Country Living in North West Italy

A spectacular dawn this morning from my balcony.

2006-05-31T22:45:00.000+02:00

Dawn's Light comes creeping

Out of the East!

Birds wake from sleeping

And leave their nests!

God hath provided the sun's

Kindly light

God's hand hath guided

Our dreams through the night. (Unknown)

A Wedding in Italy

2006-05-23T21:10:00.000+02:00

It was rather chilly and fairly windy but everyone was in high spirits naturally. The church which was right on the sea front had terrifyingly steep steps. Not a church for elderly people at all. My niece Manuela looked very sweet and her future husband Simone was charming.
This is Manuela with her sister Elsa. They are very close as sisters should be.

2006-05-22T22:19:00.000+02:00

This is Mauro after the wedding. We were on our way to the car to drive to the restaurant for the Wedding Breakfast.

The Bride's Parents.

The restaurant was Mediterranean style on the top of the cliffs with a superb view over the sea. Here they are getting the cake ready.

Manuela and Simone doing the rounds and one of my sister-in-laws ready to dig in.

As you can see it's much later and the party is well on the way.

2006-05-21T12:26:00.000+02:00

The cake was very nice. I gave up three courses to make room for it and had two portions and then strawberries with delicious cream icecream.

Elizabeth's Story

2006-05-01T13:19:00.000+02:00

This is Elizabeth. She is a little wild because my husband won't have her in the house, A lot of people are a bit funny about having animals in the house here in Italy. In fact if you look at her ears you can see little tufts growing. She has the loveliest slanting green eyes and her fur is thick white and soft. She is an excellent huntress but doesn't seem to go too much for birds, Thank Goodness!
Elizabeth was found in a water cistern when she was about two months old. There was water in the bottom of it and she'd been in there for days before we actually found her on the next door allotment. We heard the mewings but we didn't know from where they were coming. It's true she wouldn't have died of thirst but she couldn't sleep because she would have drowned,. It's a real mystery how she got in there in the first place. I'm so glad we found her.

My Life Now.

2006-04-30T22:41:00.000+02:00

Hey. It's me. If you've read any of my blog you'll know I've got this old house in the country I'm trying to do up. Still no electricity or running water in the house yet. Nearly finished the roof. Next the steps. I'm learning a lot. Not so scared of heights anymore even though I still get the shivers.It's a great place for a hermit and I'm not above becoming just that, but when one has family. animals and plants in another place one can't just abandon them all. The older one gets the less one needs. At least that's how I feel. I don't have that many clothes I've had some of the things for over twenty years and I'm sure that they'll do me another twenty. I have plenty of books. I'll never read them all. I don't eat all that much but what I do is too much and my waist line is proof of this. I don't need to travel about. The thing That would interest me most about travelling is getting to know people from other countries and I can do that on internet. I love my computer! All I want to do now is look around at what surrounds me especially when I'm in the country. The seasons change so quickly and every day brings new discoveries. I love the beauty of the Italian landscape, my old stone house in the hills. the elegance of the magpies and the colourful flamboyant jays the magic presence of the owls at night..........I suppose I'm just in love with it all really.

A walk along the coast

2006-04-18T09:30:00.000+02:00

A walk along the coast late afternoon Easter Monday.
Mountains, villas and palm trees. Typical.
This is where we're going.
This is what we can see.
Houses in shades of pink, orange and yellow. typical Ligurian houses!

2006-03-24T09:25:00.000+01:00

Pippistrellus pipistrellus

The bats have come out of hibernation at last and I love to watch them, at twilight, from my balcony flitting and darting through the olive trees. They seem so free and happy.
Some people call them by the name of Tardarita round here.

A Fishing Village

2006-03-14T06:55:00.000+01:00

Imagine living in a perfectly restored house all made of stone in this picturesque little Medioeval fishing village of Manarola amongst the olive groves in the 5Terre, Liguria, in the north-east of Italy. The house in question in on two floors and has a private garden, going for about 230,000 Euro. Cars can't circulate in these places but apparantly it is easy to get to the car from this particular place. Houses here cost much more when they are near the coast. Houses inland like my country place cost much much less.

