Observations & Revelations Gleaned From A Wine Festival.

The many sides to wine.

As you know Bob, two good friends from London and I have been meandering about the various vineyards in search of the perfect sip, along with what seems like a thousand other wine lovers. One could have called us the clones from planet wine as we all walked, talked and drove about with a pouch holding our wine glass dangling around our neck bouncing merrily against the stomach. Just to clear up any misunderstanding...most of us guarded that wine glass with our lives as we understood that without it, no tastes would be forthcoming.

Day one saw everyone in good cheer and excited about the forthcoming attractions. The last time many of us sat on a bus might have been in our school days and at least for me, sitting in a bus took me back to high school and observing life passing by the window. Buses haven't changed much and after the first few corners even I instinctively knew how to lean into them. A few brave ones were obviously not so long out of school as they were perfecting the art of standing on a bus with a glass of wine in hand...

This year the crowd was more on the younger side which I realized when an email was sent to us, extolling the need, demand and virtue for the newly created app ( bus schedules and locations of wine estates ) for this event. Let's be honest, it was most likely due to the fact that reading maps and bus schedules is a dying art.

Our friends downloaded this app but as it turned out the old school bus timetable was much easier and faster to decipher. Remember, if we had read it wrong a long walk would have been our reward. After seven all bus services stopped. Walking home after a long day spent sampling wine is not that fine. On Saturday I took my step counter along and lo and behold we clocked up over 15 kilometers. Thankfully between the four of us we managed to hop onto the last bus to Eisenberg from Deutsch Schützen on Saturday and Rechnitz on Sunday.

A wine festival such as ours is a great equalizer as wine was the name of the game and people from all walks of life were happy to strike up conversations, give recommendations and most importantly, drop their urban shield of protection for a more trusting demeanor. Just about everyone we met, passed or sat next to in the last two days was happy, cheerful and carefree...there's more to wine after all.

Biggi

The Start Of Wine Tasting In Gaas.

With picture perfect weather to boot.

Once the rape seed fields have taken colour, the whole area alights in beauty, tranquility and contentment.

Doesn't life look more rosy through the prism of a wine glass? The first of rather a few tastes atop of the Gaas vineyards.

Most of the local pastures, fields and meadows seem to have been sculpted by the hands of artists. Isn't that oasis of trees amid the fields a dream?

Fish ponds perhaps? There is quite a large local fishing contingency where some take it to the next level with all the bells, tackles and whistles...

An achtle of Uhudler turns a mere glass into an old fashioned movie maker...the emerald green grass giving a home to dandelions, daisies and co is one of natures special treats.

Biggi

Black Tea Bags, Biltong & A Plate For Two.

A good start to our wine tasting weekend.

Our friends arrived yesterday afternoon as they always do, with an excited hoot before turning up our driveway. They've been here so often that Eisenberg and its villagers are like a second home. Brilliant, isn't it?

Bob was and is in charge of the itinerary and had us mingle only for a short time before herding us into the chariot for a trip to Welgersdorf to sample at his place of work. While catching up on a year's worth of life, we got a selection of presents from London. I nearly fainted with joy at a big box of PG Tips teabags ( as much as I love Austria, the translation of black tea is lost in the murky result of immersing it in hot water ), Bob salivated at the sight of two bags of Biltong which he bravely opened straight away despite knowing that our friends love it as much as he does.

Just after half past four we drove the scenic route to Bob's work and we were all awed at the size and scope of it along with its flair, charm and individuality. For me the highlight was when Bob's boss came over straight away to greet him and of course us while filling our glasses with special vintages. Great stuff.

Bob's other item on the to do list was supper at our favourite Hungarian restaurant which had one drawback...Hungary has a zero tolerance for alcohol while driving and so we did the rock paper scissor trick. Normally I can read Bob like an open book but yesterday he turned the page to a new chapter called: Biggi the designated driver!

