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The summer solstice celebrations coincide with an event called “Open Yards & Gardens”.  This is a great way to visit all the wonderful and secret gardens that you would never otherwise get to see. Visitors are invited to explore, and to encounter many unusual plants.  

Well, you might remember that in the past I attended several creative workshops located on Sabine Dammer’s idyllic farm and her  Kreativ Werkstatt (also see past blog post). This is where I met the inspiring artists Petra Landolt and Sabine Hoeft-Dammer first.   

For this particular weekend, Sabine and Petra proposed to up-grade my status from student to a producer of liquor & seller for fine creative art pieces and products. Their approach: Andrea, you make the best Elderberry Flower Schnapps. Any interest in making and selling elderberry liquor during our open yard & garden weekend event?  

Of course I was tickled and went about producing my favorite liquor: Collecting elderberry flowers in the afternoon sun; searching for empty bottles; and making liquor.  

As this product was intended for sale to the public I already began to think of how best to market a bottle of home made liquor. The theme for this weekend was set for Herbs & Spices. Of course, creating labels and packaging the bottles requires some creative juice. I really enjoyed this part the most… check out the photos.  

Apart from my little production of Elderberry Flower Liquor, Strawberry Lime Mint Liquor, Strawberry Mint Jam, Elderberry Flower Gelee I so delighted in making my labels that my husband exclaimed: Why not say this? 

Labels for sale! Liquor for free! 

Did I sell many labels? You bet I did!

Did I give away a lot of liquor? You bet I did!   

The following article was written for ReSource Media, producers of KarmaTrekkers TV and other independent television programs, and published on their blog.

Travel Specialist Andrea Nims explains how responsible tourism is not only green but it is also the most rewarding form of travel.

The notion of responsible tourism, or green travel, is increasing among consumers. Cultural immersion by its very nature is the "greenest" way of traveling. And just because it's called 'green' travel doesn't mean you have to go backpacking.

In my eyes, the most fascinating way to travel is by using savvy local hosts who know how to live life to the fullest. They make the most of available resources; they go off the beaten path to create unique experiences; and they take advantage of the best their community offers.

A prime example of green travel is embodied by one of my friends, American chef Nikki Rose, who works with a network of local chefs on the Mediterranean Island of Crete. She has created an interactive educational program, Crete's Culinary Sanctuaries, to promote sustainable organic agriculture and traditional cuisine. Guests can learn how this program works and meet local farmers. A unique cultural vacation like this allows travelers to explore the elusive insiders’ secrets and get closer to the heart of an unfamiliar culture.

We live in a global village where fishmongers may also be day-traders. At the same time, most of us are still proud of our traditions and are willing to share them with intrepid globetrotters. Responsible travel allows visitors to make direct contact with local culture in a meaningful way. It also helps local people earn a fair income from tourism. As a result, they can support local conservation and social projects, to help minimize negative environmental and cultural impact.

As a tourism specialist, I believe that travel organizers and consultants should recognize the responsibility of doing our part to re-invent the tourism industry for the long term benefit of everyone - whether it's tourists or local communities. Together, through our travels, we can be attributed to the preservation of the world's natural wonders and cultural heritages.

Before attending a trade show in Lyon recently, I traveled to Paris first. What better way is there then meeting friends for lunch, for tea time and for dinner – and always seeing the famous sights as backdrops wherever you go and sit. It is quite spectacular.

I really had no time to spare when I got off the RER train from CDG airport, arriving at the Gare du Nord. I basically ran down the Blvd. Magenta to meet webmaster & friend & host Josef and Ric who hosts the site for InTouch Travel at the Place de la Republique. Off we went to a restaurant close to Josef’s work. You’d think this buisnes lunch would be serious. Instead it was carefree and light hearted with a Josef who is a little on a shy side but with a tremendous smile and spirit, delightful to be around. Josef promised to do these corrections and updates to the InTouch Travel’website. Yet his world is really the world of photography. So as we sat across a market hall where he had taken photos of fashion shows for Vogue.  He was thrilled about the fact now needing to learn the java script language for his project at Matphoto. Rick who just arrived at that morning from New York was amused by Josef and me comparing our newest toys: IPod and Blackberry and he took many photos to capture our smiles.