Caravan

2006-03-11T17:26:00.000+01:00

Very small and old but I like it.

Inside the caravan

2006-03-11T17:18:00.000+01:00

Just a little corner.

2006-03-11T16:59:00.000+01:00

This is how the ceiling of the balcony looks at the moment after we tore the boards down. It won't look so very different when we finish because we want to see the beams.

House for Sale

2006-03-11T16:40:00.000+01:00

I think they are asking about 13,000 Euro for this. Two up and two down. A bit of space for a garden and to park the car and some land on the other side of the road which goes down to the 'river'. Not bad for a couple of retired people. Needs restoring though. That's my house further up the hill.

More Découpage.

2006-03-09T22:23:00.000+01:00

This Picture was taken from a Ballet magazine.
The Ballet was Don Quixote and the male ballerina was Barishnykov.

2006-03-09T21:12:00.000+01:00

The mimosa tree are out in full glory now and seem especially beautiful this year.

My Découpage

2006-03-09T20:47:00.000+01:00

I find that in Italy there is not a lot of fantasy in modern interior decoration although the old stuff is so so beautiful. This picture ofcourse was painted by Murillo, who was Spanish, but anyway Mediterranean. I love these rich colours. This plate actually is not quite finished. I'll be adding a gold circle around the picture and another one around the edge of the plate.
This plate is darker than it looks here. It was my first attempt at doing something bigger and I'm quite pleased with it.
I just love this picture of an Italian Country House and have used it also on boxes.

Découpage

2006-03-09T20:32:00.000+01:00

Découpage is such a great hobby. I have been spending a fortune in materials but now I am realizing there is really no need. There are so may things around the house you can use and plenty of pictures in old magazines and books. It's a wonderful way of using your favourite pictures and although you can't use photos you can always make photocopies and use those. This plate is very English and I can't renounce it but reallyI am into a modenized Italian Style using favourite Old Masters against coloured walls.

Having said that, this seems more French!
And this is SO romantic and seems more Edwardian!

I'm pleased with this one. I painted over and the original cutout has been lost completely!

Butterfly Story

2006-03-04T23:39:00.000+01:00

Not so easy to take pics of butterflies. This one was frantically flittering against the window pane and at one point got caught up in a spider's web. Anyway to cut a long story short I managed to free her and take her outside to enjoy the last couple of hours of sunlight. I held her out in my open palm and she opened her wings and there she stayed for a fleeting moment in all her golden beauty...............................I hope she enjoyed the rest of her short life.

2006-03-04T23:36:00.000+01:00

One of the first ones. I think it's a crocus but rather unusual.

2006-03-04T23:32:00.000+01:00

A nice view of a little sea town along the coast. The distant hills are almost invisible in the mist

2006-03-04T23:25:00.000+01:00

At last we have been able to start on the roof!

First Flowers

2006-03-04T23:20:00.000+01:00

I think these are called Bird-Eye.

Spring Flowers

2006-03-01T13:24:00.000+01:00

A bit too much light. Will have to take it again. This is a budding Japonica Camelia. It will be lovely when it's in full bloom.
I've decided to keep a little window garden with not more than six plants in bloom.
Here you can see a gardenia, African violet and two begonias.

The First Sign if Spring

2006-01-25T09:03:00.000+01:00

Poem by Kenneth Belton
(I looked for a poem including mimosa and found this one with striking imagery set in January. Here on the Italian Riviera the mimosa trees start blloming in February. It is the first sign of Spring. The crocus, jonquil and forsythia will come later).

None knew
the roots of my joyfulness
when joy possessed me
None knew
my tears' or my smiles'
history
I despaired
None knew

The first of the year
January
looks both ways and is
yellow
crocus and jonquil
mimosa and forsythia
and far from wintry winter
jasmine

A Buddhist month
A month
for not looking either way
perhaps

Saffron days with no dead leaves
or buds
Just hard black bending branches
that are
That focus the frost slough off
the snow
and gratefully unstiffen
in the odd hour's sun

2006-01-01T10:30:00.000+01:00

BUON ANNO

HEUREUSE ANNEE

HAPPY NEW YEAR

2005-12-25T08:09:00.000+01:00

Happy Christmas-Time Everyone Whatever Your Religion

Nature is often beautiful but also sometimes very cruel. Religions are like this, they are beautiful but often cruel but colourful and fascinating and I think the world would be a poorer place without them. In the past the church gave work to a lot of people. Jobs like building and embelishing cathederals were never ending Every tiny medioeval village has it's own beautiful cathedral. If it hadn't been for the church in Italy works of Art would have been very few and probably have been restricted to portraits of wealthy people and their families.