Bob had sent little teaser messages to our friends about the impending supper but even they couldn't have foreseen the size of it. The menu encompasses many lines of food and the two of us were translating the menu to them. Food groups could have been lost in translation and as a ploy to cover all the bases, I threw out the lure of the house platter for two never imagining them actually ordering it.

Turns out they made a good decision but wore the wrong pants. The men shared this platter and it was comical to see the look on their faces when it arrived at the table. Honestly, it would have been ample for the four of us but you know how it is. We all want our own and the more the better.

With a start like this, the next few days are going to be fabulous, fun and full of new memories.

This almost conveys the size of it. Isn't it amazing that this whole platter of food for two only costs 13 euros? Worth a trip to Restaurant Hatarmenti Vigado if you are ever in the area.

Biggi

Some More Lilacs Before They Drift Away.

An abundance of perfume is everywhere.

Isn't it amazing how perfectly the lilac shrubs have placed themselves?

The old Kellerstock seems to have all the shapes imaginable.

As eclectic, old fashioned and charming this Kellerstock is, there have been rumours of a ghost residing there...It is standing empty and even though I could easily go and take a look, I'd rather not!

A mere parcel of land but not really. Lawnmower Ferry used to live there and after he died, his house was demolished. How temporary a house is...here today, gone tomorrow and yet we all hang on to them as if our lives depended on them.

The trees in Dorfstrasse have turned a deep mauve and even this morning, in overcast climes it was a joy to behold.

Biggi

Bob The Flower Slayer!

A case of mistaken identity.

A few days ago Bob and I set off on a round of gardening around the vineyards. Specifically we sort out the lawns for the Kellerstöckls for hire. The bees have had their fill so we didn't feel bad to be buzz cutting the lawns.

One of the cottages had guests staying in it and I went to tell them that we'd quickly mow their patch of lawn for ten minutes to which they replied that we could take twenty as well. They were in their sixties, drove a Prius, had a couple of books open next to the deck chairs and generally gave off the impression of being aging hippies, albeit with a dash of academia.

Bob was busy brush cutting the perimeter when the husband came up to me and asked if he could show me something at the bottom of the garden. Intreguied I followed him and along the way he told me that he'd discovered a rare special flower growing there. He pointed it out to me and asked;

" Would it be possible to not mow this flower down as it is very special? "

" Oh, of course. I'll tell Bob to mow around it. "

As Bob was just then cutting on the side of the fence, I got his attention and over the idling of the brush cutter told him about the special flower. Told him and pointed at it a few times. Fair enough, within a few centimeters of it on either side, were the beginnings of wild strawberry plants. The special white flower was sandwiched between the two white strawberry ones.

It doesn't take a genius to work out that the Bobster mistook the one for the other! Oh no, how could I face this man ( they had in the meantime driven off to explore our area ) again. Bob, when I made him aware of having slain the wrong one, felt bad but prefaced it with:

" Jeez, that other flower was a dingy little one. Are you sure it was special ? "

Well, I tore a page out of my diary and wrote a small missive of apology but haven't seen or heard of them since...honestly though, it might have been my fault for assuming Bob would see this small white flower from a few feet away. Let's hope this rare flower will be brave enough to grow again, knowing what's in store...

Biggi

A Wine Weekend Is Beckoning.

The annual wine festival has arrived.

This year will be Bob and my third wine festival - Wein Frühling - that we've taken part in. Two days of unlimited transport and wine tasting around our wine area for the princely sum of 39 euros.( I say princely as last year it was 28 euros which could be a classic example used in Economics 101 / demand and supply ). Almost impossible to see them all yet, some die hard's have succeeded. No, not us...

Our good friends from London are arriving on Friday especially to spend the May day weekend sipping the delightful wines of our region. Our third one together and I can't wait to see which route we'll choose. Rechnitz is old hat to us but then again, much can be forgotten in the space of a year. Wherever we end up, will be fun to get to as it's about the journey and not just the destination.

