A Travel Series by Diane Covington

Follow along with Diane as she explores the northern end of the South Island of New Zealand for adventures along the back roads…

Part 4: Catching the updraft above Nelson Lakes National Park, New Zealand

While we were staying at the Alpine Lodge in St. Arnaud, I had the chance to go up in a glider above Nelson Lakes National Park. What an unforgettable experience! Here are my thoughts on that amazing journey through the sky. If you want more information on taking a ride in a glider, check out the online home of the New Zealand gliding clubs.

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The fat brown Jersey cows munched the thick grass, flicking their tails against flies, then moseyed along. They never even glanced over at the light planes that zoomed past on the grassy runway, recently reclaimed from their pasture. The slender gliders raced up and down, landing and taking off, like birds in flight.

To go up in a glider, you get strapped into your seat, then the glider, attached by a cable to a wench, gets towed down the runway till it takes to the air, sort of like launching a kite. You’re taxiing down the runway, then whoosh, up, into the sky. No motor, no sound, just the feel of lifting up fast, carried by the wind. The wench releases, attached to a tiny parachute and billows down to the ground.

Up in the air, the sound of the wind rushing past the wings, a thin Plexiglas cover is all you have between you and the open sky. 1,000 feet above the ground, catching updrafts, lift as they call it, up, then down, circling, just like the ospreys, hawks and vultures, I’ve watched soaring, drifting, circling- -amazing.

I was stunned by the beauty of the perspective, thrilled by the closeness of the treetops, awed by the sensibility of literally “casting our fate to the winds” and depending on the whims of Mother Nature to carry us along.

The sheep and cows below looked like little dots of white cotton or brown fuzz. The sun sparkled off the Plexiglas cover, the clouds danced along the ridges, almost eye level to us now.
It must be one of the most direct experiences of flying that a person could have, except maybe hang gliding. I was reminded of the myth of Icarus who fulfilled his dream of flying but soared too close to the sun and melted the wax holding his wings together and fell to his death.

I’ve had dreams of flying and this felt pretty close. I can see why my friend who was piloting the glider has logged over 600 hours, feeling out the air currents, riding them and soaring through the sky.

How could I have missed this for all these years? Where was I that I didn’t know this wonder?

It felt gentle somehow, like we were riding Mother Nature, in some sync with her moods and fancies, flowing, natural like a bird. It felt like she smiled at us in a playful way, played with us a bit, a game of hide and seek, hiding the currents—catch me if you can—down, down, down, then up, up, up, over, always gliding, soaring, falling, then soaring again.

I thought about life–where are the updrafts, the places where I can soar with ease and grace, the wind beneath my wings, carried by something larger than myself, but which I am a part of?
And saw that gliding and life both require that you pay close attention to what is happening, moment by moment. Looking for the gifts, like the updrafts, the lift, which will carry you on.

Diane Covington 2010

A Travel Series by Diane Covington

Follow along with Diane as she explores the northern end of the south island of New Zealand for adventures along the back roads…

Part 3: Nelson Lakes National Park

It was a three-hour drive from the ocean at Golden Bay to Nelson Lakes National Park, up in the mountains.

We chose the small village of St. Arnaud, right on the shore of the sparkling waters of Lake Rotoiti. There is so much outdoor fun available here, it’s hard to know what to do first.

On the lake, you can kayak, windsurf, water-ski, canoe and swim. Or try your hand at fly-fishing in the nearby rivers, for some of the best brown and rainbow trout fishing in New Zealand. Or kayak or raft down the river.

There are hiking trails all over the park, with an extensive network of tracks and huts for overnight stays for backpackers.

I spent my days bike riding and then jumping in the lake to cool off.

We found a gem of a lodge, the Alpine Lodge, a five-minute walk from the lake.

The lodge is a perfect place if you want to be outside and active all day, then come back to a clean and comfortable room, shower and have a gourmet dinner. We enjoyed delicious entrees such as Chicken Curry, a Vegetarian Burrito and an amazing Burger in their bar at the Lodge.