The predominant religion here is Roman Catholic and the main Christmas manifestation is the 'presepio' which people set up in their entrance halls and can be extremely extensive: an entire landscape made of brown and green pape simulating rocks and hills and moss and stones gathered fom the nearest wasteland or countryside. The scene will often include wells and waterfalls, ponds, rivers, bridges, working windmills and hidden lights simulating fires. The Holy Family is ofcourse the focal point but there can be hundreds of other characters animals and objects which have been added over the years. These characters will themselves be set into mini scenes: The shepherds and angels, the wise men with their camels, the miller with his mill, the fish seller, the knife grinder, the carpenter, the fisherman, etc

Presepios will also be seen in churches over the land. I entered a beautiful, hither unknown to me, church in town yesterday and admired a very 'busy' looking presepio about two metres long. There are also 'real life' presepios where real people enact the scene.

2005-12-23T12:53:00.000+01:00

ALICANTE on the SPANISH COSTA BLANCA

Doesn't it look just great!

I never thought of mentioning it up to now but my cousins Robbie and Joyce have a holiday appartment which they let out in Gran Alacant which is near Alicante (in the picture). Actually Gran Alacant is only ten minutes away from the Alicante airport.

It takes just five minutes to reach the white sandy beaches below Gran Alacant which are quite unspoilt and there are natural salt lakes where you can see colourful flamingos and other forms of wild life. There are also many beautiful swimming pools and lovely parks and gardens and if you like golf there are some very challenging golf courses. If you come to Gran Alacant there are numerous places of interest in the area for you to visit.

There are plenty of local restaurants where you can eat well and quite cheaply, bars, supermarkets even a new commercial centre and every Thursday there's a characteristic local street market.

The flat is very nice for up to 4 people and very reasonable. If you'd like to know more let me know.

My Découpage

2005-12-18T22:55:00.000+01:00

I enjoy doing découpage. I find it is easy quick and unblocks me artistically. I would like to decorate glass but I'm enjoying this thing so much I'm not likely to start very soon.

Santa Lucia

2005-12-14T00:04:00.000+01:00

The 13th December is the Festa of Santa Lucia and here in Savona there is a big street market which attracts hundreds of people all day long. This year the weather was nice and sunny and I milled with the crowd and looking for local products. I bought a big bag of macaroons, wine, nougat, honey, olives. Then lighted a candle in the little church of Santa Lucia overlooking the port which is the traditional thing to do on this particular day.

2005-12-12T19:56:00.000+01:00

The surrounding hills ar beautiful but also dangerous. It is easy to get lost and there are even wolves in some areas. Several excursionists are missing in different areas this week and the weather has not been good with snow and mountain winds which rush through the valleys in great gusts. Some were found but as several days have gone by, we fear for the fate of the others

Birds on the Kaki tree

2005-12-06T14:04:00.000+01:00

I love to see the kaki, or if you like, persimmon trees here in autumn. They shed their leaves completely, leaving the fruit like glowing orange lanterns attached to the branches reminding me of a colourful book of Chinese leggends given to me as a child by a favourite uncle.

My house, in Savona, is built on a hill overlooking the town and when I come out of my door and look up towards the top of the hill I can see one of these beautiful trees. Well yesterday morning I was doing just that. I was opening the door to let the dog, Rollo, have a run up there when I heard a lot of excited twittering and a flock of birds, glossy and black, alighted on the tree. Each one had bagged a fruit and was pecking away. The orange and the black against the blue Italian sky was just something!

At this point I began to panic. I needed my camera but if i didn't wait for Rollo to come down he would run off and I would risk getting a fine. I rushed into the bedroom to grab the camera and batteries hoping that in the meantime he hadn't come down and as I was in the middle of grabbling to put the batteries in, with one eye on the tree and the other on the lookout for Rollo, I heard a shout and saw the postman calling me 39 steps further down to claim my mail.