All accommodations are booked out and this weekend our village could easily be mistaken for an university campus as most of the wine lovers will happily wonder about with a glass of wine in or on hand.

Spending a few days ambling seven hours per day to various wine estates in order to taste numerous wines will be an experiment in defying human nature...just picking one or two vintages at each place is akin to standing in front of a huge buffet and only choosing a bowl of soup. The other option of a spittoon has crossed my mind but honestly, each time I've tried it, any semblance of dignity has been sabotaged by the traitorous path of wine dribbling down my chin...

Biggi

For The Love Of Salads.

The choices are endless.

Bob loves to have a salad for lunch and even took one to work when the temperatures were minus ten. The salads we've both discovered, me by making them and Bob by savouring them, are none of the plain ice berg variety in fact far from it. Usually I give lettuce a wide birth at the supermarket because it takes an age to rinse out all the bits, bobs and insects.

Most weekday mornings I devise a salad for Bob's lunch bag and have taken to pre-planning the night before so that any starches we have for dinner, are ample enough to have a portion left over for next day's salad.

Colour is my thing and thus I have to put some red chillies, tomatoes or peppers alongside a batch of cooked corn which gives off a happy yellow and both of our favourite green...cilantro. Add a nice dose of pumpkin seed oil and Bob's your uncle. There is one secret daily ingredient which serves many purposes.

Garlic, a whole glove of it for flavour, health and happiness. My happiness that is...Bob by virtue of working outside all day has acquired a tan, six pack and allure deluxe which makes him hunkier by the day, which is where the garlic comes in. There is enough of it in the salad that if he gets chatted up, the garlic will make sure nobody comes too close to him!

Biggi

A Beautiful Morning's Walk.

The joys of spring.

Almost overnight trees have sprouted leaves, and not just any leaves but those of a bright green kind.

A very tall tree along the way. Strong and stoic.

A new season, a new spring and a new beginning for these leaves proves that nature is as powerful as they say.

A fig leave of sorts?

A white lilac shrub outside one of the houses on Village-lane.

A blackbird was balancing on the top echelon of branches on the tree outside our house. Made me feel welcome and a little bit like a pied piper's follower...

Biggi

Lilacs Are Out Again...

Another layer of colour in our village.

Bob and I were driving in the vineyards this afternoon and saw this divine wall of shrubs.

Directly opposite was another stunner. Isn't that view nice? The vines are sprouting buds and the grass is full of vitality.

If only you could have noticed the hint of lilac that was hovering in the air.

Green is rather soothing to behold. A row of vines in Eisenberg Weinberg.

A hint of sunlight is all it takes to make an ordinary shrub extraordinary.

Biggi

A Day Of Bottles And Wine.

Tonight I'll dream of bottles for sure.

Bob and I have just come home from a day spent at the cellar, bottling numerous wines. Uhubler, Blaufränkisch and Grüner Veltiner. It was a gorgeous day outside and as we had the cellar doors wide open we didn't miss anything or anyone. The vineyards were teeming with visitors, cyclists and those looking for a boozy lunch.

The odd few slowed down enough in order to look into our cellar but as we were really tethered to bottles, we couldn't take note. At one stage mum and I each had two bottles hanging off the filling contraptions, one eye each on turning the pump on and off and the other on making sure enough empty bottles were on hand.

It sounds deceptively easy but at high speed it got a bit frenzied resulting in a few wine puddles on the floor. There were five of us and we made a good team where each knew more or less what to do. At one stage mum and I resembled a sketch straight out of Dinner for one and if only one of us had had a free hand we'd have set records on YouTube. At least the five of us had a good giggle at all of our antics...

The cleaning up afterwards is not that nice but needs to be done regardless of how tired one is. The men drove the filled bottles slowly to another cellar for storage. Even that is hard going as the heavy crates need to be taken down a set of old stone steps. But all's well that ends well.

