The girls

My cousin Michelle and her three girlfriends are visiting us from Australia at the moment! They are on their university summer break at the moment and did an 18 day bus tour around Western Europe and Ireland, before flying to Germany on January 5th. I meant to post this blog entry earlier, but I have been so busy with uni; my final exams for this semester are in 3 weeks! All oral exams and all in German! I am also working on writing my thesis, which is due end of May. This year will fly by, I just know it!

I absolutely love having the girls here and I am really enjoying my time with my "baby" cousin, Shelley. She has grown into such a beautiful, intelligent and good hearted young lady. I am so proud of her. She is studying to be a Primary (Elementary) School teacher, and I think that this is the perfect career for her. She loves kids and the kids love her. All the girls are very intelligent; one is studying a double Engineering/Architectur degree and the other is studying Physiotherapy at the University of Sydney.

Future Engineer/Architect and sometime Snow Angel, Samantha:

Since they arrived on January 5th, we have walked down town to Esslingen, through the historic covered bridge; gone on a hike up to Katherinenlinde in the snow; visited Heidelberg, Rothenberg Ob der Tauber, Stuttgart and tomorrow, Tübingen and Schloss Hohenzoellern together; done the Schloss Ludwigsburg tour AND made Maultaschen together.

By themselves, the girls have caught the train to Strasbourg in France, Konstanz on the Swiss border and today they are visiting the home of the cuckoo clock and Black Forest Cake: Triberg, in the Black Forest!

Zev and I have really enjoyed having them here and they feel like part of the family! We will definitely miss them when they head back to Oz.

Tonight I am going to attempt Julia Child´s special French Onion Soup. Apparently it is meant to take 1 1/2 hours in total to make! I probably won´t be blogging much these next few weeks, as I concentrate on exam prep. I wish you all a happy, healthy and hopeful start to the New Year!

Time to Master the Art

Even though I don´t typically make New Years Resolutions (I believe in making positive, gradual changes throughout the year), this year I decided that I wanted to take my cooking to the "next level."

Many of you know that Zev is a wonderful cook and the "gourmet" cook in our family. I am the "sustenance" cook, meaning that I make great "during the week" staples. Basically: I love my crock-pot.

I really do love my crock-pot and it´s endless utilitarianism so much, that I made up a batch of mushroom chicken to go with rice, for the girls and Zev and I tonight. (My sweet little cousin Shelley and her 3 college girlfriends arrived today for a 2 week visit. Such fun! I LOVE having them here!)  As a college girl myself these days, I simply turn on my crock-pot before I leave for school in the morning and there is (usually) something yummy (and hot) inside. A warm meal goes a long way. But, last week, I started thinking that I wanted to really learn some good, solid cooking techniques, to take my cooking to the "next level". I know you are probably wondering, how much better than a crock-pot one-stop meal does it get, right? Well, although the crock-pot is very versatile, it does really involve any complex cooking techniques. This is where Julia Child comes in. Some of you may have already heard of this fabulous cook (who is actually now deceased). She was an American cook who used to live with her husband in Paris in the 50s, while he was working for the American government as a diplomat. She learned how to speak French in the 3 years that they were stationed there AND learned how to appreciate the great local produce and cuisine. She is credited with writing an excellent cook book in English called "Mastering the Art of French Cooking." Zev bought me this book and her second French cooking book for my 30th birthday last year. I never really picked it up until recently. I have to tell you, it is probably the BEST cook book I have ever read (and parts of it ARE like reading a novel). Mrs. Child goes into excellent detail in explaining why certain techniques are used, what the right tool to use for a certain technique is and manages to do this (teach you how to cook properly), in a very simple, easy to follow way. Seriously. Her cook book is a very enjoyable read, and I would actually recommend it as a good book, if you haven´t already read it!