It is always good to receive Christmas mail and I did manage to stop Rollo from escaping but by this time the birds had had their full and had flown off who knows where! So sorry, no photo but I did find this one on the Net. The bird isn't black but it's a lovely photo, all the same. Perhaps one day I will paint a kaki tree with fruit and glossy black coloured birds!

2005-11-21T00:38:00.000+01:00

Today I made friends with a parrot called Arla.

I'm really enjoying Autumn.

2005-11-09T00:13:00.000+01:00

Well it was Autumn but I see the pic's changed with the new haircut! Not enjoying Winter so much at the moment but I still prefer it to the heat of the summer.

2005-11-09T00:08:00.000+01:00

Love Orange!

2005-11-02T08:09:00.000+01:00

Yesterday was 'All Souls' This is just a part of our very vast cemetery. It looks very nice towards evening with all the red candles and the smell of chrysanthamums and incense.

A view towards the East from the house

2005-11-02T08:06:00.000+01:00

Rustic Autumn by Piere Tchakhotine

2005-11-02T07:31:00.000+01:00

Rustic Autumn in the Langhes near Mueazzano 50 x 65

A work in pastels by the Russian artist Pierre Tchakhoutine born in Paris in 1943 but who has been living in Italy for the past 15 years.

I went up especially to take photos yesterday but the weather was grey and my photos came out very dark. My old house is 40 kms in land and it is from here that Autumn can be seen in all her flamboyant glory and is even more colourful than this very attractive pastel.

2005-10-17T21:36:00.000+02:00

This is my little caravan, Very smal and oldl but adequate. Needs a few pots of plants around it.

2005-10-17T14:40:00.000+02:00

We spent Sunday up at the house mainly just pottering around. This is Mauro tidying up his asparagus patch.

2005-10-10T10:20:00.000+02:00

They were both in this together so I thought it right to add a pic of Bruno.
How did we eat it? We cleaned it with damp kitchen paper cut it into slices and fried it with garlic and parsley in olive oil.
We ate a little for antipasto and used to rest with the pasta all washed down with Barbera, one of our best local wines.

Mushroom Time

2005-10-03T22:30:00.000+02:00

We're doing well for mushrooms this year as you can see in this picture of Mauro. We've been eating so many recently that we're probably beginning to look like them. People spend hours in the woods with their baskets and walking sticks. This area is pretty impervious though and this weekend four people got lost on Saturday and a search party with dogs and helicopters were sent out but without any luck. They were eventually picked up on Monday afternoon. two nights in the cold and rain in the middle of the woods couldn't have been very pleasant. I hope they found a few chestnuts to nibble.

Gypsy!

2005-09-30T09:12:00.000+02:00

Gypsy, my little Shetland sheepodog is fine! A four year old from Ireland. Italy's not a good place for a sheltie with all that fluff.

I took her to the dogs' park yesterday. She is very timid but wants to please so she had a couple of goes on the see-saw and zig-zagging in and out of the poles.

I think she looks happy enough in the photo.

Catellermo

2005-09-19T12:25:00.000+02:00

This place can be found inland from Albenga on the Italian Riviera.

Mauro at Catellerma (Liguria Ponente)

2005-09-19T12:15:00.000+02:00

Mauro is in his element only when he is wandering about these hills. I am content to just look at his photos because the climb up has become too much for me now.

You get a wonderful sensation up there though and I always think of that psalm
'I will lift up my eyes to the hills, from whence cometh my help. My help cometh from the Lord who hath made Heaven and Earth'

The Witches of Triora

2005-09-02T14:49:00.000+02:00

Triora an ancient medieval rock village is to be found well inland from Imperia where the countryside is so wild and the slopes are covered with gnarled and old olive trees and where in springtime the wild cherry is a a mass of bloom.

Triora although very picturesque is rather isolated and is mainly famous for the Witch Trials which took place four centuries ago. There is a little museum containg the evidence and thirty women, a young man and a wizard were locked up and blamed for causing a famine. You can still see the bars on the houses which were turned into prisons for the occasion.