Just next door, their café serves breakfast and lunch. I had a delectable chocolate and berry muffin for breakfast and for lunch, a bacon, cheese and vegetable quiche. All their breads and baked goods are made from scratch. They buy local produce and support local businesses, including serving beers brewed in nearby Nelson and of course, New Zealand wines.

Owner Alexandra Unterberger, who runs the lodge with her fiancée Leighton Marshall, comes from a family with over 300 years history in the hotel and restaurant business. They really go out of their way to make guests feel welcome.

“We’re here every night with the guests. We enjoy having that personal touch,” Alexandra said.

The Alpine Lodge and St Arnaud are centrally located for sightseeing day trips. It’s one hour to Nelson, for arts and crafts and Blenheim for wine tasting. Or the West coast for dramatic coastal scenery, including blowholes.

We had a two-story studio with a view of the creek and felt at home during our three-day stay.

“We want to provide clean rooms, good service and good food,” Alexandra said.

And they did. We’ll go back for sure.

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Diane Covington 2010

A Travel Series by Diane Covington

Follow along with Diane as she explores the northern end of the south island of New Zealand for adventures along the back roads…

Part 2: Golden Bay

I’m visiting a friend who lives in Golden Bay, known for its beautiful and remote beaches. It’s at the north end of the south island and there’s only one two-lane road in and out, so the quiet is palpable. The ocean sparkles on one side of the road and the sheep and cows graze on the other. The skies at night are amazing—you’re gazing up at the Milky Way and a different sky from the northern hemisphere.

The back roads are perfect for biking, fairly flat and not too many cars. For Americans, we just have to remember to drive on the left!
Here are some must see stops in this area:

Farewell Spit Bird Sanctuary

Farewell Spit nature reserve, a bird sanctuary particularly important for migratory shorebirds and including over 90 species of birds, juts out into the ocean at the northern most tip of the south island of New Zealand. The 35km long peninsula looks like a fish hook as it curves around. Public access is restricted so you have to go on an organized tour to see it.
We took a long and relaxing bike ride along Golden Bay. Feeling the fresh salt air on my face and the freedom of pedaling along on a bicycle, followed by a jump in the cool ocean waves were great tonics for jet lag!

Wharariki Beach

It’s a hike (20-30 minutes) from the parking lot, but well worth it. Very dramatic landscape, views, sand dunes, caves and ocean. The day we went it was very windy, so go when it is calm if you can. It would be a great spot to spend the day with a picnic and for sure, bring your camera.

We’re off the Nelson Lakes National Park next so stay tuned!

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Diane Covington 2010

Follow along with Diane as she explores the northern end of the south island of New Zealand for adventures along the back roads…

Part 1 – From jet lag to stunt pilot:
First day in New Zealand and I become a stunt pilot—even with jet lag! Read on and catch the two videos for more fun. Photos too. Enjoy!

If you’ve ever dreamed of being a stunt pilot, soaring high among the clouds and doing rolls and loops, this is your chance!

Want to be a stunt pilot—at least for a day? Well now you can. New Zealand is living up to its reputation of the “land of wild and crazy adventures” and this one leaves bunjee jumping in the dust, literally.

In the little town of Motueka , at the north end of New Zealand’s south island, near Nelson and Golden Bay, there’s a small grassy airstrip where a very brave pilot lets you pay him to take you up in his open air bi-plane, and not only fly it, but do turns, rolls and loops.

You’re soaring through the air, snoopy style, goggles, hair flying, looking down on the green hills and valleys of New Zealand, the ocean sparkling below, farms with sheep and cows grazing. In the distance, there’s Farewell Spit, the narrow peninsula that extends out like a fish hook at the top of the island, then the curving shore and white sands of Golden Bay and the wilderness of Abel Tasman National Park.

You take the plane up to 7,000 feet, feeling the air temperature cool as you climb higher and the wind rushes by. The pilot, Vince, sitting right behind you, gives you instructions—‘nose up, nose down, now move the stick to the left, that’s good…’
When it’s time to roll, he says simply ‘hard left, hard left, hard left’ and over you roll!

