Santa Claus been spotted chilling out with a glass of bubbly

 

It gets like that every now and then.  I had planned a surprise luncheon for Mamabear with a picnic in the Rangiora public gardens.  We used to go there with the boys when they where little and meet Mamabear for lunch and afterwards she would go back to work and the kids play on the playground - then fall asleep in the car on the way home.  Anyhow when I got there and set up the picnic (or at least tried to) I kinda got a surprise as I spotted Santa on a rug with a glass of bubbly and  - sunbathing!!  Never been shy - so I sided over and had a wee chat with the bearded fella.  Poor guy - he gets a bit lonely even with the hundreds of Elves helping him.  He was glad for  short conversation real person to person like. I asked him what he was doing here and his reply was along the lines of - every Christmas he does a trial run of various chimneys.  Seems every time a new building goes up - or is renovated he needs to pre-dive the chimneys to make sure he still fits.  Something about his girth and magic powder (not to mention the sack of presents).  Turns out, it is a specific Elf's job to sprinkle that powder the previous day over the chimneys and lately this particular Elf has been getting urm older so finds it harder to get around and - well - lets leave this there!!) With  the rebuild going on in Christchurch after the earthquakes there are many new buildings . . . ^^

So 2 days before the main event Santa whizzes round the world and does the testing.  Poor Rudolph - he's doing nothing for the whole year then gets to drive the sleigh   t w i c e   inside a week.  Anyway - while the red nosed furry - and I have to say semi grumpy looking - beast was resting someplace, Santa decided to stop near the last tested chimney and enjoy a bit of R+R.

Santa assured me that all was well and all chimneys worked. He would say that - wouldn’t he???

Naturally the ensuing R+R would always be in the Southern Hemisphere or somewhere in the Pacific - we do have summer weather.  So he chilled along with a bubbly and the Strawberries and  fruit mince pie.  Imagine the surprise Mamabear got when she managed to escape the office and join me for lunch.  It is not often that you get to sit and join in a conversation with the old bearded fella!!
Kind chap that he is, he offered us a similar glass of bubbly, which we gratefully accepted.  Once we had toasted for his good health and safe journey and  safe delivery of all presents and no crash landing on icy roofs - we said good bye and left him to it.  Last we heard was a jolly laugh and a "on Rudolph - ho ho ho".

After this everything seems boringly normal.  Mamabear went back to work and I drove home and pre-packed my gear for the Jamboree.
Ah well - might spot Santa on the 25th in New Zeraland - and seeing we are on first name basis now, will offer him some refreshments before he continues on his job.
Wohooooo
Have fun

Annual Christmas Epistle to all who want to catch up what we've been doing . .

Nnaaha (So Pam says this should read as in – hello folks)
I have been given the task of writing up the bullet points – more to the point – fleshing out the bullet points (apparently because I am good with the fleshy bits). I dunno about this.  Regular readers and recipients will know (if indeed they have read the blog –> oldbearnews.blogspot.com) what we have got up to during the past twelve months.  Pam aka
Mamabear describes this past year as the year of dreams! Nightmares and hopeful dreams as well as the wishful and an occasional day-dream all featured.

    First up – Jonathan who completed his thesis on Kiwisaver.  He needed guinea pigs to answer a set of questions and from there then formulate a theory – which he did with over       10 000 words or so. Reading the Thesis I got lost after the second paragraph -something about statisticssomethingratherprobablity!!  Clever boy!!  He completed this by 31 March 2013 with a B+ grade – finishing a year-long dream (that is – of finally finishing his study and writing the thesis!) Well deserved!! Right now – he is dreaming of translating the study into a paying job – and he is marking time – hoping to get accepted into the Army as a General-in-training!! He continues to sell dreams at the local supermarket, ok – actually it is selling fish of any sort – but it's the customers dreaming of  a gourmet meal with his fish!