If you would like to know more it would be worthwhile to visit this site: http://www.triora.org/processo_ing.html

BUSSANA VECCHIA

2005-09-01T11:26:00.000+02:00

Bussana Vecchia is one of my favourite places on the Italian Riviera inland from San Remo. This little Medioeval village built around 1005 perched on the summit of a steep rocky craig was destroyed by an earthquake in 1887.

The people who were lucky enough to survive built themselves another village in the valley below. Years later it was occupied by Calabrians land workers but they were ousted by the police and the houses were made even more unsafe to stop people from trying to live there.

During the 1960s it was discovered by a group of artists who chose to adopt this god- forsaken town as a place for creative work and from that moment we can happily state that the fascination of this little place has continued to flourish. The artists have put new life into the old walls and people come from all over the world to try to discover who knows what secrets. With very little money the artists have made building habitable and have gradually added electricity, gas, water and draining systems with the help of artists from many other countries who have joined them. Some of them live there permanently others come when they can.
Now there are more than 30 people living there: artists, sculpters, ceramists, musicians, actors and designers. Some stay for a while and then leave. Others remain.

Il Museo del Olivo

2005-08-31T22:25:00.000+02:00

This is a museum dedicated to the olive tree and all it's products. It's in Imperia on the Italian Riviera and it's well worth a visit if you're ever in this area.

2005-08-31T14:20:00.000+02:00

This is the place where we went up the hill in the minibus to taste the fabulous wines of the area and the legendry sciacchetrà.

I hadn't been this way for a few years. Things are changing here too. People have bought and done up a lot of the old houses. There are a lot of restrictions ofcourse but I liked Manerola much more when it was older and more dilapidated than it is now.

A lot of the wine terraces are in disuse these days. It's too hard working up there under the sun and very few women want to contribute to this kind of work these days.

RIOMAGGIORE

2005-08-28T08:41:00.000+02:00

CINQUE TERRE
Riomaggiore is one of our major beauty spots and the other day we decided to take a trip to Manarola and Riomaggiore by train.

The Cinque Terre which means the Five Lands are five tiny very old fishing villages between Genoa and La Spezia on the northwest coast of Italy in Liguria. It is difficult to get to them by car which would mean winding down steep hilly slopes to the sea. Then there is the problem of where to park because it is practically impossible to drive in the villages which comprise usually of one very narrow main street. The houses being built directly on to the hills means that there are a lot of steps. We made the mistake of going to Vernazza years ago by car. It was very scarey! We saw a lot of abandonned overturned cars on the way down.

This time, needless to say we took the train to Manarola. We wanted to taste the famous local wines of which there is a very small store because the area is small and the hills are difficult to work. Nobody is much into hard work on steep slopes under the scorching sun these days. Once women were a big agricultural force. They were out of the house all day helping the men and they only went home in the evenings to sleep. You can imagine that the sun caused havoc with their skins. The village people lived on what they could fish and they cured their vines and they still do basically although now there has been a lot of publicity which has brought turists to the area. For this reason it is more pleasurable to visit them off season if you, like me , like to soak up the atmosphere of these places.

To get back to our trip, we left the train at Manarola and after admiring the marina walked through the main street and up the hill to a church in a little square. We had heard there was a wine place there. In fact we soon found the proprieter who took us into his tiny cellar. He was an elderly sea-looking weather beaten man with the kindliest bluest eyes. He told us about the wines and gave us a taste of the famous dessert wine sciacchetrà which I assure you was out of this world. Signor C advised us to take the little bus and go further up the hill to visit the official canteens which we did.

The bus trip was great. The old old houses seemed to be built with little stone bridges over little rushing waterfalls and after the houses, stone walls and vineyards and a spectacular view of the deep blue sea far below, sparkling in the sunlight. The canteens were stone but modern, quite pleasant. The wine was excellent!

Later back on the coast we took the picturesque walk along the cliffs leading to the next town, namely Riomaggiore which has a splendid colourful old port. Here in a cafe we got chatting with an elderly and rather attractive gentleman (he too, with the bluest of eyes). During the converstion we asked Signor M is he could recomend us a restaurant and he took us to meet his friend in the port, the owner of a well known and characteristic restaurant called La Lanterna. Here we were able to have a wonderful meal of freshly caught fish and Signor M and his friend joined us for Limoncino and coffee.