Soon enough I found myself in a metro going to see my friend & host Larry who lives with his family across the Ecole Militaire, as back drop here you find the Eiffel Tower. When I walked up to the fourth floor I was greeted by a whisteling tea kettle, a cat and a 17 year old very old doggie, and a beaming Larry. I always enjoy Larry’s company with his quick wit and good humoredness. He has an acute sense for buisness ideas and making quick bucks. I enjoy immensely our brain storming about this or that.  Larry’s 12 year old son Chas and his wife Deboarah had just returned from school. Chas began a conversation, mind you, not in English nor in French but in German. It blew me and his parents away. Here is a 12 year old boy studying German for just  8 months exchanging opinions, and a banter going back and forth…and holding his own. Amazing. To soon I had to leave them.

I hopped into bus number 87 that would take me to one of my favorite neighborhoods in Paris: Place Odeon & St. Germain. Here is where our new host Emmanuelle awaited me in the quiet elegance of the Relais & Chateau Hotel Catherine. Emmanuelle has plenty of stories to tell: She married an American and spent most of her married life abroad: England, Germany, Switzerland and the United States, before returning once more to Paris after her husband passed away a few months ago. Foreign diplomats seek her services to guide and navigate them not only through Paris but also through French life. She also offers her services to language school where students are eager to be taken around Paris. We definitely enjoyed a wonderful and peaceful time together surrounded by such a distinctive elegance and atmosphere before she headed out to check on her son working on some papers at home.

You or your guests can have the same enchanting visit in Paris as I did.  You can become locals by meeting a real person for lunch, tea time or dinner with gorgeous backgrounds! This experience is something you can make happen if you connect with any of our 100 personable hosts featured on the InTouch website.   

It was a rainy, windy, nasty day in Hamburg. I stumbled across Lange Reihe while waiting for my Parisian colleague and host Veronique de Longevialle. Shoes wet, socks wet, pants drenched, and umbrella in hands fighting the gusts. I could not believe my eyes when I looked up for a tiny moment: Did I see a Starbucks at the corner over there? No wait – it is Balzac Coffee! And the perfect place for taking refuge - for a little while anyway. 

While waiting for my Caramel Machiatto I learned about Balzac Coffee and founder Diana Olsen. She is armed with a degree in French Literature and immersed herself in authentic French Culture. She lived in Paris, Toronto, and San Francisco, where she studied at the West Coast Specialty Coffee Training Institute and earned the designation of “Roast Master”.  

Then she returned to Hamburg. Inspired by French poet Honoré de Balzac, she opened her first local café bar in May 1998 “from a Hamburgian to Hamburgians” as advertised on a banner.  “Espresso coffee chains" were pretty much unknown in Europe before 1998. So Balzac Coffee began to connect traditional urban coffee culture with the practical and progressive "TO-GO"- mentality. Neat. 

Balzac Coffee micro-roasts the finest selection of Arabica Organic and Fair Trade coffee beans from all points of the globe. It is for real coffee lovers who are looking for more than just an everyday cup. A place for coffee connoisseurs …”umhhh umhhh good”! 

Today, the local chain of Balzac Coffee operates 19 shops in Hamburg, and has expanded to other cities like Lübeck, Berlin and Hannover, and soon to be Cologne. Nor did Olsen forget about her time in Toronto; she opened the first of three Canadian coffee shops in Stratford, Ontario, in 2003.  

Starbucks? Yes, the label appears on five shops in Hamburg. But Hamburg is very happy with Balzac. I was reminded by a determined man waiting in line behind me, overhearing our conversation, “But this is not Starbucks – this is Balzac Coffee!” Local! 

Editor's Note: Deontology comes from a Greek word (deon) meaning 'obligation' or 'duty.' It is an approach to ethics that focuses on the rightness or wrongness of actions themselves, as opposed to the rightness or wrongness of the consequences of those actions.]

FOR DEONTOLOGY IN TOURISM AND THE TRAVEL PRESS

By Bernadette Bonnetain-Roux & Jacques Campe

The tourism industry has become a key economic factor in today's world, with consequences raising the question of its deontology. Some points worth reflection automatically come to mind, in the light of the deep changes that will affect our behavior in the future, in terms of our attitude towards Nature and the economy as a whole.

Tourism must thrive in the best interest of all populations, protecting our planet from as much pollution as humanly possible within the frame of sustainable progress. All forms of transportation, as well as hotel, amusement and cultural infrastructures should limit energy consumption at all levels and refuse should be collected and duly recycled, regardless of its origin.

