Holiday Habits

I have a strange holiday habit - I like wandering round foreign supermarkets, and buying interesting packets to bring home. I think that I may have passed this on to Liz, who brought back some Speculoos Pancake Mix, so the girls could recreate their Dutch holiday breakfasts once back in England.
Bob and I had a happy meander round the Supermarket in Paphos on Wednesday. 

Wendy's favourite shop is Sklavenitis, which she always refers to as 'ScabbyKnees' - its slogan is "As cheap as anywhere else"
Here is what we purchased

1. A jar of tahini, a basic ingredient which I shall use for dips and salad dressings, as well as in sweet dishes.
2. A large tin of Royal Baking Powder. Just because I love these tins*. Now produced in Spain where Royal is a synonym for baking powder, this brand began in Longhorsley near Newcastle, in the factory of Thomas Bell. He called his brand Bell's Royal and shortened it to Be-Ro. 
3. Some Cyprus Delight. Similar to the Turkish stuff, but a little denser, with different flavours. Some varieties have PG status [protected geographical] 
4. White beans.Because I ate a bowl of fasolia . I loved it and want to make some more at home
5. Olive Oil. Bob's choice. Agios Georgios [St George] is a very popular premium brand. And Bob liked the cool cuboid tin!
6. "Premium Nuts" We are not convinced everything in the bag is a nut, there are some rectangular biscuit looking pieces. But it will be portioned out as a TV snack [so someone does not eat the entire bag at one sitting!]

Finally a pot of salt. I know, you can buy salt easily in the UK, and it is not especially Cypriot. But every place where we had a meal had these cute little sailor pots standing on the table. I splurged 30p on this jolly little chap.

Today [August 15th] is celebrated in Cyprus by the Greek Orthodox believers as the Feast of the Domition Of The Virgin Mary  [In the Roman Catholic church it is called The Assumption, and marked on 28th August]  Traditionally it is the day when they eat Arkanata Bread Rolls. 

I did not know about the feasting when I picked a up a bag of these rusks in the supermarket, just that they were uniquely Cypriot. The name comes from the Greek word for labour because their overnight production is very laborious, using ground fermented chickpeas and ginger in boiling water . And they are baked twice- once as soft round roll, and then a second time to make the roll into a dry, long lasting rusk.  Unfortunately despite very careful packing, we got home to find our pack has been reduced to chunks and crumbs! Never mind. We can consume them with dips and dunk them in soups.
Do you ever buy interesting foods in foreign supermarkets?

*this tin has bolos fofos printed on it. I have no idea what it means. I tried various Spanish Translation programmes and got "Flabby Bowling Balls" can anyone out there explain???

THIS Gran Read The Book...

... And The Book Was Good!

NO SPOILERS HERE!

I am usually very careful about spending money - and if it is a book, then most of the time, I borrow from the library first, then decide if I want it. Then try and find a secondhand copy...But not with this one - I preordered [as my delayed plane sat on the tarmac at Stansted last week - it made me feel much happier, and helped calm my fear-of-flying]

Julia does not disappoint [and Axel's illustrations are really good] Twenty years after the mouse first stepped out into the deep, dark wood, the story continues. It is witty, and clever, and full of the wonderful rhyming couplets which are Ms Donaldson's forte. And I love it! I opened the book, and read it through [out loud] whilst Bob was trying to concentrate on something else.
The book is dedicated to her husband, who died two years ago. [he was, by all accounts, a lovely man. A paediatric consultant, his young patients called him Dr Gruffalo]

Thank you Julia - I shall read this to the grandchildren, and anybody else who expresses the slightest interest. Definitely 5 stars

*****

We Plough The Fields...

For many people, that is the harvest hymn they remember from schooldays. Today we have Harvest Festival at Church followed by a Lunch.
Here's a more more modern one - reflecting that crops are not always as bountiful as we might hope - and that we all have a responsibility to our world - to share our blessings with others [and to be better stewards of our plant] And to acknowledge God's goodness and faithfulness to us.

For the gifts of heaven in the fields of earth,
My soul will sing to the Lord.
For the fruitful lands as they yield their worth,
My heart gives thanks to him.
We may plough the soil, we may plant the seed,
But God will make it grow,
And the harvest comes from the tender goodness
Of the Father’s hand.

As the trade winds blow over thirsty plains,
My soul will sing to the Lord,
And the storm clouds pour with reviving rains,
My heart gives thanks to Him.
Every season whispers the mystery,
The glorious rhythm of life,
Till the harvest comes from the boundless goodness
Of the Father’s hand.

When the crops have failed and the fields are bare,
My soul will cry to the Lord.
When the hungry know only death’s despair,
My heart will look to Him.
For the call goes out from the heart of God
To share with those in need;
As we feed the world we reflect the goodness
Of the Father’s hand.  [Getty/Townsend/Bronleewe]

The top picture is a field in Norfolk about 8 miles from here - the farmer was lamenting his poor barley crop in the local paper - but at least he has some grain. The drought -ridden fields are in Myanmar, the flooded rice field in Bangladesh. 

We are collecting food for the local foodbank, and contributing to a project in Sierra Leone

Did It Work?