In the afternoon I rested in the sun while Luciano climbed the hill to visit Signor M's vineyard. They later came back with wine and a bag full of the biggest lemons I had ever seen.It had been a lovely day with friendly people (people here are not always friendly) so we said goodbye with thanks and at this point it was time to catch the train back home.

ROOF!

2005-08-27T06:35:00.000+02:00

Hi!

Back again at last after a long hot summer. It's raining now thank goodness and things are looking a bit greener.

As for the house, little has been done. Signor Bue has not been able to be with us unfortunately and some of the inspiration has been lost. We did buy a stripper this year however and instead of having a beautiful jungle of wild flowers we had a lovely green park for a while just until the sun was able to burn it all up to a pale golden stubble. Well never mind! Hopefully next year when we eventually have running water we will be able to put a few sprinklers around.

This morning we are going to see a man about the roof because of the rain coming in. As you can see in the picture there is quite a lot of it and we'll only do reparations in the strategic spots. As for me I'll be busy knocking off cement and plaster which have been splattered all over the stone work. It's a long and very dusty job but I enjoy working with my hands rather than using technical devices which in this case are not particularly useful.

My aim now is to renovate a portion of the house so that I can start doing bed and breakfast. In this way I will earn a little money in order to be able to continue with the restoration. If anyone reading this has launched in a similar adventure I would be very interested to compare notes.

Later! Nothing is ever simple, is it? Nothing can be done without an official project......................

Little roe deer, Capreolus capreolus (From Mauro Raco, nature guide)

2005-05-08T18:43:00.000+02:00

The Roe Deer is the most wide spread ruminant species in Liguria after the Wild Boar; it became extinct some centuries ago, but was re-introduced in Adelasia Nature Reserve in the Province of Savona in the 1950s, and reproduced so well that now it is not at all difficult to see, especially in certain areas of the provinces of Savona and Genoa. Other ruminants to be seen in Liguria are the Alpine Chamois, in the Ligurian Alps and the Fallow Deer, which is not native to Europe in general. The Red Deer roamed the hills centuries ago, but is now extinct unfortunately

2005-05-01T21:48:00.000+02:00

Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May,
And summer's lease hath all too short a date.............. Lines from Shakespeare
Roses from my garden.

2005-05-01T06:09:00.000+02:00

A row of yellow tulips welcoming us near the gate.

2005-05-01T06:07:00.000+02:00

The green lizard. saw three up in the country yesterday. Such a beautiful luminous green in the sunshine and so vivaceoud

Maria Schell

2005-04-27T14:41:00.000+02:00

Maria Schell, a favourite actress born 15 January 1926 in Austria died today at the age of 79. R.I.P. Maria

The Wild Cherry Blossom Fairy by Mary Cicely Barker

2005-04-26T13:01:00.000+02:00

How many of you enjoyed the Flower Fairies in the 50s? I see though that they seem to be even more famous these days

In April when woodland ways

Are all made glad and sweet

With primroses and violets

Blooming at your feet,

Look up and see

A fairy tree,

With blossoms white

In clusters light,

With pinky leaves so tender

O Cherry tree, wild Cherry tree

You lovely lovely tree to see.

The loveliest of Trees by A.E. Houseman

2005-04-26T12:52:00.000+02:00

Loveliest of trees, the cherry now
Is hung with bloom along the bough
And stands about the woodland ride
Wearing white for Eastertide.

SHEILA & DAVID'S RUBY WEDDING

2005-04-25T08:02:00.000+02:00

To Sheila and David on the occasion of you Ruby Wedding Celebration.
I hope you have a perfect day. I looked around the shops for a card but only found silver or golden weddings and not only that but they weren't even very attractive so with all the millions of possibilities on the net, I chose this. It's the Ruby Anniversary Rose. It's a pity I can't send the perfume. Time has flown and we are older and wiser. We all wish you both happiness and tranquillity for the rest of your days. Hope to see you soon.