It was terrifyingly wonderful and that was with jet-lag—I’d just gotten off the plane from California a few hours before. Don’t miss this chance to be a stunt pilot. Vince is an amazing coach and you can do it!

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Diane Convington 2010

La Cadière d’Azur

The village of La Cadière d’Azur was our last stop before we had to head back to California. Nestled in the hills just a few kilometers from the Mediterranean, it glowed like a precious gem.

It is so rare to find a village that hasn’t been influenced or changed by tourism, and feels like a true ‘village Provencal’. La Cadière d’Azur does.

Wander down the narrow alleyways and up some stone steps and discover the 16^th century Church of Saint André. Its bell, the oldest in the Var region, tolls the hours and dates from 1458.

There is only one hotel in the village, L’Hostellerie Bérard & Spa, a family-run enterprise. The parents started it 40 years ago and now the son, like his father, has become a chef. Their daughter also came back to work with her parents, so you are being welcomed ‘en famille’—to a real French family, and that is how it feels.

After you enter the cozy reception area, you can wander into the bar and restaurant, with an expansive view of the vineyards and farms in the valley below.The 37 rooms of the hotel are tucked into four historic buildings next door– they are just part of the village.

The father, renowned chef René Bérard earned one Michelin star for the restaurant and his son, Jean-Francois is following in his footsteps.The family offers classes in cooking, wine, painting and there are opportunities for bicycling, hiking and other outdoor sports in the area.

Their Aroma Spa, combines aromatherapy with hydrotherapy treatments, also incorporating music and color into the programs. All of the herbs and oils used in the treatments come from their nearby organic farm—even the rose petals that decorate the mirrored surfaces are grown by the family. They offer a full menu of massages, body wraps and scrubs, facials—so many choices.

We enjoyed a sumptuous lunch, then a massage and a relaxed sojourn in the spa’s hammam, sauna and Jacuzzi soaking tubs . The hotel was booked, so we could only go for the day, but I look forward to going back to stay—for as long as possible.

I already want to return and explore this region of Provence again. It would be fun to plan a trip around wine tasting or ‘ degustation’ and really take the time to discover the wines of the Var region. Leisurely days of wine tasting, spa treatments and wonderful food, not to mention classes at the Hostellerie, well, if this isn’t ‘l’art de vivre’ that the French are so famous for, what is?

Some great websites that can help you to plan ahead and make sure that the Hostellerie is not booked up, are: Tourismevar.com (in French) and Var-Prestige.com (in French and English).

For more information, you can contact me at my website: DianeCovington.com.

Till next time, au revoir and happy traveling!

Though the bustling city of Marseille is not on a ‘back road’ of Provence, it is definitely worth a visit.  Just a short drive (or train or bus ride) from Aix, Marseille is the oldest city in France, founded by the Greeks in the 6^th century BC.

There are stunning views of the Mediterranean from many parts of the city.  But the most dazzling view is from the basilica Notre Dame de la Garde, a neo-Byzantine style cathedral, 154 meters high, with a gilded statue of Mary on top.  The interior of the cathedral has been restored and the frescoes are breathtaking.

The corniche, or coastal road, winds out of the city to the Calanques, cliffs that jut into the sea–popular for diving, hiking or swimming in the summer.  We stopped in the little village of Goudes for lunch at La Marine des Goudes.

Then a leisurely drive back up the corniche to settle into our Hotel Beauvau Vieux Port, right on the harbor, before the adventure of tasting an authentic bouillabaisse later that evening.

We took in the Vincent Van Gogh/Monticelli exhibition at the Centre de la Vieille Charite museum.  The work of  Monticelli, a native of Marseille and a master of the Provencal school, had a significant influence on Van Gogh.  The exhibit had 20 paintings by Van Gogh and 60 by Monticelli.  I found it very moving to stand in front of a Van Gogh, the paint swirled thick and showing his fast strokes, and see his name scratched in the left top corner, simply ‘Vincent’.