The final task for the day was a debriefing at Bruni's over a big slice of Kümmelbraten Brot and a few spritzers. Not a bad way to spend a Saturday!

Biggi

Eisenberg Hosts A Mountain Bike Race.

Our village is awash in spandex...

I've read the posters and various advertisement as well as seen the pink ink on the roads but somehow it had slipped my mind until this afternoon. Wherever I drove there was a thin lycra clad lad on a bike making it sheer impossible to overtake. Men with bikes ride to a different set of drums and I won't tell you what Bob says each time he has to overtake a cyclist!

This race is great for our village as it is an important race on the annual race circuit. Participants come from all over Austria and Hungary which tends to give us a bit of a chance to vow them with our wines, vineyards and Buschenschanks not to mention the divine countryside. Of course the Buschenschanks might only be frequented by the support crew unless our local eateries have stepped up to the plate and plated lean morsels.

The race is on Sunday which means that tomorrow there will be an even greater influx of lycra clad lads all over the vineyards and roads. Our local Eisenberg fire department is the official marshal for the race and Bob along with all his fellow firemen has been put on a post to make sure they take the right road...once a few years back the high road was eschewed for the wrong road!

Again a busy weekend is ahead of us but that is what life is all about...

Biggi

Getting Everything Ready For Bottling.

All about the bottles...

Does anyone enrolled in the laborous but pleasurable task of emptying a bottle of wine give a thought to how it got filled in the first place? Like the notorious liter of milk coming from the supermarket and not a cow, most bottles of wine follow suit.

Well, let me tell you that it takes a lot of effort to fill a bottle if done on a small scale or as the French like to call it, a la garagiste style. The bottles need a lot of tender love and care. A clear rinse followed by stacking them upside down on a drying rack before spritzing each bottle by hand with a sulphur water mix.

The wine which has been idling nice and gently for a year or longer doesn't just jump into each bottle. It gets filtered and often pumped from one vat to another in order to enhance the body by giving it exposure to air. Once the wine is in the bottle, the screw top has to be put on which is normally Bob's station. He is the strongest of us and now that he's working full time for a wine estate, he can anticipate any bottlenecks and also tell me what to do!

Naturally the bottles have to be looked after to make a perfect home for that delightful nectar fit for Gods and us. Some homes are temporary and some long term depending on how many wine bottles get filled.

The bottling only takes place on Saturday but setting up stations in our small cellar needs military precision and planning. A bottling day has it all...fun, hard work and being together as a family. Oh and at the end we all have a late lunch at Bruni's...

Biggi

Our Village Where Everybody Knows Your Car.

...oh, and of course your name, Cheers!

Only a few minutes ago I heard a car hoot impatiently that was clearly outside our front gate and I only heard it because the windows were open for Mausi to ogle the tomcat ( a.k.a. Casanova ) outside. Her favourite late afternoon activity. So, intrigued I stuck my head outside the front door to see who it was, when of course it was none other than my husband, looking ever so dashing and tanned behind the wheel of his company van.

" Hi honey, I'll be a bit late home from work. By the bye, I saw you parked earlier at XYZ but I didn't have time to stop. "

Well, of course Bob knows our car but so does everyone else and car watching can be quite addictive. Who's visiting who and so forth. How anyone could get up to any marital mischief is a mystery to me...no car goes unrecognized!

After my bee-loque the other day, the universe responded and I had to hitch the trailer onto our wagon to drive to my parent's in order to mow their lawn. Believe me, I tried hard but the bees couldn't trump the neighbour's opinions. Anyway, there I was double parked while secretly hoping I wouldn't have to reverse at all, when I noticed a new car on my mental radar. It was idling past me and I recognized the driver only when she parked and got out.

" Oh, sorry that I didn't recognize you at first. I wasn't expecting you in a new car. "

That's when it dawned on me that I too, tend to put cars before people and that I too have worked out a mental time scheme of the various village residents. When in Rome...

Biggi

Tulip Tuesday.

