Eating Well on your Camping Vacation in Burgundy.

Wine round the Bend Burgundy Barge Bliss Read Jetsetters Mag at dijon in burgundy To read this complete feature FREE with footage cut'n'paste cut & paste this link : burgundy grapes Reflected sunlight from the water outside dances on the chestnut ceiling of my cabin the 1st morning I awaken aboard the luxurious barge La Belle poque. I am getting up to look out the open porthole window and am greeted with a friendly squawk. Having no bread to supply, I quickly close the window. After a shower in the tiled loo and rub-down with a thick nautical blue towel, I head upstairs. Whilst I was still gazing at the ceiling of my cabin, Captain Lee had been in the village of Auxerre purchasing fresh baguettes, croissants and agony chocolate. Once a working canal barge, it's been redesigned with both class and passenger comfort in mind.

It is a fine fall day in France, still summer in the afternoons, with nights that supply a crisp reminder of winter to come. A 2 hour journey by minivan thru rolling French country had brought us to the medieval city of Auxerre, where La Belle poque and her crew awaited. Regularly this will be mixed with fine wines, like in the eponymous boeuf bourguignon, a normal recipe of the area mixing these 2 fine elements with baby onions, bacon and carrots.

Coq au Vin follows a similar formula, only with chicken rather than meat. Eventually of course, there are the snails, and though many folks will turn their noses up at them, the standard escargots are tasty, served as they're stewed with Chablis, carrots, onions and shallots, then full of garlic and parsley butter. If you consider yourself a connoisseur, you may want to think about the black snails ( the best of which are raised on grape leaves ) which are regarded as amongst the best in France. The Cheese The cheeses are another fine part of the regions cuisine, and a really pleasant present to bring back from your vacation spent camping in Burgundy. In France there are more than 2,700 miles of inland waterways including a 750-mile network of connecting canals. Most canals were built in the 19th century, but some are 2 centuries older. Because canal barges were originally pony drawn, poplar trees were planted along the way to guard the horses from the sun.