    Along comes Michael – who always dreams – and he actually got himself a full-time job at the local Meat factory. Thus in one stroke, no two – hmm make that three, some dreams were realized all at once!
His job is not glamorous or even brain-challenging, at the same time he cannot afford to daydream either. It is however teaching him the skills he needs (teamwork / discipline / accuracy and punctuality etc)  and the benefits of being a reliable worker. He progressed from being a mere drone to being in charge of the 'lid'-ing room (where the chain puts a lid on the box containing whatever programmed meat came down the chain AND he has to make sure it is with the correct label).  He's usually gone by the time us old foggies get out of bed and get ready for work – so that impacts on his social life.  His next dream is picking up next years “NIGHT” shift – 5pm-9.30pm!!
6 April – a cousin of mine – which I met previously once only for about urm – 20 minutes – decided to fulfill her dream and did a tikitour around the world – that included a stop over here in New Zealand. It was great getting to know her (affectionately called 'the meremaid' – for reasons we will not discuss here) and urm – yeah she had a great time here with us and also had a relaxing trip through our South Island.  Martina brought with her Ileana who had her first Birthday while in Thailand and was almost walking!! She also brought with her 50 – yes fifty Mozart-kugeln from Vienna – which I had arranged to give Mamabear a dream present in August!! Amazingly she never got wind of this and the Chocolate delicacy survived the 4 months in captivity here without being sampled by this bear or by any other tribal members living in our house!!  Yes the reason I asked the Mermaid to bring 50 was that the old Gal finally turned 50 herself.  She took it hard for a while! Previous significant '0' parties were relative easy going. This year however it caused a little anxiety (tempered with the chocolate). Actually she was lucky – I was a tad disorganised – otherwise Pam would have received 50 individually wrapped gifts from me . . .  ^^
In any case with the boys now grown up (and still living here -yes we dream of having a 'boy-less' house again) but being very capable independent people, we are now looking into the future and the impending retirement, with whatever that may hold.  Our big dream is (and we may need to win lotto or rob a bank or set up some scheme to get rich quickly) that we sell all we have and buy a decent sized Motorhome / Caravan and use that for 1 year or so and do a extended tour through New Zealand.  We could easily spend a week or 5 in Tekapo and just enjoy the scenery there, and there are heaps of places we have yet to discover in the North island!!  After we get sick of being cooped up in a mobile love-nest, we would like to build a special house in Whitianga and settle down and there grow old together and enjoy sunsets, grandchildren, and the occasional trip down memory lane.
    We are one step closer to this dream having just paid off the bank loan on our House wohooo– so   now the family own every speck of dust and brick and mortar. We also won a tiny amount on Lotto – just enough to go out for a meal – maybe not even that much although it would pay for a Burger at KFC!!!!

    Dreaming ahead – we have my Cousin Doris and her hubby Bernhard, who said they would be coming out here along with Wilfried Mayr.  Wilfried is a longstanding & connected to NZ lad, who lives in his hometown of Vienna.  Wilfried stayed with us for 6 months and had 6 months at Mrs. Peach' house in 1988– and he has since returned here for a short holiday trip.  He wants to go down memory lane – hopefully he won't get lost in his dreams!  Doris and Bernhard are also exploring this lovely Country of ours. So naturally this bed and breakfast owner is busy dreaming along and preparing some – urm – things – such as where to sleep – what to see / do / taste / smell etc.  I know the Mermaid has met with them and gave them tips. Wonder if this included the deal with Colonel Sanders to avoid the sandflies????

     Since you heard from us last, our 'time-out' included short trips.  These included going down to Oamaru and see the little penguins, the stone quarry and back home via McKenzie Country. In fact the image at the front of this missive is from the last trip and it marks a bit of a recently started tradition.  We raised a glass  - or two - there (or at lake Pukaki to be more precise) when we celebrated Pam's Birthday there – and lucky us – we yet again got to see Mt Cook without clouds.  Not many see it in this state!!   Then we stopped over on the Westcoast for 5 days – actually it was a batch from a guy we know in Barrytown – lovely spot!!  Touched down briefly on the Heaphy track near Karamea – saw the Pancake rocks do their things – went for a walk or two and also down to Ross and the Gold digging and walked on the newly created Tree-top walk way near Hokitika, along with the Hokitika Gorge! Phewww – it was meant to be a holiday – and rest assured – it was. Every night we drove down to the beach (1 km away) along with a bottle of white and 2 glasses and spotted the sunsets – well – most nights – there often was just too many clouds for a real decent sunset.  I did manage to get some good pictures though!! (check the Blog!!)   Recently we also drove down to Dunedin and celebrated Jeff’s (Pam' sister's Partner) 50th Birthday. His party was 'James Bond' themed and we were expecting lots and lots of glamorous 25 year old Bond Girls. 