Eisenberg & Deutsch Schützen are gleaming in yellows and reds.

Aren't they gorgeous? A batch of tulip outside my parent's house that keep on reappearing year after year and every time a bit more brighter.

Most yards are blooming in tulip splendour and it makes me wonder if there was a tulip craze back in the day and everyone joined in...nevertheless it is absolutely beautiful to behold.

Our next door neighbour seems to have sided with the bees. Love it!

Our own little tulip heaven at the start of our driveway was planted by the previous owner.

Always a treat to come home and get greeted by this cheerful sight...

Biggi

Not Keeping Up With The Joneses...

For Bees' sake!

Monday morning saw me on the road to Güssing killing four birds with a simple stone. A visit to our bank in Deutsch Schützen, a quick top up at the local garage as the chariot has been warning us about a low level of engine cooler ( the owner of Pree is the best and most helpful ever ), a nice hour of catching up with a resident of the Güssing Old Age Home and of course the replenishing of our larder at the appropriate shops. Gosh, what a busy bee I was.

Monday seems to be the Designer Mummies shopping escape after dropping juniors off at school...big SUV's and dressed in skinny designer gear. Anyway as I was driving into town, traffic was non existent and it afforded me the opportunity to have a squizz at the brightly coloured verges everywhere.

The dandelions dotted the emerald green grass with yellow delight and the mere fact that they were so abundant and tall could mean only one thing...Güssing's Mayor is putting bees before neatness. Well, I assume he is because wherever I drove about in his town, the lawns had that divine hippie flair.

Somehow I have a feeling that it might just be the garden service off sick but one can hope, can't one? Bees are already having such a torrid time finding fare in our modern crazy world that it surely wouldn't hurt us to wait a few more weeks to chop the lawns.

Driving back home through Deutsch Schützen or rather buzz cut central, the lawns are folding like dominoes to the collective peer pressure of wanting to not be outdone by the Joneses. Even here in Eisenberg they are not immune to it and the buzzing of a plethora of lawnmowers is constant. Bob's already chomping at the bit but so far the bees have the upper hand and enough to eat.

Biggi

A Picture And Its Eloquence.

Hopefully it has a thousand words...

A street I didn't dare enter on a Saturday morning...hunters delight.

Wherever I turned a stunning portrait of nature's might stood proud.

A feel good colour combination.

The scent of those trees was still hovering about and added to the allure of a morning's walk.

A lofty display of impending summer from some very tall trees.

Finally, a vantage point I have yet to be brave enough to climb up to as the stairs look rather dicey and a sign forbids it...

Biggi

The Loud Silence Of An Early Morning.

A village awakens.

For some reason the two of us have woken up nice and early at four in the morning these last few days. Like clockwork and I haven't yet figured out how she does it, but I sense a touch of Mausi about.

Once we got over the shock of seeing a four instead of a five on the dial, we made the best of it and started our day early. Nothing better than a cup of freshly brewed strong coffee before the sun sends its first minions through one of the windows. Even lazily meandering through the morning routine meant that today I was on the road at half past six.

Most of our neighbours gosh, possible most of the village like to sleep in, especially on a Saturday morning after a Friday night on the town. Anyway, this morning was another perfect reminder why we love summer so much. The air was a might crisp, the sky clear and the birds were tweeting gaily about the latest news of a murder of crows. Just great and I had it all to myself as I met nobody along the way.

As I started down Dorfstrasse, it was as if an orchestra was tuning in to give me a touch of surrealism for company. A window blind being hauled up, a toilet being flushed and the odd whisper of voices floating out of open windows. Good morning Eisenberg!

A couple of hares hopped in and out of a growing corn field while two bored deer were munching the morning away. They are so used to seeing a lone walker that they don't even lift one let alone four hooves to leap off. The dear not frightening the deer makes for a nice scenic walk.

A bit further along I couldn't help but notice the imprinted pattern of our collective need for speed criss crossing the early morning sky. Vapour trails of gargantuan proportions pointing the way to Vienna International...