The exhibition shows the painters’ work side by side, allowing visitors to compare their respective styles.   It continues until January 11^th, 2009.

Back at our hotel, we could watch the comings and goings of the ships in the harbor. I love to watch the fishing boats come back in the morning, just like they’ve been doing for centuries.  They set up a table and unpack their haul of the day and then sell it right there.  Talk about fresh fish!

It was just a short walk to Le Miramar, renowned for its bouillabaisse.

If you’re planning on trying bouillabaisse, a few tips.  Don’t eat any bread and go lightly on the courses that come before.  It is a lot of fish!  We had six different types of fish in ours, and I could have easily split a portion, though I don’t know if that is allowed.  (And asking for a ‘doggie bag’ is definitely a ‘faux paux’.)

Somehow there was room for the apple tart at the end, a delectable light tart with thin pastry and lots of caramelized apples.

We decided to continue our adventure by going back to the back roads.  So stay tuned.  More fun to come.

Well, I said our next adventure was ‘just around the bend’ in Provence and that certainly turned out to be true. After leaving the Hotel Beauvallon in Sainte Maxime, we drove to the AGS Formula 1 racetrack to have a ‘once-in-a-lifetime experience’ of riding in a real race car.

There’s an option to spend the morning getting trained and then drive the racecar that afternoon or just get into a 2-seater behind a trained driver and go. We took that option. I must admit I was nervous, but how thrilling to go 120-150 mph in a racecar, whizzing around a track.

They’re friendly and very professional and it feels safe—as safe as it can feel at that speed! They outfit you with jumpsuits, helmets, shoes, gloves and earplugs (which were needed). Not to be missed for those with that urge for speed!

Then on to Aix-en-Provence, my favorite city in Provence. I’m prejudiced because I lived in Aix in 2000 for almost a year. But Aix is a city that can be rediscovered, no matter how many times you visit it. Everywhere you go, you hear the soft sound of water splashing in fountains—there are over 50 of them.

The Romans founded Aix over 2,000 years ago because of the abundance of springs and the healing properties of the water. Today, the Spa Thermes Sextius is built on the site of the original Roman baths. You can see the crumbling walls of the ancient buildings and the spring, which comes up from a depth of 80 meters at a temperature of 97 degrees, through a glass floor in the entry.

After we settled into our hotel, the Hôtel La Bastide du Cours, right on the Cours Mirabeau or main street, we headed to the spa. The French really know about spas. The water, full of minerals such as calcium, magnesium, and lithium, is said to relieve stress, fatigue and even cellulite. I’ve found the treatments to be really helpful in getting over jet lag.

After three ‘soins’, or treatments, a salt scrub, a mud wrap and a massage with essential oils under ‘affusion’ or warm showers, we were ready for a night of enjoying Aix. (For the spa, make reservations ahead. It is so popular with the locals, they get booked up.) Aix has over 160 manor houses dating from the 17th and 18th centuries, designed by architects from Italy, Paris and Flanders. Cobblestone streets wind into the central square where the Hotel de Ville, or Mayor’s office, is next to a 12th century clock tower. Take your pick of restaurants—there are so many good ones. We ate at Antoine Coté Cours, 19 Cours Mirabeau, which was filled with locals, always a good sign. Stay tuned for our next stop, the port of Marseille.

`Å bientôt—see you soon!

We left the amazing Terre Blanche and continued along the winding roads in the hills above the Mediterranean toward our next destination, Le Chateau de Berne, a winery and 18th century chateau and inn. On the way, we stopped for a coffee at Saint Endreol Golf Course, a lovely spot to golf or stay, but we wanted to keep going–we were excited to experience the Chateau de Berne.

We also stopped at Chateau Sainte Roseline to taste some Rosé wine and visit their chapel, well worth the stop. Then just down the road, we entered the over 1500 acre estate of Chateau de Berne . This very successful vineyard and inn feels like you’re staying in a country house of a generous and well off friend. Like Terre Blanche, the quiet and peace of the place is palpable and refreshing. The rooms are upstairs from the restaurant and it feels like you’re home and running downstairs for dinner. Their website calls it an ‘intimate country residence’ and they have it right.