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Last week, I shared my Sudoku Packing Plan. The idea was to take a selection of separates which would combine to make various outfits. Did it work? Mostly yes. But there were a few mistakes.

• I hadn't realised it would be so hot or that I'd spend so much time I  the pool. One, not two, pairs of trousers would have worked along with the shorts [see below].
• I took a pair of brand new shoes, and developed a blister.
• Having use of a washing machine meant I could have managed with far less underwear and fewer  tops. 
• I never wore the blue sarong/scarf at all. 
• I somehow only packed one pair of socks, but Bob let me borrow a pair of his trainer socks

Good things

• At the last minute I tucked  my shorts in the case. These got worn a lot. 
• I was able to create various outfits - very satisfying. 
• The lightweight cotton robe [for breakfast in pj's, or sitting round the pool] was quite superfluous, worn once.
• The folding M&S sun hat and CS baseball cap both got a lot of use
• The jewellery suggested by my Family  Fashion Advisers meant I could dress things up or down.

I realised I was feeling more confident about my shape than I've been for ages, even though I weigh a little more than I'd like. So I splashed out on a new bikini. I have not had a bikini since 1978!
Wendy took me to her three favourite clothes stores- I came away with a smart top [on my wardrobe wishlist] and a cool linen-mix dress [to wear next time I visit Cyprus?!] She is very persuasive! 

Bob bought a lightweight cotton collarless shirt, cooler than his teeshirts [both in fabric and styling!]. His fleece remained unworn until we got back to England in driving rain, in the early hours of Friday morning.

Main lessons learned 

• I hadn't allowed for the hot weather, which made it was so easy to wash and dry things. Wendy was really helpful, and so I was able to do a final wash first thing on Thursday morning, and therefore had a suitcase full of clean clothes to bring home!
• Next time I go, I will pack two or three dresses - although my trousers were linen, and elasticated waist, they still felt quite hot. My long skirt was cool and breezy.
  

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I will use this method again. 

Other holiday pictures to follow later... 

Twenty Five Years Ago

 

A Stitch In Time?

Except 24 years is quite a long time for starting&finishing a project! Back in 2002 we were on holiday in Florida with another couple, all paid for by Argos [long story, 4 places won in Prize Draw, and they kindly invited us to join them] 

As we strolled through the huge Mall, I saw a Victoria's Secret store. I grabbed Kathryn's arm "Come on! I've always wanted a garment from this shop!" There was a lot of interesting lingerie, some of it quite attractive. Most of it too expensive. But there in the sale section was a grey nightie sealed in a bag, for $5. It said "Medium" and on the front was embroidered a n g e l in pink.

 "I shall take it home and stitch the final A to make Angela" I declared. I have worn that night frequently ever since. It has taken me till last week to do this task! 

Better late than never! I am pleased with my hand stitching though.

I love this garment, it is really cool in hot weather. But it measures 28" across the bust! Does a 56" chest really count as Medium in the USA? 

What is your longest WIP? (Work in progress)

They have a store in Norwich now - but I don't imagine I shall ever buy anything in there!

Fit For A Queen?

 A couple of weeks ago we were at a Village Yard Sale. I picked up a spare Pyrex Bowl for 10p and a second melamine bowl for 20p. The first a simple 1litre pudding bowl - I have one already - this is a useful size for steamed puds etc. The second is an iconic bowl I have admired since we first married...

In 2009, my SIL gave me these two melamine bowls from M&S, 2.5 litre and 1.5 litre sizes. I use them all the time. I love them, and their cherry red brightness enlivens the kitchen.

Here's my new orange bowl - it is 2 litres in size - halfway between the other two.  And although different in shape, I can still stack the three so they go in the cupboard. 

But why is so special about this new bowl? Simply that it is a Danish design, from the Rosti Company, and called The Margrethe Bowl. It has the most wonderful history, it was first made in 1950...

The designer was a guy called Sigvard Bernadotte, and his dad was King of Sweden. His niece was Princess Margrethe of Denmark, daughter of King Frederik IX. When the forward thinking Danes changed the rules of succession so that the teenage princess became next in line. S got permission to name this design "The Margrethe Bowl". The design was so good, most Danish women wanted one for their kitchen. In 1972. Margarethe became Queen, reigning for 52 years, till her abdication in 2024. She was a gifted, and popular monarch.

Over the last 70+ years, more than 25 million Margrethe Bowls have been sold. It features in design museums, and even got onto a postage stamp. Its useful handle, efficient pouring lip, and high sides, make it useful for batter and cake making. It is now available in 15 colours, plus a steel version. Mine is about 35 years old, I think. Like my two M&S melamine bowls, it has lost its rubber non-slip ring at the base [but that hasn't proved a problem with the other two]  I do like Scandi design, and I think this will prove a useful addition to my kitchen. Yes, IKEA do make a similar shape bowl in cheaper plastic, but I love the retro orange colour and 'Rosti' printed on the base of mine! Now I am even more determined to visit Copenhagen! 

Can you imagine a British designer producing a  piece of kitchenware called Camilla?

What item would it be, do you think?