...the search for the elusive greener grass continues...

Biggi

Yellows And Greens Everywhere.

Dots of colours all over the neighbourhood.

A deep yellow always looks better with an old Kellerstock behind it...

I had forgotten how nice it is to walk through a proper forest, not only beside it. The birds were more alive in tenor, the air more clean and the crispness of twigs and leaves crackling underfoot added a touch of mystique.

A yellow bubble around the corner from us.

A different yellow shrub on the opposite side of our village pops with depth of colour. A treat to behold it.

The forest is starting to blossom. Branches are back to plumage, bees are humming happily and walking in it is one of life's pleasures.

Biggi

Personalized Post.

Hand delivered too.

All week I've been happily anticipating the arrival of our postman. Not him as such but the gifts he tends to bring. He has a knack of not putting a lot of clear plastic window envelopes through our postbox which is fantastic. Last Friday I ordered some B complex vitamins and shampoo online and they over prophesied a 2-5 day arrival.

Today seemed the perfect compromise between 2 & 5 and as the postman usually does his thing between one and half past, I took a chance to run some errands before that time.

On the last corner before the Eisenberg Vinothek, I saw him double parked on my side of the road busy delivering happiness to another Eisenberger. Naturally I slowed the car down to more of a crawl until I deemed it fine to overtake until he happened to look up and see the car and me. Instantly he waved in a way that anyone expecting a parcel understands. He had the goods on him today and wanted me to have them there and then!.

Before you think you might have skipped back a century in time, let me assure you that in rural climes matters of post are differently run. Brilliantly in fact because it feels great to be known. Checking my mirrors for any traffic ( not much during the day in any case ) I pulled over to the side, put on my hazards and skipped with joy to the yellow van where Mr. Postman was already rummaging through his stash of mail and parcels.

We exchanged pleasantries:

" Oh my gosh, I've been waiting for this parcel all week. Thank you so much!!!! "

and he whipped out the electronic receipt book for me to sign. All proper and by the book...

Again, it's the small stuff that moves mountains, people and reaffirms that being acknowledged makes the world of difference...

Biggi

Our Villages Are Popping Back To Life.

What a difference a week makes.

The lawns are emerald green, the birds unseen yet beautifully vocal and most of the trees are stepping out of their hibernation abode and are busy popping blossoms everywhere.

All trees ( I think they might be cherry ones but honestly, despite walking past them year in and year out, I can't picture their fruit variety ) along Dorfstrasse have turned pink. Gosh, a most stunning start to my day today. It was time for the weekly walk with the gals and merely walking to our meeting point proved to be an elixir for me.

Winter blues have been left behind and everyone is in a better frame of mind. I have opened a window for Mausi and while she is languishing upon it dreamily purveying her domain, I can hear the roar of a few neighbourhood lawnmowers.

In a way it is quite comical to see the gardens prepped to life so as not to be a topic of village gossip. Whereas we try and let nature do its thing, most of the eager gardeners are out en force digging, picking and planting away. Of course that activity spreads like wildfire as nobody wants to be outdone or thought of as not-good- enough in regards to keeping a front lawn interesting...each day another garden is being turned into a copy of the next one. Stepford gardens!

Gnomes, stones and ponds have been resurrected but sadly not many give a thought to our local bees. Have a heart and stop mowing lawns for another few weeks...

Dorfstrasse, pretty in pink...

Despite being a bit overcast this morning, the green fields are amazing.

Biggi

We Are What We Drink.

Our new adventure.

Some of us are grapes, some barley and others junipers but that's neither here nor there...at the moment Bob and I are enjoying our glass of blended splendid. Every day as soon as Bob gets home from work we concoct a nice shake. A healthy shake. A shake to replenish energy.

Bananas are the backbone of our shake adventure but today I sneaked a spoonful of Chia seeds into it in plain sight. Bob was standing there while watching me assemble various bits, pieces and powders and what normally he wouldn't dream of eating, he drank with gusto and enjoyment.