We relaxed in our comfortable room before dinner and then headed down the stairs for a memorable evening. Our dinner menu was paired with wines from their own vineyard, white, rosé and red. We started with mixed smoked salmon, parma ham, parmesan cheese and tender greens. Our main course was a slow roasted lamb cannelloni with lamb chop. Then came a selection of cheeses and then dessert, a tasting plate including crème brulée and other luscious bite-sized treats. The fine damask tablecloth and napkins in a soft peach color on the table, the fresh flowers on the table and throughout the rooms and the excellent service made us feel very taken care of and wanting to stay as long as possible.

The next morning, we swam in the heated pool as the sun came up and turned the clouds and sky a rosy pink. Breakfast of fresh croissants and fruit and a lazy morning at the inn prepared us for our journey back down to the coast to rediscover Saint Tropez and Sainte Maxime, off season. Stay tuned for the next update and more adventures.

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For more information about this area of ‘Undiscovered Provence’, check out these websites:
www.tourismevar.com
www.var-prestige.com

I’ve traveled to France for over 25 years and even lived in France in 2000 for almost a year. I have a passion for the culture and the language that is both mysterious and fulfilling. I’m always looking for new places to explore or new ways to explore old places.

So when I heard about the properties that I’m going to share with you here, I just had to go and check them out. The idea of undiscovered Provence down back roads, well, it was too good. And it turned out to be even better than I could have imagined. But then, I’m prejudiced. But even so, these fall into the category of the rare and the magical, so stay tuned.

We arrived in late September, 2008, on the Fall Equinox, at the Terre Blanche Four Seasons Resort (www.fourseasons.com/provence/) in the hills behind Cannes, France. After landing in Nice, it was a short drive along winding roads up into the hills, leaving behind the crowds of the coast.

The Terre Blanche feels like a little piece of Provencal heaven. When we arrived, tired from all our traveling, the staff met us with towels that smelled of rosemary and thyme. There is an utter quiet and peace to the place, a chance to go back in time and to feel what France has to offer, ‘l’art de vivre’, the art of living at a slower pace and of really enjoying each moment.

The property is set up like a small village, with individual suites looking across the valley to the perched village of Fayence. Each suite has a sitting room and courtyard, spacious bedroom and bath, with comfortable beds, fine linens and cozy comforters. French doors open out to the terrace from the living room and bedroom. A massage at the spa, then a soak in the heated pool and jacuzzi, helped with jet lag. The landscaping is designed with aromatic plants–lavender, rosemary, and thyme, among others, and their scents filled the fresh air as we walked back to our cottage.

At Terre Blanche, you can play golf at one of two 18 hole courses, swim, visit the nearby villages or just kick back and relax at the pool or on your private terrace. There are five restaurants to choose from, and the Faventia, the main restaurant, has one MIchelin star. Executive Chef Philippe Jourdin creates fresh, contemporary Mediterranean menus, complemented by both local and international wines. Our three course dinner at Faventia included a first course of Zucchini flowers stuffed with Provencal flavors and a baby leaves salad. Our second course was rolled fillet of sole with mashed zucchini, olives bitter juice, tomato petals and rocket leaves. And for dessert, we enjoyed light cream of vanilla and fresh raspberries, rose ice cream and a soft biscuit in a crispy shell of Provencal almonds.

The presentation of each course was elegant and beautiful and we had to admire the plate before beginning to savor the creations. With the first course, we took the suggestion of the chef and enjoyed a Chassagne Montrachet Domaine Borgeot, 1995, a crisp white wine. And for the second course, Aloxe Corton Domaine Rapet, 2004, a full red wine. The restaurant lived up to its one Michelin Star, with both the food and the service and our dinner became a special part of the Terre Blanche memories. I recommend staying at least two days, to really slow down and savor the experience of this special resort and the area.

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For more information about this area of ‘Undiscovered Provence’, check out these websites:
www.tourismevar.com
www.var-prestige.com