We must meet the new challenges without delay and initiate an all-embracing fight against wastes of any kind.

Traveling is a right that comes with duties. A tourist should respect the population and its environment, avoiding collection of "souvenirs", interference with local customs, support of mendicity and sexually- motivated travel.

A tourist should never impose his values and demeanor on local people, nor contribute to the degradation of the environment. She or he must also abide by the provisions of all regulations pertaining to the preservation of endangered species, including in terms of gastronomy.

Activities potentially harmful to ecosystems, such as building installations in a natural settings, shooting, hunting, fishing, quad driving, etc., should be kept under tight control and regulations strictly enforced.

The specialized press has a particular role to play. While fulfilling its mission with rigorous objectivity, it should not only be a relay for tourist offices in describing the highlights of various destinations. It should also cover some sensitive fields to which the traveler will be exposed in every country, such as the social, ecological, political and sanitary situations, risks and dangers, etc. That task implies a strict respect of the journalistic deontology.

As every economic activity, the tourism industry and travel journalists alike must contribute to the well-being and enrichment of the populations. A local and international debate should take place soonest on the responsibility of all involved parties.

(AFJET - Excerpts from a note by the President of the Ethics Committee (Felicio Rodriguez)

We sit at a waterfront café enjoying the gorgeous view of the sea while sipping our coffees. A strong west wind makes us marvel at the sailing boats and their captains out there. What strength, knowledge of nature and technical abilities does this sport require to make a boat sail! 

Then we see a sailboat coming awfully close to shore, struggling to get turned into the wind as the sails flutter loudly. No command. The sailboat comes closer, all of a sudden a bang. My thoughts are running: Oh my goodness…What is going to happen to the three older passengers onboard? Are we the only ones watching them? I think we are the only ones watching…. Oh my goodness, another bang as it hits a second boulder.   

I cry out: “They are stuck. I hope they won’t sink? What are we going to do?” In my mind I play out the whole scenario: First I will run into the café and ask them to call for help, perhaps even suggest calling the Coast Guard. Then I will jump in to the water and rescue them… perhaps I will be a hero?  “Oh shoot, now they are really facing the wrong direction.” The boat is leaning and the captain decides to roll in his jib. “What must he be feeling?” The two ladies sit quietly in the front of the boat, not really any help to him… And now, yeah, they cannot move anymore. They sit, grounded.  

Then, out of out of the corner of my eye, I see the true hero of the day. Here he is. He takes off his shoes and jeans, wading through the water towards the boat. He reaches the boat, holds on to the bow and yells commands at the captain that I can’t understand. But the next steps show it all: “Take the main sail down. All right, you move to the port side. Be careful. Now let me move the boat to face the right wind direction so you move into the water channel. Now hoist your main sail again….!” Soon enough he pushes them gently in to the channel and in the right direction. He is breast-deep in the water and waves at them.  I am so relieved and so pleased that there is a real hero to this story. It wasn’t me. I ran to the place where he took off his jeans all laying on a bench.

Right next to his clothes sits his teenage son, watching his dad being a hero! I beam at the son and I congratulate the father when he comes out of the water with a very animated “The true hero of the day is definitely you!” as I look at his foot bleeding, a cut. All cold but happy he says modestly: “I made this very same mistake a couple of times.” He knows these waters well. “If you don’t turn around in time you definitely hit the two boulders before running aground. Not to mention this strong wind….. !”

He proudly introduces himself and his son, and as they walk off to their home he says, “What a sensation!”  I reply: “Yes, and all your sensation is captured on my camera… let me send them to you.” “All right, I'm a local and work at the Paulsen yard.” “No problem.”

You’d think one would get lost on a street or in a crowd but I literally got lost in a forest —  I mean forest painting.

Meeting the youngest artist Frederique Tonnerre in Pont-Aven, Brittany, France, a small port packed with tourists and art galleries, I follow his thoughts, ideas and creations about his art & work.

Frederique usually paints with pastels, oils and charcoal and is passionate about his region, so he paints it so as to share his enthusiasm with his contemporaries.

I am immediately drawn to one of his “wood paintings”.  I quizz Frederique and learn that his partciular art work was created on a wooden panel, or glacis. In Brittany you can only find three such artists, and Frederique being one of them.