Not to be outdone, I added a teaspoon of mixed nut butter and oh, my, gosh it tasted divine. Even broccoli wouldn't have called forth a veto. Surely kids who eschew vegetables could be duped with the aide of a blender? The green colour might be a giveaway but worth a try at least.

As soon as the local bees have done their deed, our own orchard should render a nice assortment of fruit to add to our shakes. A few moments ago I mumbled about perhaps taking a trip to Oberwart when I heard a booming reply:

" Oh, get us some more Chia seeds while you are there. "

The blender is worth its weight in gold. My food imagination knows no bounds and Bob seems willing to try it all...spinach, kale, celery and beetroot embedded in banana and peanut butter. Happy blending indeed...

Biggi

The Last Tentacles Of Winter Have Finally Fallen Off.

A collective sigh of relief.

The sun's been out and about all day today and this was taken at lunchtime. The golden sparkle of those blades was magnificent, magnetic and uplifting.

Often I tend to forget how amazing nature is. These rows of trees had been afflicted with the bare leafed winter look and only this last week have the green shoots appeared. Nice.

The allure of plain old grass...

A perfect Burgenland kind of day.

The wild flowers have taken hold of our garden. A piece of happiness mere steps away.

Biggi

An Apple A Day...

We've become blenders.

I can't even remember what made us firstly think of blending and secondly buying a blender. Usually we discuss, mumble and put it off for another time, but a few weeks ago Hofer had a blender on sale and after a lengthy pro and con discussion, it ended up in our trolley. Fair enough, I kept the slip just in case...

Well, this morning we finally unpacked this blender and had a divine cocktail of bananas, strawberries, ice cubes and milk. After the first sip we wondered why it had taken us so long to try it out. How easy indeed to make a smoothie. Initially our reason for buying it was to make green shakes of spinach, broccoli, cucumber and co but after tasting this mornings concoction, I fear we might go into the opposite taste direction.

Recently the apples we've had were tasteless ( store bought as ours hadn't ripened yet ) and not much fun to chew through, so liquidizing them with a dash of chocolate, peanut butter or even whiskey is the way to go.

Of course the blender is a big cumbersome item to find a place for in a small kitchen but I am sure that Bob and I will find the perfect place for it. A place where we'll not forget to use it and ideally a place next to the vegetable tray. What I am looking forward to the most is making banana ice cream with it as our old puree stick often sent out smoke signals trying to blend the frozen banana pieces into a smooth ice cream.

Once we've got the unhealthy choices out of our system we should be on track to making one healthy smoothie a day...

Biggi

Water Footprint Of The Food We Eat.

Water, the new oil...

All numbers are average and can vary to some degree.

• One Kilogram of beef = 15000 liters of water used to produce it.
• One egg = 196 liters of water to produce it.
• One hamburger = 2400 liters of water to produce it.
• One cup of coffee = 140 liters of water to produce it.
• One kilogram of pork = 4800 liters of water to produce it.
• One kilogram of butter = 5000 liters of water to produce it.
• One liter of tap water = 1 liter of water to produce.
• One liter of bottled water = 5 liters of water to produce it.
• One tomato = 13 liters of water to produce it.
• One potato = 25 liters of water to produce it.
• Average daily water footprint of a meat-eater diet = 15 000 liters of water.
• Average daily water footprint of a vegetarian diet = 4 500 liters of water
• Average daily water footprint of a vegan diet = 1 100 liters of water.

Biggi

Spring Revival.

A glimpse of spring.

On the off chance that we lose the way, each direction leads to a winery or two.

A flower arrangement outside our front gate.

A cheerful reminder of good times ahead.

A front yard that makes one stop to take a closer look.

These yellow beauties beat the odd few outside our gate hands down.

Parts of the forest are getting thinned out and these wood piles are sadly everywhere.

Biggi