a jungle of food blogs

When I started looking for an interesting food blog I first thought, that this will be an easy task. Than I started searching for one on google and got 4,110,000,000 hits within not even half a minute!!!!

Thank's to a friend I found the taste-for-adventure blog. I emediatly was banned by the very yummie looking recipe for quinoa burgers with easy tzatziki sauce. Than I started browsing through the blog. On this blog you can find a lot of recipes for many different and international dishes. The recipes are accompanied by pictures that not only make you hungry, but are also colourfull and very self-explanatory. Unfortunately I have not had time to try one of the recipes but I am going to do so very soon. Of course I will let you all know about my experience with that.

Shepherd's Pie

As one of our main topics this semester food is going to be the thing our life revolves around. So this is my first post about it:

I first heard of and ate Shepherd's Pie in Great Britain. Now I found out that it is also very well known in Ireland. I do not know much about the history and the origin of this simple and delicious dish. Most certainly I do not know whether it was first cooked in Ireland or Great Britain.But what I do know about it, is that it came up at the very first beginning when the potato was introduced as an edible and cheap crop for the poor. Since than it spread and is now a very well known tradition in both countries.

From the very beginning this delicious disch was meant to be made from leftovers and that fact didn't change until today. Ofcourse you can prepare it with fresh ingredients, and I think many people do that. But for me it is really a great way of using upt leftover meat loaf, roast or mashed potatoes. That are basicly all the ingredients you need: Some kind of meat that is turned into some kind of sauce with vegetables, especially tomatoes, and mashed potatoes that come as a crust on top of it.

If some of you are now hungry for Shepherd's Pie, here is a very good recipe I can recommend.

New York City

Some people - actually quite a lot - think of "the big Apple" as the best city in the whole world. To me it is just another place I'm on war with. Last spring when I went to Honduras I had to change planes at JFK Airport. A six hour stay was scheduled and after some research my plan was fixed. 

Being stranded in the city that never sleeps between 8 pm and 2 am has to offer me something. I had found out, that with no form of transportation I will need more than an hour from the airport to the Empire-State-Building. I had already booked an online special VIP-ticket so it would not take me more than twenty minutes to reach the roof top. In total this whole exursion would not have last longer than three, maximum four hours what would have left two hours for all the other stuff. 

We landed half an hour earlier than scheduled and leaving the plane I was really enthusiastic about the next view hours. This enthusiasm only lasted until I saw the long, long, long cew at the customs service. Together with all the other passengers of our flight and of three different I had to wait for two hours until I could pass the customs service. Just to find out that against several affirmation from the check-in staff, the cabin crew and even the pilot my luggage was not beeing transfered automatically to my next plane. I had to take it, cary it threw customs services and find my next check-in counter to get rid of it again. At the check-in counter the next surprise was waiting for me: not only that it didn't open until 45 minutes before take off, no there were not any sitting possibilities too. All I wanted was have one great trip to the roof top of the Empire-State-Building and all I got was one really anoying and uncomfortable night on the floor of the JFK Airport.

I have to addmit, maybe I don't like NYC anymore because we got off on the wrong foot but I am sure I will not go back that quickly.

The Union Jack

Have you also been wondering why the british flag is called "Union Jack"? Or why it looks like it does? Here are the answers:

The Union Jack how we know it got it's looks in 1801 when the Union of Great Britain and Ireland was formed. All in all it practicaly unites three national flags. The red cross on white background of St. George which still is the flag of England and the white altire on blue background also known as St. Andrews cross that still is the flag of Scotland already formed the first union flag beginning from 1606. Later on in 1801 the the red saltire (x-shaped cross) on white background of St. Patricks flag that used to be the flag of the Island of Ireland joined the other two.

The name Union Jack first came up in 1674. Before that the word "Jack" was used to refere to the maritime bow flag. After 1627 this usually was a small version of the union flag. So while it officially was called "his Majesty's Jack" people started calling it simply "the Union Jack".

Movember

Since today my brother in law arrived at home looking like an '80ies film star I started researching on the phenomenon "Movember". This is the period of time formerly known as "November" during which men all over the world at least try to grow a moustache. They don't do it just for fun, but to raise money and awareness for prostata cancer and other serious men deseases. This man with the moustaches can be called Mo Bros and the women supporting them Mo Sistas. Some of them really celebrate the "Movember" really big. For example by throwing a Movember-Party by the end of "Movember" or crowning a Miss and a Mister Movember. All this had it's orrigin in 2003 in Australia and since that the idea of the "Movember" has conquered the world.
Happy moustache-growing! :-)

Brits vs. Austrians

Inspired by our lesson about stereotypes I started to browse through the internet a little bit. Here is my result:

 Daily routine of a common Brit:

He/she get’s up in the morning and after the first cup of tea he/she leaves the house. At the bus stop is everybody waiting in a queue until it is his/her turn. Then finally in the office he/she is having the second cup of tea and starts working. At lunch time he/she goes to the nearest pub to have fish and chips and a third cup of tea before it goes back to work. In the afternoon he/she either just has a fourth cup of tea or goes to a local tearoom to have a traditional English tea party with cucumber sandwiches and cake and tea of course. On his/her way back home he/she chats politely with his/her neighbor about the weather (usually the rain or drizzle that occurred during the day) before he/she enters the terraced house and has a nice roast for dinner. Afterwards he/she either goes to the local pub to have some beers or they stay at home to watch a nice Monty Python film. In the weekend they go out to the local pub and drink until the barkeeper calls last round at around 11 and then they lurch home. On Sunday they watch or take part in traditional cricket or football games before in the evening right before they go to sleep they have their fifth cup of tea just to fall sound asleep and dream from Marry Poppins.

An ordinary day for a Homo Austriacus: 

First of all everybody is called Maria, Heidi, Lisl, Rolf or Friedrich. He/she get’s up and first thing in the morning:  he/she climbs into th e Lederhosen/Dirndl. Afterwards he/she goes out to the pasture to milk the cows. During that work he/she either listens to Mozart or starts off yodelling. At a later time he/she starts his/her job which usually is skiing-instructor or hiking guid. At lunchtime he/she enters the local Inn also known as “Wirtshaus” and while having his/her beloved Wiener Schnitzel they complain together with everybody else in the room about everything and everybody. In the Afternoon after a view more hours of hiking or skiing he/she enters a cafè and orders a “Melange” – a typical Austrian coffee with milk – and a Newspaper. The waiter of course is particularly grumpy. In the Evening he/she goes out to dance Waltz and the men are giving the women kisses on the hand before everybody climbs back up his/her mountain. Later in the bed we are all dreaming from Maria and 'raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens'.

 

My great british summer

As my title already hints I spent the last summer in Britain.

From May until September I worked as an Au-pair for a very nice family in Winchester, Hampshire. But I did not just take care of the two sweetest an loveable kids ever I also tried to get to see as muchfrom the country as possible.

For this purpose I couldn't imagine a better time than the past few months.
Not only was I allowed to celebrate the queens Diamond Jubilee together with her and all the citizens I also was able to be in London when the Olympics where there. I was engrossed in britains battle for the European Football Cup, I saw the Olympic Torch on it's way through the country and I at least "tried" to see the great Thames Pageant.

Beside the big and historical events that took part in the UK this summer I also visited Oxford, with it's important and well-known colleges, I stroked wild pony's at the new forest, I explored some of the old castles, I took part in a real british tea-party, by bathing in the ice cold water of the british channel I got an idea about how Jack from Titanic must have felt and I learned a lot about the british history by visiting many other places.

All in all I have to say, that it was not only a great summer for britain but also a great one for me.