Didn't help when Pam decided to be a Martini Glass instead (being from Christchurch she was 'shaken – not stirred')!! Luckily for her, no-one wanted to have a drink from this particular glass. I don't think she realised the possible complications urm - connotations. .  ^^ Having missed out in seeing a decent bird there we went and saw another bird – urm -a big bird – urm – Albatross! Yes we made it out and, like a Paparazzi or peeping Tom, saw them close up in their natural habitat!!  Mamabear impressed with their 'Courting' skills!! The other highlight of that trip was the Chinese garden in Dunedin – it gave us ideas to dream about when we build THAT house!!

    Pam's Father continues to potter along. He realised his dream of being in Raratonga (yet again) for his 80th Birthday and had a party over there.  Invited guests were most of the folks he got to know during the last 20 years of trips over there.

    Otherwise – it is business as usual here – we dream of a nice garden (and seeing we work on it only in short spurts – it remains a dream mostly) work continues to give us the cash so we can go and enjoy the country, and the house – well – it still stands despite the earthquakes from the last three years or so. Reinhold continues to be involved with scouting, and Pam dreams of a time when that comes to an end!! :)
I am on strict instructions to include lots of pictures (which can be found on the Blog!!) but I am sure you do not wish to read a 6 page letter – sooooo without much further adoooo –
Have a Merry Christmas and happy new year and big hugs to all those who want one. 

Doris / Bernhard / Wilfried – SEE YOU SOON!!

Hmmm I think I have sent you into a dream-like -state already . . . . .

Pam and Reinhold
Aka   Mamabear & Papabear

 

Austrian Bed and Breakfast owner discovers a Christmas market in Kiwiland - sort of

Remember the show "The vicar from Dibly" and the Character that used to always answer any question with "nonono no no yes" ??  Well in this vain it was "yes yes yes - no"

Let me explain - today while browsing the news paper in Christchurch, New Zealand I came across a little insert -
titled "Outside" Riccarton Christmas market opens tonight - 4pm-7pm.

Mmmmmhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

Christmas market - gluewein/ roasted chestnuts / stands with christmas tree decorations / toys / various christmas themed nick-knacks gifts / freshly cut Christmas pine trees Christmas lights all over the stands and houses and so forth. Other popular attractions at the market include the Nativity Scene (a crèche or crib), Zwetschgenmännle (figures made of decorated dried plums), Nussknacker (carved Nutcrackers), Gebrannte Mandeln (candied, toasted almonds), traditional Christmas cookies such as Lebkuchen and Magenbrot (both forms of soft gingerbread), Bratwurst, and for many visitors one of the highlights of the market: Glühwein, hot mulled wine (with or without a shot of brandy), or Eierpunsch (an egg-based warm alcoholic drink).

Both help stave off the cold winter air which sometimes dips below freezing. More regional food specialities include Christstollen (Stollen), a sort of egg bread with candied fruit in Saxony, and hot Apfelwein and Frankfurter Bethmännchen in Hesse. Many other handmade items, toys, books, Christmas tree decorations and ornaments (and in recent years less useful gadgets) can be found at a Christmas Market.

These markets originated in Germany, Austria, South Tyrol, North Italy and Alsace but are now being held in many other countries. The history of Christmas markets goes back to the Late Middle Ages in the German-speaking part of Europe. Dresden's Strietzelmarkt was first held in 1434. The Christmas markets of Bautzen (first held in 1384),  Frankfurt (first mentioned in 1393) and Munich (1310) were even older. The Vienna "December market" was a kind of forerunner of the Christmas market and dates back to 1294!!

In many towns in Germany and Austria, Advent is usually ushered in with the opening of the Christmas market or "Weihnachtsmarkt". In southern Germany and Austria it is sometimes called a "Christkind(e)l(s)markt" (German language, literally meaning "Christ child market"). Generally held in the town square and adjacent pedestrian zones, the market sells food, drink, and seasonal items from open-air stalls, accompanied by traditional singing and dancing. On opening nights (and in some towns more often) onlookers welcome the "Christkind" (originally boy Jesus, but more often depicted as an angel-like girl), acted out by a local child.