Most surviving panel paintings are from the 13th to the early 16th century. The most important artist to use this method was Leonardo da Vinci. On wooden panels you can not allow for any mistakes thus working on linnen is much easier and preferred.

I am surprised to learn that he uses metallic colors, such as light and dark golds, bronze, copper, silver, pewter, flake white and 27 different kinds of Greens! I love green colors, forests and walking. No wonder as I listen to Frederique my perception of it totally tuned out the world around me as I got lost on a walk through the forest he painted. Fascinating.

 It’s that time of year “summer, sun, sea & fun”. As the day nears the end we head out to the beach. The highlight of the evening for the kids & adults alike will be the campfire! The kids play, the women chat and the men are happy to build the fire.  

Petra unpacks the picnic basket. “Here is the task,” she says: “Find the nearest trees to snap off & cut green twigs.” We step into a ticket of thorns and stinging nettles, and snap off the perfect twigs. But not to hold marshmallows, it turns out. “Thicker,” Petra commands; turns out, we're cutting “breadsticks.” 

Then, armed and ready we sit around the fire pit while waves crash onto the beach with a strong easterly wind. We begin to relax and enjoy the evening. Soon enough Petra opens her basket and out comes a huge Tupperware container filled with bread dough.  Petra spoons out the dough and wraps the bread dough in a corkscrew fashion around one end of the stick, pinching the dough tightly so it'll stay in place. She hands one to me “Hold it over the fire pit and be patient! Cook it slowly and evenly so the bread doesn't burn and gets cooked thoroughly.” I manage to say “All right!” and think: Yup, this is bread on a stick. No doubt about it.  

Eventually, all twelve or thirteen sticks end up in the fire: Right, now add a little gritty sand and some herbed butter and you’d say: Boy that was the best crusty bread on a stick ever! Tasting of yeast and sweet at the same time. Of course, followed by marshmallows and old left-over fire works from New Year’s Eve rounded up a perfect evening at the beach… what fun!  

If this is an American or European tradition, it was one I hadn't heard of.

 “It's time to leave. Everone ready?” Phoebe's minivan had broken down the previous day so we all pile into Didier’s car: four adults and three kids. We pray that the gendarmes won't stop us. Once we're actually on the road towards Pont-Aven, we're more relaxed. It's Sunday morning and it promises to be a gorgeous day here in Brittany.  

Our longtime friends from Seattle Didier and Phoebe moved to Brittany two years ago, to Larmor Plage, close to Lorient. Today, Pont-Aven beckons.  

Once a modest village in the Middle Ages, it became a commercial center known for its watermills and its port until the 19th century. From 1864 on, Pont-Aven's unique charm attracted artists enamored with nature and light. Painting, one of the oldest art forms, brought it fame, and Paul Gauguin, one of the most admired painters in the world, assured it a place in history. 

Gauguin was right: Pont-Aven is a wonderful town, a pretty market village of white houses and sloping riverbanks. Just upstream from the granite bridge at the heart of town, the promenade Xavier-Grall crisscrosses the tiny river itself on landscaped walkways, offering glimpses of venerable mansions dripping with ivy, and a little "chaos" of rocks in the stream itself.  

As we arrive in Pont-Aven we are heading straight in to a gallery “Tonnerre & Kolwolski” where Phoebe introduced us to the lady of the house, also an artist, who shares this gallery now with her son Frederique Tonnerre. But there is more: she is also the sister of Phoebe’s other best friends from Seattle, Nathalie and Michel, who are originally from Guidel, France.  

So after a delicious and lazy Sunday lunch we walk along one of the watermills of Pont-Aven (once described as "14 watermills, 15 houses" in the 19th century) when we heard a tremendous exciting honk-honk! The driver of a rental car from Paris is waving and opens his window wide. A greeting: Hello Didier and Phoebe … "Quelle surprise?"as a long line of cars and motorbikes piled up behind this enthusiastic greeting. "Quelle surprise" replied Phoebe & Phoebe to Michel and Nathalie. 

Phoebe exclaims to me a moment later how lucky she is to see her two best friends from Seattle here in Pont-Aven, of all places! And I sigh once more with “how small the world has become….”! “Seattle-ites meet in Pont-Aven, in the lower Brittany of France”. In the end there were six adults and five children ,all from Seattle, meeting in the small park near Nathalie’s sister’s art gallery. The adults were playing catch-up; the children were just playing.