2005-04-25T07:37:00.000+02:00

I woke up this morning just in time to see the swallows arrive. I could see them through the bedroom window darting around quite low or perching on the telephone wires. It was a great sight which I hadn't seen for several years. They used to arrive every spring and one couple puntually made their nest under our roof. It was a great joy to see them again.

2005-04-25T07:31:00.000+02:00

The Raganella. I was getting really worried about not hearing the festive noise of these little green frogs this Spring. My son told me that the people who work the next door allotments had broken their tanks to try to stop the quantity of mosquitos that buzz around in summer evenings. Luckily enough not all the people around have had this idea and we can still hear them from the terraces on the other side. A bit further away but at least we know they are still there.

The spontaneous orchids of north western Italy (posted by Mauro Raco, outdoor & nature guide)

2005-04-24T13:56:00.000+02:00

Lady orchid (Orchis purpurea)
In north western Italy there are more than 50 species of spontaneous orchids, many of which are rare and protected. They are to be found in quite a wide variety of places, from the Mediterranean level up to the highest peaks of the Ligurian Alps and Appennines, in dry places, open fields, shady forests, bogs, but most of them grow on calcareous soils and are quite demanding plants. The main genera are Ophrys, Orchis, Dactylorhyza and Serapias, but there are also many others. They bloom from March to September, depending on the species. Here in Liguria there are some of the best places for orchids in north western Italy, and I personally organize orchid-oriented hikes on Poggio Grande, Monte Carmo and Monte Fasce, which are S.I.C.s, Sites of Community Interest, from the second week of April to mid June.

'Veduta delle Langhe' by Giuseppe Romano

2005-04-24T09:48:00.000+02:00

A painting of the Langhe by Giuseppe Romano

Everytime I go up into the country everything looks different.
A few weeks back the hills were covered with leafless trees sketched black against the snow. Last week primroses and other beautiful blue flowers whose name I don't know covered the slopes facing south.
This week the hills are splattered with a tender shade of green and the snowy blossoms of the wild cherry trees which grow in abundance are very pretty to see.
We went to see about getting water to the house and were shocked to hear about the price they're asking. I'm beginning to think we're not going to get very far with the renovations and the boys although now grown men aren't much help.
I spent yesterday morning working on the stonework with a hammer and a wire brush in the kitchen which is plastered with cement and which I am gradually uncovering to reveal the naked stone. My husband and sons talk about projects which have nothing to do with the actual house anmd being able to live in it.
Italians are strange. I call it Kafka Country. The estate agents show very few photos of the places they intend to sell and Jen in NZ can vouch for this. She has worked for estate agents in NZ and was quite shocked about it when she was over here. In fact I have been taken to visit houses on sale with estate agents who haven't been able to show me the inside of the houses as if that was going to be the least of my interests.
Everyone knows Italians talk a lot but they seem to have great problems getting down to brass tacks and avoid all the little personal questions and banalities that we in the Anglo-Saxon world use in everyday communications at least this certainly is true for the area I now live in which is Liguria. I don't know, in England for example; the girl at the cash desk in the local supermarket might tell you her sister's just had a baby or somebody you don't know might smile at you and make a little comment. perhaps she just likes your hand knitted jumper!
Well to be fair even in England people behave differently depending on the area in which they live.

2005-04-22T23:03:00.000+02:00

That was a nice present Jen! :))

PURPLE LILACS

2005-04-15T06:21:00.000+02:00

APRIL is the cruellest month, breeding
Lilacs out of the dead land, mixing
Memory and desire, stirring
Dull roots with spring rain.

From 'The Waste Land' by T.S. Eliot

Pomegranate Design

2005-04-11T21:28:00.000+02:00

This is so beautiful Anna. Thank you for sending it.
Thank you for letting me know about the other sites too.

The Pomegranate.

2005-04-11T21:11:00.000+02:00

The pomegranate (Punica granatum Linnaeus) which probably originated in the Middle East or Southern Asia is one of if not the oldest known fruit tree.The Phoenicians and Arabic traders introduced pomegranates throughout much of the ancient world

In Greek mythology, Persephone, daughter of Ceres, was captured by Pluto. King of the Underworld who carried her off to his realm.There she was offered a pomegranate of which she ate a few seeds. By doing this she was condemned to spending six months with Pluto (winter) and the other six months with her mother in the world of the living (summer).