If you been to a Christkindlmarkt in Europe you will understand what I mean.

So yes -I  was excited - thinking that it finally made it here as well.

It was quickly agreed that mamabear would finish work just a few minutes before her usual leaving time - pick me up and we head to Riccarton.
Now I know - we are on the other side of the world and there are a few teeny weeny minor glitches - the wrong season for one.

A; it does not get dark here until 9.30pm or so
B; it usually is summer - so temp's in the evening will still be around 20 degrees.

We knew it will not have the same atmosphere as in Europe - you could never ever replicate this here.  Who would want to eat hot roasted chestnuts or drink a hot "Glühwein" here (known as Mulled wine) on a hot summers night?? Well I may have been tempted just for nostalgia’s sake.
To cut a long story short - we went there. Let me tell you - it was a complete waste of time.
The half dozen or so stands there sold various ornaments / hand crafted things from silk or wool a couple of foodie places, plus the usual takeout food (greek and something Asian)
From anything Christmas related - no sign in any shape or form.
In fact the only thing with Christmas in (or with it) would have been the title in the news paper advert.  Hmmm wonder if this could be construed as misleading advertizing????

Still it wasn’t a complete loss - we did get to sit on a park bench and enjoy the ducks and have a nice relaxed chat in the late afternoon sun.
So indeed it was a case of "yes yes yes  yes - no!!"

Austrian bed and breakfast owner goes frog hunting

meh - those days are over.
However I found this in the news paper today - so hunted the net to see if I could find the link - this was not to be.
So not to be thwarted - I scanned the article and post the image here.
Might take a while to upload - so
goes and takes a shower - meanwhile - pixel by pixel . . . . .


grrrrr upload failed - image file to big




re-sizes image


not going to happen - will upload in drop box

:)
have fun


 

Austrian Bed and Breakfast owner goes digging - for old photos

 

 

 

From our recent trip - recent being 2008 - we took home some 1000 photos or so.
It is hard to pick any of them out over others.  I shall attempt to do just some,
Here on the left - one happy and contented look.  Guess he may well have been contemplating the riches that await him in New Zealand.  Or was it the coke???  Either way - this grin will soon be replicated in New Zealand!!

 Handsome / young / gorgeous / attractive - and that's just the grey hair. Some of us still have hair - others less so.  Myself - never ended up with Yul Brunner look.  There is a re- union very soon - can't wait . . . . .

 

Don't remember what was said - but it must have been a good story, and (just so you know it) it is the same devastating smile I fell for in the first place. 

So we have this tour-guide  and several images of this happening.  It has been suggested that we replicate this in New Zealand.  Must get an All Blacks umbrella and pretend to organize the folks.   Actually a whistle works well too.  hmmmmm
On second thoughts - a cell phone will work too -and is more discrete.  Mind you some of the places we are going too there will be like 3 people in the course of 3 hours - sooooo no need to be overly organised . . . .

:)   Who's missing??    and look at us - soooooo young!!!!

Stunning scenery up at Untersberg near Salzburg.  Now I cannot promise same look-outs - but - yes its a big butt - I can and will promise much grander bigger greener scenery to show - just not so high up.  On that note - I have already advised Wilfried to practice his snap on the shot while moving in the car technique.  Wonder how this is going????  the other thing to look forward is the night sky at Tekapo - so clear - and stunning!!  Must practice night shots to get the whole milky way in the frame along with the church . . . .

Must remember to ask Meremaid what deal we had going with Colonel Sanders - and his sandfly brigade - in order to avoid them biting the tourists.

Rrrrrrrrrright - so this is on the menu!!
However it contains eggs - so not sure how the vegans will enjoy this.  It is called a Pavlova and if memory serves correct we had to RATION a certain Austrian from getting too much at once.  It is NOT a dinner replacement . . .     even though some of us could do just that . . . . .