One of my favorite lines from the book is her dedication: "This is a book for the servantless American cook who can be unconcerned on occasion with budgets, waistlines, time schedule´s, children´s meals, the parent-chauffeur-den-mother syndrome, or anything else which might interfere with the enjoyment of producing something wonderful to eat." Isn´t that wonderful? I love her writing style. I even told Zev that I feel like I have a little in common with Mrs. Child (the whole living in a foreign country, learning the language and going to a local school.) Anyway, not to digress too much, my goal in 2011 is to make one recipe from Julia Child´s cookbook a week. Doesn´t need to be anything fancy, but I would like to remain immersed in the cookbook in order to properly learn some solid cooking techniques. Once we have kids, I probably won´t have the time to devote to learning new cooking techniques. So now is the time to do it. My first dish was a simple (well I thought it would be simple, that´s why I picked it!) soup dish called "Aigo Bouido." What exactly is this, I hear you asking? Well, basically it is garlic soup (one whole head of garlic as a matter of fact), where the garlic and herbs are gently boiled for half an hour and then gently beaten into a mixture of eggs beaten with olive oil. "Drop by drop" as Julia explains. For good reason too; so you don´t cook the egg as you add the garlic broth to it. I am sure you are also wondering what the "proper" way to pronounce Aigo Bouido is. Well, for that, I would recommend you visit google translate, and click on the "listen" button. Let´s just say that the English to German google translate web page has become a dear friend to me....

As you can see, the recipe itself is very plainly laid out, so even a novice cook like me can follow it. In the CORRECT sequence too!

I had to take a picture of the eggs. In this day and age, when we are watching calories and avoiding "bad" foods like egg yolks, which have a reputation of being high in fat and cholesterol, Julia Child has you not only whipping the egg YOLKS but adding three tablespoons of olive oil to the whipped mixture. (Beaten in "drop by drop" mind you). I saved the egg whites. In case I wanted to make an egg white omelette. Haven´t gotten around to that one yet.

So the verdict? Well, although the soup has a fabulous mouth texture and was cooked according to the book, the taste was milder than we expected. I guess Zev and I were expecting a real "garlicky" flavour. Julia Child DOES say that some people add more garlic than others. We LOVE garlic. It was good. And the best part was that I learnt something about Kitchen Science in the process! And Zev was right there by my side to be a part of it. If you would like to see a cute video clip of Julia Child making an omelette during her famous television show "The French Chef", click on the link below.

"How about dinner in half a minute...?"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LWmvfUKwBrg

Einen guten Rutsch ins neue Jahr!

In Germany, the traditional New Years greeting is "einen guten Rutsch ins neue Jahr!"

It literally translates to "good sliding into the New Year!"

There has been so much snow around here, one really could go sliding or sledding around.

We spent NYE 2011 at home with dear friends. New Year´s Eve is called "Silvester" in Germany.

Zev and I had a fun day cooking and preparing the meal.

I love to work in the kitchen with him!

Zev also had fun buying fireworks and setting up "launching stations."

He couldn´t light those fireworks quick enough.

He complained this morning of a sore thumb.

I wonder if it had anything to do with the fact that he burnt a hole through his glove (from lighting so many fireworks!)

The video below shows the extent of the fireworks in our little neighborhood. Germans seem to really love NYE!!

It was a wonderful NYE, probably one of my favorite NYE experiences to date!

Spending the holidays with dear friends is such a blessing, especially when our families live so far away.

The clean-up this morning wasn´t too bad.

Except perhaps for the glitter ground into the snow and ice.......Note to self, no glitter fireworks next year....

I have a feeling, this will be a great year.

Praying for YOUR blessings this year.

Mercy, Peace and Love be Yours in Abundance. Jude 1:2.

Happy New Year!

Zev and Fi xo

This one´s for you, Karen

Dear Karen,

It was wonderful talking with you last night! I loved hearing that sweet Louisiana accent again. Reminiscing about our running days brought back so many fond memories. I loved training with you, Jamie, Natalie, and Lauren. Didn´t we have fun running the New Orleans Half Marathon!? I thought I would "take" you on my run this morning, to share what running is like during winter here. I gotta say, although I appreciated the warmth and convenience of running in Louisiana in the winter (one doesn´t need to wear nearly as many layers for example), I really appreciate the beauty and excitement of running in the snow here in Germany. Wish you were here... 

Yes, the outfit above is for one person. Me.

