Hello, fellow campers, gourmets, and nature lovers! Gourmet Girl Denise here from the Loire, France. Summer has finally arrived here after a very slow start. It has rained steadily for two months and sadly rotted my 35 tomato plants. Ugg! Thank goodness the stores and markets have lovely, fresh heirloom tomatoes for sale so all […]
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Who Is a Girl Camper?
Hello Friends and Fellow Campers, Gourmet Girl Gail here writing from Santa Barbara. We’re in the throws of August, Fiesta begins tomorrow in S.B. (it will be a scaled down version due to the rising coronavirus cases in the County linked to the highly-transmissible Delta variant), Labor Day is right around the corner, and I’m […]
Late Spring in the Loire
Hello Friends! Gourmet Girl Denise here from the Loire river valley, France. The weather here just went from blazing hot in the ’90s to intermittent thundershowers, with some parts of France experiencing flooding. This is a real change from drought-stricken southern California. I can’t remember when I experienced rain in the month of June in […]
The sacred and the profane
Greetings from the Loire Valley! It seems that it has been quite a while since I last communicated with you, perhaps because Spring is such a busy time here and I am sure for all of you as well. Here in France, we experienced an unprecedented freeze that decimated the wine grapes as well as […]
Happy Cinco de Mayo!
Dear Friends, Foodies, and Fellow Adventurers, Today is a day of celebration! And one of my all-time favorites. I’ll be making my most-loved shrimp tacos and dreaming of the wonderful times I’ve spent in Baja California and Oaxaca, Mexico. How will you celebrate this cultural fiesta? Cook an authentic Mexican meal? Don’t forget the margarita. […]
Grill, Grill, Grill!
Dear Fellow Foodies and Avid Campers, Gourmet Girl Gail here writing from sunny Santa Barbara. Happy Spring! A recent outing to Cava Robles RV Resort in Paso Robles, CA, found me in the grilling mode. Paso can reach temps in the 100s during summer, but this time of year is the perfect weather to explore […]
We Love Veggie Gardens!
Hello Friends! Gourmet Girl Denise here from the Loire River Valley, France. Well, it seems we are soon to all be vaccinated from the dreaded Covid-19 virus that has been wreaking havoc upon our mother earth for the past year. Thank goodness! My age group will be eligible for the jab in April and will […]
An Early Spring
Hello friends and fellow campers! Gourmet Girl Denise here from Le Petit Saint Barnabé in the Loire, France. It seems spring has come early here in the Loire. Daffodils are up and sporting their sunny, yellow faces, and my Mirabelle plum tree has bloomed its little heart out and it has been warm enough for bees […]
Camping During COVID — Part 6 — The Lovely Walnut Grove
Dear Friends and Followers, Gourmet Girl Gail here writing from windy Santa Barbara. We trust you are remaining safe and healthy. Boy, what a year 2020 was! And here we are, already six weeks or so into 2021 with a bit of hope on the horizon. Even though the vaccine rollout is slow and spotty […]
Le Chandeleur
Hello Friends, Campers, and Gourmets! Greetings! Gourmet Girl Denise here from Le Petit Saint Barnabé here in the Loire, France. Today is Le Chandeleur or Candlemass here in France, always celebrated on February 2. Originally it was a religious holiday that celebrated the presentation at the temple of Jesus forty days after his birth, or […]