 

Austrian Bed and Breakfast owner is invited to a Royal Garden party

Yes yes - I know.
If one has been knighted ( Staveley News Intentse Edition 2009 if you belief the written word - check out the first printed edition) one has special duties and responsibilities.  Not that I ever brag about the knight hood.  It is not something to be broadcast and is rather embarrassing to think that some of my peers deem me worthy enough to get me kneeling in front of her majesty.  I am  however trusting enough that the sword does not take my already swollen head off but rather it just gently taps me on the shoulder instead to complete the ceremony.

pheeeww
So yes - I seem to have landed a title of sorts. Proper naming rights appear to come with that - not sure - cannot even remember exactly what it is!!  I have friends who call me by less flattering titles - Ladle comes to mind! :) There are other titles (beginning with Idiot and going downhill from there)! I won't mention what the newly minted Lady of this house calls me from time to time!  ^^

As said before - now that I have been urm done - so yeah - one moves in greater loftier circles and recently we have been enjoying more meals at Lizzie's place.  Ol Lizzie is great - hosting from time to time candle lit suppers while working on plans for upcoming visitors to the estate.  She is pretty much down to earth these days.  I am not ashamed to admit that we had her round our humble hovel from time to time as well.  Indeed it seems to work on a turn about structure these days.   Last time we visited though we were advised that the estate had to be let go and a suitable buyer will be awaiting the vacant property soon - so Lizzie who had been thinking about moving away from her (rented) palace anyhow has put on her skates -  and went on this very un-royal but time honoured activity - called 'shopping' for a new home.  Ha - and you were thinking about horses and conquest!!
While her agent has scoured the English - oops NZ Country side far and wide - the range of abodes was actually narrower then that, with eventually a house in Lancewood taking her fancy.  Lancewood -  a New Zealand native plant!!  Hmm wonder if there is a connection here . . .
Anywooo  - why is this news??  Well . . .
Due to the nature of contracts and lawyers and Christmas and some visitors from the outer regions arriving soon - not to mention the planets aligning and the royal corgies needing time to urm = pre-sniff every nook and cranny (and I am sure there was talk about a decor change as well ) it made the invitation to participate in a candle lit supper on the 20 January- well precarious to say the least.

BUT fear not my friends of the realm - there is always plan B or C or Z even.
We have this local estate suitable for all people from all walks of life and it contains a huge sprawling greenery with an Archery lawn / soccer-rugby-netball grounds / golf course / botanical garden / and various other green spaces.
If all else fails we will sit in this most accommodating - locally owned - free to go in and visit ANY time - Park in town and consume our evening meal there instead. 
Come to think of it - it would not be the first time indeed that someone has had a full silver service meal in Hagley park!!
I have only one question - seeing I am multitasking (driver / butler / chiefbottlewasherupper / security guard) WHAT outfit is one supposed to wear to such a function????   And will there be an expectation of participating in the royal sport of Polo???? I think I can provide the liquid refreshments from the estate cellar - a 2002 Riesling would go well with the . . . .
Hmm must ask Ol Lizzie that next time I bump into her . . . . .

Will keep you posted how the meal went - might even get a royal photograph of the event - not to mention an autographed version of the dinner menu - complete with royal crest and so forth.

have fun

In the day's before a Facebook party gets out of hand - yeah right ^^

Picture this
A looooooooooooong time ago (indeed a very very long time ago) a handsome young prince charming set out into a new world and finds his lovely princess. They kiss, get married and
W A I I I I T - before the children arrive, they have some fun. Naturally!! And why would you not?  As part of said fun they hosted another Austrian traveller for some 6 months. While this young chap did NOT find his princess here (sadly), he did have a great time! One of the things we did was to travel around a bit with via an old fashioned Olds-mobile (a Toyota something rather), showing him some of the more exotic sights (and the land) ^^ (ok we did consider the old horse-carriage - but that was taking the image a tad to far)
Anyhow - Mid winter we decided to take said Austrian fella up to the grand metropolitan area of Hamner.  Hamner's claim for fame are the hot pools. These are underground fed and the water comes out of the ground at a balmy 46 degrees - so needs to be cooled down a bit before it is let loose in the various pools. The other major thing is the forestry plantation present, which offers plenty of opportunity for stoll's through the meadow / cycling / hill walking / golf / ahhh you get the picture - it is an outdoor paradise