Getting started is the hardest part. Especially when it is cold and snowy outside. This hill is my first "obstacle." In winter, I usually walk up it. Can you see the snow truck at the top? He is removing the snow from the pathway and laying down gravel so people like me don´t fall flat on their face as they navigate through the snow. As I passed him, he kind of gave me a look that said "I´m being paid to be out here. Why on earth are you out running!?" Instead, he said "Guten Morgen."

THIS is why I run on snowy days like today. I wish you could feel and smell how refreshing and beautiful it is from the top of the hill. I have named this particular run, about a 3 mile loop, my "Enchancted Forest" run. Zev and I have named all of our "runs." His favorite is "Dive Shop Extended." We sound crazy, I know.

Off we go! (Note: Great music is key to running by yourself in winter. And summer. And any old time, really).

Ah the view. Good music, good view. Almost forget I am running...

My "Enchanted Forest Run" follows the same path as the "9 Water Wells" walk, which is popular among the Germans, who like to walk in summer and the fall. I pass about 6 of the wells on my run.

I love this part of the Enchanted Forest Run. (You´ll soon see why I have named it Enchanted Forest.) In this particular section, I run by little huts and garden plots, which aren´t inhabited, but rather used to garden and grow all sorts of produce in the spring and to have parties in during the summer!

The locals seem to love coming to these little huts on weekends during the summer.

Welcome to my Special Spot. This is the Enchanted Forest. Right behind our house. Can you see a fallen tree in the middle? I love coming here in the summer or fall and lying across that fallen tree.

I just look up into the canopy of trees, I close my eyes and listen to the creek.

I love to come here. I brought another Louisiana girlfriend, Leslie, here when she visited us in the summer. I loved running with her and showing her my special run!

I wanted to give you a 360 degree view of where I was standing. If you listen carefully, you will hear the water in the creek burbling away in the background. I moved the camera around a little too fast as I was recording it. Hope you don´t get a headache watching it.

I have my little "favorite" things that I like to pass on the way home. Like this Interstate sign from Nevada. It sort of provides a comforting reminder of home when I pass it. Not that I have ever lived in Nevada.

I know that I don´t have long to go until I get home, when I pass this house. Isn´t it adorable? Can you see the pot hanging on the second floor balcony? The art work on the front is really well maintained.

Either I must really time my runs well, or the buses come very often. Either way, the bus drivers know me as I catch the bus (and train) ever day to go to university. They wave and smile when when they drive past. I, in turn, do my part and make it look like I find running up the hill a breeze. Don´t worry, I slow down once they pass by.

I planned to find a picture of us running, but came across this picture of you at your crowning as a Duchess, first. I thought it was a good way to end this blog entry. Such good memories! I miss Louisiana!!

Thank you for the wonderful advice on my thesis research area. It was a pleasure catching up.

Happy New Year!

Your friend, Fiona xo

Esslinger Fackelzug

Last night was the annual Esslinger Fackelzug at our "local" fortress.

The Fackelzug is a torch lit procession from the Esslinger Altstadt, where the Medieval and Christmas markets are held, up to the Burg. 

There is a quite a "Medieval" community in our local town. Lots of dreadlocks and alternative looking woolen/ tie dyed clothing. I think we saw most of our "Medieval" people at the Fackelzug last night ;-)

It was fun to watch the torch lit procession walk from the Altstadt up to the Burg, along the ancient cobblestoned walkway. (You can see the lights at the foot of the vineyards.)

There were medieval musicians and fire dancers.

(Doesn´t Zev take great pictures?!)

The musicans and fire dancers had the crowd join in with them as they danced around the fire....

Here is a video of the "fire dance".

The best thing about the Fackelzug, is that it is not a great big commercial event. We actually missed it last year, because it was not advertised. I went to the Tourism Office this year to find out te date for this year´s Fackelzug. This is one of the many reasons that we love living in Germany.

Wherever in the world you are reading this blog from, we would like to wish you a warm, happy and safe Christmas. We hope that the love of Christ is shared warmly among you and your loved ones.

Merry Christmas!

Zev and Fi xoxo