on the eastern edge of Marseille, is delightful. However, it isn’t particularly child-friendly. Some days, you want a bucket-and-spade day where little ones can scoot their scooters, pedal their trikes or ride along in prams. Suddenly, …

Cézanne’s Studio Like most young artists learning to paint, I was attracted to and inspired by most of the impressionistic and post-impressionistic painters. I loved the work of Monet, Renoir, Matisse, Gauguin and Cézanne and many more. When I arrived in Aix-en-Provence for the first time, I rushed up the …

There’s a new obsession running around in my head: “visit as many of France’s ‘Les Plus Beaux Villages‘ as I possibly can.”  So far, I’ve seen only 10 out of some 156 “authentic” Les Plus Beaux Villages. I have a lot of travelling to do. Les Plus Beaux Villages There …