hmmm
www.HAMNER SPRINGS.htm

The first known European discovery of the thermal springs was in April 1859 by William Jones, a farm manager from Culverden, who was drawn to what appeared to be "a remarkable fog". Early commercial development was hindered because of inaccessibility. It didn't help that the first Ferry Bridge blew down in a strong nor'wester and wasn't replaced until 1874. In 1879 an iron bathing shed was set up on the site and a manager appointed to run the primitive operation.
Bathing in the springs was nude. A pair of trousers or skirt hoisted on a pole indicated which gender had rights to the pool at a particular time. In 1881 the government reserved 2560 acres around the hot springs and began to invest in baths and enclosures and segregated bathing took place. Today, mixed bathing with appropriate bathing costumes being worn has become acceptable (mind you - the so called bathing costumes these days are so skimpy, they may as well be Au-natural ^.- ), and the complex has been developed into a world-class tourist facility. 
Here endeth the history lesson (almost)
So anyhow - said Viennese lad needed an education in the finer points of this lovely land and so we offered to take him up there for a short weekend; short being Friday night to Sunday sometime - and this during winter time.
So we hot footed up there in the wannbe boy-racer car and bunked down for the night. I cannot remember - and I am sure mamabear will tell me so - but an invite went out to the young adults of our church - something along the lines of "Anyone free to come and visit will be most welcome - byo everything - food / togs / towels etc etc".  What was she thinking?? (possibly  worried with TWO Austrians in her company what might happen to her repudiation?) So sure enough at least one carload arrived Saturday morning.  What is one supposed to do??
Go for a swim of course!!  Said Austrian fella was urm seen here gingerly entering the water. (Can you spot him?)  It was snowing, so outside temperature was hovering around just below zero and the water temperature is (for this pool) 38 degrees. So at the bottom you get cooked and up-top - ah you get the picture.  All the ladies were wise enough to cover themselves up to the shoulder.  I should warn you those days it was still like - wearing speedo's or the more commonly known budgie-smugglers togs was accepted! 
Anyhow  eventually the lad made it all the way into the warmish water and started enjoying himself!!













This of course had to be urm memorialized - so out came the cameras!! Love the classic prose and technique of how NOT to take a picture - or was that a new Yoga technique explored?!?!  Amazingly the photos turned out ok even though the gals decided not be a swimsuit model (an opportunity missed here!! ^^)



Guess after a swim, lunch is the order and here is a strong Austrian - Kiwi connection!
On the right the gal' who started it all (by visiting Austria) and the gal' on the left who nearly broke Oma's heart by snaffling a Austrian lad, and in the middle (no not a rose - or thorn or pig) the urm more sensible fella who came for a short stay and went back home, but as they say - left his heart here!!! Anyway lunch was soon consumed by the hungry hordes and then of course we had to "walk of" the pounds gained - so we went up the traditional walk of - yes up Conical hill. The hill itself is more or less conical and has undergone a transformation many times.  Originally it would have been native NZ (red) Beech or Birch trees (probably the former) but then they got logged as it provided excellent building timber for the urm modest bathers - not to mention the hotel and bar and wash-house etc.  So yes in the snow - we climbed said hill - ah fresh air - snow - it was good.  Nowadays it is covered with Fir trees - mostly Oregon and Spruce - but I am pleased to say that the Natives (plants that is) are making a comeback. Indeed a decent stand of Manuka was seen as well as the odd growing red beech and a few other greenly thingies!  In the picture to the left - note the start of the hill climb (going straight up) - this is now a road and on each side of it there are dozens of houses!! The building on the right is the Hamner Lodge - a slightly upmarket hotel and original staying point for any visitor.  There used to be nothing else there for a while and in those days it was horseback / carriage only accessible!  Well I climbed that hill many a times - keeps you fit!! At the top is this lookout - which in those days you could actually LOOK OUT - but nowadays the trees there have grown - guess the firs are now more then 25 years young - and yeah you could see the whole Hamner town!! = and yes still it snowed!!
Next up - back to the resting place which got converted into a feeding station! Can't remember what we cooked - but we sure fed the tribe! Because of the snow they decided to stay for dinner (a thin excuse we thought) which was eventually served after 9pm or so. In order to NOT get bored they watched the only DECENT film on the two channels available at the time - "The Sound of Music"!!!! Which is quite funny as both Austrian males present had never ever seen said film before - so we got indoctrinated! Lots of singing went on by the Kiwis, while we slaved away in the kitchen.  After duly feeding the hordes and with snowing having stopped, the gate-crashers decided to risk it and drive back to Christchurch - a near 2 hour trip in those days!
Lol - Next morning - after only 4-5 hours of sleep or so - 3 of us got awaken by the church next door who has a rather insistent loud bell! Oh and there is the Village fire-alarm that went of at some ungodly hour as well!

