Follow the ongoing adventures of food and travel writer Cinda Chavich as she savours the world. Find her published food, drink and travel stories, and regular blog here at TasteReport.com.

seen

Have you ever seen spring like this? The ultimate sign of the season - in all of it’s colourful, blooming glory - is in the spectacular Japanese garden in Victoria’s Butchart Gardens.

I’ve take a few strolls through the gardens in recent weeks and when they say “a blaze of colour” it’s no boast - drifts of tulips and daffodils, and every kind of flowering ornamental tree you can imagine.

It’s my first experience with the voluptuous magnolia, bursting forth like a buxom Mae West with its massive pink blooms even before any leaves are in sight. And then there are the camillias - not the tea plant but the flowering trees - so profuse in their blooms that it’s really almost sinful to see. Never mind the heady, and I mean knock you down fragrance, of a massive drift of  white hyacinthe.

Sorry rest of Canada - spring may be here, but this is the way to do it.

sipped

I recently judged a food competition  at the Maui County Ag Fest with Peter Merriman, one of the leaders of the locovore food movement on the Hawai’ian Islands.

At his casual Monkeypod Kitchen in Wailea, the menu is fun - but just as carefully sourced from local farms as it is at his eponymous Merriman’s restaurant on the  Big Island.

Even the cocktails are truly inspired - like this Rain Tree Elixir, the first time I’ve ever had raw coconut water or kaffir lime leaves in a drink, never mind the exotic white spirit distilled by the Reum brothers at VeeV using acai berries from the Brazilian rain forest. Healthy? Dunno. But definitely unique and refreshing.

tasted

More on Hawaii inside, but I want to talk about some of the incredible tastes I’ve had here on this island (Vancouver Island, that is). Been on a few walk-abouts with tour guide Karma Brophy of late - her Island Feast culinary concierge company will organize a foodie tour of posh and tasty Oak Bay or the new Victoria Downtown Public Market when it opens in June.

We even did a tasteful tour of the farm markets, wineries and food producers in the Comox Valley (more later).

But on a recent foray in my own ‘hood, I picked up some of the killer chicken liver mousse and charcuterie at The Whole Beast (along with a brilliant Fol Epi baguette from the Village Butcher next door), then watched the Italian experts at they cut the Big Cheese at Ottavio.

Oh yes, and can’t forget the amazing Dungeness crab pulled from the dockside waters of the Oak Bay Marina and cooked to perfection with grilled lemons, fat mussels and clams, then dumped onto the table to devour cave-girl style, by chef Jeff Keenliside. Look for more great stuff from this recent arrival from the late great Vis a Vis, and more news on the tasty food scene in Oak Bay and environs. But this month, my Ode to Oysters is here.

TASTE, n. & v. : flavor, morsel, relish, sip, savor, enjoy, learn, experience -  the ability to discern the best quality.

slept

Got my serious zen groove going and crashed at one of the coolest new spots on the island - Maui’s laid back Lumeria retreat.

Oprah’s a neighbour - and I think Stephen Tyler is seen out and about in these parts, too - the Upcountry, cowboy, out of the way side of Maui.

Don’t expect great food - unless you’re there for the tasty organic fruit and vegetable Juice Cleanse - but for true unplugged peace (even inner peace) and quiet, there may be no place quite like it.

We were too busy to really chill out but with morning call to yoga after a spartan breakfast and a long walk to anywhere, I think you could seriously lose yourself in the moment here (and a few kilos, too). A stylishly re-imagined plantation workers’ residence, with stunning tropical gardens and lovely spaces to hide out, this is the spartan yogi life with a hearty dose of Asian opulence, and a little star power thrown around for good measure. From the dropped hints, I’m guessing it was lovely Liv Tyler and family that got clean and shiny from the inside out here, but it could be anyone. Would love to go back and give it a try myself.