I’ve always been interested in the connection between writing and food. In my house the two go together. Maybe it goes back to when I was studying for my final high school year when my dad would banish me to my room after dinner to do my 3 hours study. An hour or so in I’d get bored of course, and while mum and dad were in the next door living room, watching black and white tele, I would sneak into the kitchen with the stealth of a diamond burglar, cut myself some thick crunchy slices of white bread, slather it with peanut butter and strawberry jam and tiptoe back to my desk. Though I gave up peanut butter and jam long ago, to this day I love to have a yummy snack and a hot cup of tea beside me when I sit down to write. Something about the crunch/sip/crunch that helps me get going. Once I’m in the zone, the snack will go uneaten, the tea will go cold, until I emerge from the writing spurt, then it’s off to the kitchen for a refill.
On all our Writer’s Journey travels I’ve noticed how important food is as well. After a long day of on the road, writing or art making, it is simply wonderful to sit before another extraordinary meal that has been prepared so lovingly by our hosts. I can still remember clearly certain meals we had the pleasure of partaking in — like the delicious vegetable tagine prepared by our guides at our nomad camp in the middle of a Moroccan sandstorm; buckwheat pancakes in Bhutan, the morning after our 11 hour bus journey along precipitous mountain roads; or morning tea in Bali with glutinous rice sweets fresh from the market. There are so many more!
We will be continuing the connection in June 2024 on our Sensing Italy immersion (June 4-15). The delicious Italian food experience of this year’s trip will be repeated, and then followed by our Gascony Residency (June 19 – 30) in the south of France. Kate Hill, a world renowned chef, cooking teacher and author has been living at her retreat, Relais de Camont for thirty years, opening it up to arts residencies 2022 . While she no longer does the cooking she will oversee the menu for our fully catered residency and sensibly sets a light day time bill o’ fare, with plenty of snacks on hand so we can keep working all day. Maybe I will just stop eating until then!
Love to know what your writing/snacking habits are…
Join us in 2023 and 2024 at
Story Hunters, India, Nov 4 -19.
Moroccan Caravan, Feb 23 – Mar 8, 2024.
Haiku Walking in Japan, Mar 27 – April 1, 2024.
Story Hunters, South Australia, May 26 – June 2
Sensing Italy, June 4 – 15, 2024.
Gascony Residency, June 19 – 30.
Contact Jan for more details!