What has Facebook got to do with this??  This all took place in 1988 -  PC time or as we call it Pre-Computer time.  Word of mouth can and did travel just as fast back then as it is now. Only difference is that now you can reach a larger audience quicker and instead of being gate-crashed by 5-10 people it is often by 100 or more. Not that we minded the 5 that did turn up! We had a blast and the Austrian lad still remembers the barefoot quickstep (or did he waltz??) from the changing shed to the pools (a paltry 5 meters from door to water!!).

Best part - this year there is a re-union of sorts of same event happening! Wonder who will gate-crash this time? ? ?    Wait - checks itinerary - pheeew - not staying overnight - just a flying visit in-and-out on the day!!

Meremaid - next time you are here, we will most definitely stay a night and you can also experience the delights of hot and cold and . . . . . gentle rolling hill climbs and oh yeah the urm fortitude required to face up to this challenge (I bring the bottle)

Have fun
     
 

Austrian Bed and Breakfast owner goes back to his roots - sort of

I have been thinking about this for some time now.  Each summer we have a lot of salads to eat - mostly green leaved stuff along with various other culinary delights - starting with Mushrooms passing by the red peppers and finishing somewhere near apples and nuts. 
Truth be told - it's whatever is readily available in the garden and in the cub-boards!
No salad is ever the same.  We must have had by now some 20 variations of a Waldorf Salad to the point of it NOT being a Waldorf any-longer.  Anywhooo - one of the last minute things to add is always a dressing and so far a little bit of the bought stuff (usually the unhealthy flavour) is liberally drizzled over the top. 
This year - THIS year- I was determined to be different - especially now that cousin Doris and co are coming. 
Rumour has it also, a certain 3x removed once sidestepped twice something rather - long lost descendant of Austrian Habsburg fame  (and appropriately named Sissi) and (uses fingers and toes to count - urm - whats after 25?)  in line of the succession - urm - may be gracing our abode with a visit as well - incognito of course- !  Seems she does not like to dine out on her dubious claim to fame - which is actually ok with me!! Her exact background is a bit murky as the blood line kinda drifts in and out of the public domain. *grins*

I digress . . . .

So take one bottle of Virgin Olive oil - add some cloves of Garlic, various green herbs (Purple Basil / Parsley / Curry plant [which looks like lavender] /  Lemon Thyme) uhu - can't wait!  YUMMY!! if it tastes as good as it smelled we should be near in heaven!   Is nine weeks of fermentation going to be enough??  We shall see later.

Is one bottle going to be enough?? Probably not - but this is the first - so may have to taste that before I experiment more . . . . . 

Have fun

Virgin-busters win hands down against Roast-busters

Regular readers will know - musings here are always lighthearted- perhaps with a tongue-in-cheek feel - or even outrageously stupid (probably more often then not).
This  entry is in the same vein - but in a twisted sense of humour also is (sadly) a comment on recent happenings in New Zealand.
www.nzherald.co.nz/roast-busters
Seems there is a group of late wannabe teenagers / young adults who have been more then little rascals - the so called Roast-busters.  Now anyone in good Ol Kiwiland will know that these young blokes up in Auckland seem to operate on a principle of hmmm make that on the assumption that young ladies like nothing better then getting some, even if it means perhaps offering them alcohol or drugs of sorts and then afterwards brag about it on FB and publicly name and shame the young girls.  The fact that many of them (girls)  are or were underage at the time didn't seem to have mattered for two years now even though it is clearly against the law.  At least now with the media spotlight on them - there may be a end to the group.  Why do I mention this? Well - glad you asked   :)

The troops got invited out, to share in a Barbeque at a friends place. The term Barbeque  often gets shortened to bbq or more affectionately "Barbie".  This of course - can lead to urm - interesting comments and rest assured they flowed freely for a while.   Little did we know that the "Barbie" was a good to true honest Virgin purchase.  It has never been used.  Brand new. Untouched. Never been messed around with. Unspoilt!
You get the Picture.  I am sure the lad who 'owns'  Barbie was a bit nervous about firing her up. So naturally he sought the comfort of his mates or should that be advise and help!?  Turns out that we had to do the honour
our-self after all.  First up -  some homemade triple decker burger. Yummy = KFC eat your heart out!!  Then it was time to do the urm deed.  You know how it goes - you have to find the right button to push, in order to get some heat going.  Brush was able to just do that - fiddling with the knobs long enough to get some warm responses.
Pretty soon it was time to liberally apply some oil and rub it in on every surface - hmm top surface of the new Barbie - this is called 'seasoning in'!!

