It’s maple sugaring time again!   As our March regional event, we offered a tour at the Belmont Habitat to our Boston area au pairs.  In addition to our regular monthly meetings, these regional events offer all au pairs in the area a second opportunity to meet other au pairs and engage in cultural experiences.

On a cold, sunny day, 35 of us gathered inside the visitor’s center.  Before talking about maple sugaring, our tour guides talked with au pairs about their favorite sweet from their country.

We then split up in three groups and through our very knowledgeable tour guides, learned about the history and the process of maple sugaring.  We also learned how to identify a sugar maple and how to tap a tree.

We took a walk through the Habitat, looking at different maple trees, including tapped ones.   We tasted maple sap directly from the tree and compared it with samples of maple syrup.

Our tour included a taste test to see if we could differentiate real maple syrup from chemically produced syrup that consists mostly of corn syrup.  In the end, we were treated to Vanilla ice cream with maple syrup.

For more photos of our tour, please go to Maple Sugaring