Autumnal April News

Namaste Travellers

It's when you walk into the foyer of the fairytale five star Imperial hotel after driving through the madness of loud, overcrowded Delhi, that you get your first hit of the contrasts that make up Indian life. My recent textile/shopping tour to the land of the hot pink spice saga was ten days of gin and tonic, Indian beer and enough rose flavoured icecream to sink a ship. In between that and eating refined fusion Indian food we touched every beautiful piece of fabric, draped every elaborate shawl around ourselves and fearlessly enjoyed being wrapped into possibly the most elegant, feminine garment ever invented – the sari.

This is my only tour that is not focused on gastronomic culture but on textiles, luxury shopping, crafts, jewellery and sensory overload in Delhi, Jodhpur and Jaipur. Our luxury hotels were gorgeous and we used the garden of our Jaipur hotel to have our hands henna painted. Outside there is colour, honking, laughter, poverty, cows wandering the city streets whilst inside calm, cool and graciousness reign. Most of the tour is in the traditional, brilliantly artistic desert state of Rajasthan. The tour is hands on, we do a tie-dye workshop, visit the desert to see how rugs are made and do a block printing workshop. There's no such thing as too much bling in India but we took it all off to celebrate Holi, the festival of light and th triumph of good over evil ( could do with some of that in the world at the moment). To celebrate Holi, Indians throw coloured powder all over each other and dance and sing – I think some of us still have pink hair and blue underwear – it gets everywhere.

It's all happening again next year 7 – 16 March so if you want to hug an elephant in the wilderness sanctuary we visit, find out more HERE.

Greece in 2027?

Yes it's true. I'm dreaming of Greece. I first visited this ancient land when I lived in Vancouver in the 1970s and have visited many times since and even filmed in Crete with TVNZ. In the 1970s you just packed a swimsuit, a toothbrush and a copy of Lawrence Durrell’s 'Reflections on a Marine Venus' and jumped on the plane. Everything cost nothing. I got a ferry to Rhodes and fell in love but that's another story. Women would come down to the dock and say, come and stay at my house – it's $2 a day. You would smile and follow them and spend a few weeks eating sunshiney Greek food, homemade breakfasts of eggs fried in warm green olive oil, drinking retsina, sunbathing and listening to Greek music in clubs.

I will be doing a recce in June this year with a view to hosting a tour 15 – 21 May 2027. We will spend the first 3 nights in Athens which is much more groovy, fashionable and gastronomic than it used to be and the second 3 nights on the island of Sifnos. In Athens, the ever-evolving capital of grit and glamour, passion and vibrance we will wrap ourselves around the Acropolis and museum, fashion shopping, fish markets, Greek music and stay in the gastro-hotel Ergon House.

The unbelievably stunning little island of Sifnos is a haven of tradition and authenticity, of fishing and farming, of old-fashioned Greek life. Sifniots excel in whatever they do, whether that’s cooking, ceramics, farming, sailing, fishing or embroidering. We intend to have lessons in pottery, cookery and Greek dancing (especially on the last night). We will taste succulent baby octopus marinated in olive oil, lemon juice, garlic and parsley; tiny deep fried sardines with their tails pressed together to form a fan shape and fresh grapevine leaves stuffed most delicately with shallots, rice, tiny black Corinthian currants, pine nuts and dill. Breakfast might be fresh figs, dark honey, thick yoghurt and strong coffee. Obviously we'll be visiting a vineyard. We'll be staying at the slick Elies Resort. 

So the 2026 / 2027 line up is looking like this...

Uzès gastronomic tour 5 – 11 June 2026 – full details HERE – we have 2 places left
Basque Country gastronomic tour 20 – 26 June 2026 – full details HERE – we have 1 place left
India fashion and textile tour 7 – 16 March 2027 – full details HERE
Puglia gastronomic tour 5 – 11 May 2027 – full details HERE
Greece gastronomic tour 15 – 21 May 2027 – details coming soon – register your interest HERE
Uzès gastronomic tour 12 – 18 June 2027 – full details HERE
Basque Country gastronomic tour 26 June – 2 July 2027 – full details HERE

Book News

My most recent book of true stories did quite well, considering it was my first attempt at self-publishing.  It's about family, friends, helpful household hints, the best teenage job I ever had and horror tour tales amongst other exciting topics and you can buy it in all good bookshops. I am so encouraged that I am now publishing a recipe book called 'The Supper Club – a ritual of togetherness'  to be released in October / November. So far we have photographed every plate, knife, fork, tablecloth, shawl, table napkin and ramekin in my apartment. We're now in the middle of photographing such delicacies as Portuguese fish soup, Salade Nicoise tart and ginger & raspberry madeleines.  

Speaking of the Supper Club.... it's full till I leave for France in May. It will start up again in October if you feel like a cooking class, dinner, conversation, book reading and general togetherness. My people have always been good around a table. I think this goes back to my Irish ancestors and the Great Famine – when in doubt get out the whiskey, cook something and sit around the kitchen table with the family. You never know when it’s going to be your last potato. 

I will be in my Uzès home in the South of France from mid-May till the end of September. My cooking classes are on Wednesdays and Saturdays (Market days) and involve shopping together at the market, walking to my place through medieval streets, hands-on cooking class of Provencale dishes and cooling local wines (because of the heat n'est ce pas).  So if you're going to be in the hood you can book a class or find out more HERE.

That's it for now but remember....when you tell a person a recipe, you are telling them a love story. Always cook with a gentle heart or the food will taste bitter from your regrets. And you can read all about my beauty secrets in Good magazine. My most important beauty position is lying on the couch reading. See the article HERE.

Peta