Hurrah hurrah - see it is all in your head!!  Here is proof of it - shame of you - anyhow the Barbie is now well and truly soiled and warmed up and is doing its job it was designed for - providing joy and pleasure to a man!! On went the chicken kebabs / burgers / lamb-roast/ various bangers / some fresh crayfish / a seasoned steak and various other meaty dishes.  You can't say that we lack imagination - certainly not when it comes to food and Barbies!!

Meanwhile - just to 'lighten up the mood'  this 'Look were is wally' look-alike person sat down in a comfy chair in order to take a well earned break - only to find herself sinking even to lower levels. It had nothing to do with a weight to cloth ratio - rather Mr Schick left the chair outside too long and the sun weakened the structural integrity of the material and when pressure was applied to it - it just clean snapped in half.  hmmm sounds rather familiar! I remembers a report into one of the failed buildings from the last series of earthquakes in Christchurch.

Reaches for another glass of red medicinal drink and - *cough* continues with the story.   It did look very uncomfortable, so soon enough a new chair was found. At least we had no trouble finding wally  :)

Not wanting to be left behind, or was it a case of must show my sexy "THIN" legs someone else showed of a bit of flesh.  Not sure how the fishing went, but rest assured no bites where forth coming! Maybe he was just making a point that his legs beat barbies legs any-day?!

Now, as any self-respecting bloke knows, a Barbie with out some magic mushroom is just not good enough. I was soon tasked with chopping up the Agaricus campestris :)  got yah; -- the Fungi! No drugs in these rest assured - although the way we consume them, it makes you wonder. They certainly soon ballooned out to a decent feed.











A close up of said fungi - all ready to be deep fried on the grill, hmm there is a oxymoron. Anyhow - it is amazing what can be achieved with a bit of butter and herbs - some garlic and the coup-d-etat a glass of red medicinal drink - sauteed until they are soft and caramelized!!  yummmy

Some old insecurities showed and pretty soon the question become one of - 'Do I look big in this?"  or 'Hows my bum look in this?' I managed to re-assure the bloke and told him he looked fetching.

Urm - how did this slip in here?? 

Having used and soiled the Barbie - it was soon time to set up the table and share the fruits of our labours round.  There was enough to feed an army.

The question you want to ask is - "how does he manage to turn on the grin like that?? Does he own a on/of switch on some secret location".
or is it just his way to say hello ?? Does he own shares in a Dental clinic? And given the devastating smile - why the need to go and BUY a barbie when any half self respecting maiden would just be floored by this grin!!! hmm there is more that COULD be said - but you know how it goes - what happens on camp stays at camp.  Although it has been used to brag about it on FB and on here. . . . .

Do you know the song - 99 bottles of beer stand on the wall . . . .

Not quite that many, but getting there.

Somewhat sexy calves! Its summer time and you see more and more of them.  You'd think though that these would be shaved! Seems a natural Forrest is preferred - must be a Man-thing!! Or was the Mo-vember message getting garbled . . . . .

Afterwards - it was time for some dessert. Plenty of cream was shared round and was there some form of buttered bun too??  - idk - I kinda missed out.
Last thing to say is that 3 members of the local gang were missing in action! 2 of them were on active duty while the other is still marooned at her majesty's expense. Time to put a decent strategy in place and rescue 'Smilie'   We did try and make contact with her - but sadly there was no time to chat with her as she was chained again to the gang and had to work hard.  You all were missed.

Coming back to the opening lines - one can have a barbie and have fun with her at the same time - without ever being indecent or rude about it let alone brag about it - and no need to name and shame the latest conquest!
So I make this Virgin-busters 1 and Roast-busters - a big fat ZERO!

I steps down from soapbox and gets into the kitchen to re-work leftovers for dinner