Pomegranates are also mentioned in the bible.

In Exodus, the pomegranate motif was used on the ephods or vestments of the priests. "...thou shalt make the robe of the ephod all of blue...upon the hem of it thou shalt make pomegranates of blue, and of purple, and of scarlet, round about the hem...and bells of gold between them...." (Exodus 28: 31-33).

In I Kings, the pomegranate design appeared on the chapiters (capitals of the columns) of the temple constructed during the reign of Solomon. "And the chapiters upon the two pillars had pomegranates...two hundred in rows round about...." (I Kings 7:20).

Judaic tradition holds that every pomegranate has 613 seeds reminding them of the 613 commandments of the Torah. But in Arabic, the pomegranate is called rumman, the fruit of Paradise. People who eat pomegranates will have their hearts filled with light for every pomegranate contains one seed from heaven.

The above information was taken from:
http://66.102.7.104/search?q=cache:s4c-kY5GvPcJ:www.killerplants.com/plant-of-the-week/20020527.asp+pomegranate+motif&hl=en&client=firefox-a

A VERY HAPPY EASTER

2005-03-23T14:22:00.000+01:00

To all my friends and relations.

I envy those of you who can buy hot cross buns from the baker's.

I will have to make mine but they are still very good.

The secret is in giving them time to rise properly and be generous with the spices.

BAROLO

2005-03-21T10:59:00.000+01:00

Barolo
Barolo is the name of a little town in the picturesque Langhe of norh west Italy.
It is also the name of a famous wine.
In fact this wine is considered to be the 'king of wines'! For centuries the local vineyards have been planted with "Nebbiolo" , producing well-structured, full-bodied wines that last for years.
The wine from the lands around Barolo is full-bodied and elegant. The prestige of a Barolo, a first-class wine, commences in the vineyards. These are set in the sunniest places, free from too much wind and damp.
Then it comes to the table after many months of refinement and maturation.
Barolo bewitches us with its garnet hues that recall the red of summer poppies, with its intricate and varied aromas and with its full, dry, persistent taste, sealed with the distinct perfume of liquorice that haunts the aftertaste.Yet the pleasure of tasting a good bottle of old Barolo is not necessarily associated with the delights of the table, but is often drunk as a sign of hospitality and friendship.
A fine wine for companionship and meditation.

2005-03-21T10:58:00.000+01:00

Barolo

SEA MIST

2005-03-18T08:18:00.000+01:00

I tried to find a photo of the sea as I saw it yesterday and this was the closest, without the fish ofcourse.
Lucio and I were walking the dogs Rollo and Gypsy along the water's edge. It was a sunny day and the sky was blue. The hard damp sand was dark gold. The sea was calm and was an incredibly beautiful pearly shade of Wedgewood blue with the slightest touch of turquoise, in sharp contrast with the inky blue of the small wavelets rolling quietly onto the beach. A roll of dense white cloud lined the whole of the horizen and I remarked on it to my husband because I had never seen anything like it before. It was a scene to be remembered.
Not long after the clouds reached land and the whole town was covered in a dense mist. It was about six in the evening and before long all you could see was the street lights and lighted windows in the haze.

MONTEZEMOLO HONEY CAKE

2005-03-15T10:53:00.000+01:00

100 gm butter

100 gm sugar

3 eggs

150 gm honey

250 gm self-raising flour

pinch of salt

a glass of milk

Cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.

Add the well beaten eggs and honey with some of the flour and the salt.

Slowly add the rest of the flour and milk

Put into a greased cake tin and bake at moderate heat

2005-03-11T09:10:00.000+01:00

Lavender Bottles

Lavender bottles or wands have been used to freshen linens and impart fragrance for centuries. Elizabethan ladies used to gather lavender and transform it into these delightful 'wands' or 'bottles' to put in their linen cupboards. Use them to fragrance linen or lingerie drawers, or wherever you would use a sachet. You can use your basket weaving skills to make one or more of these wands from the fresh lavender flowers in your garden.

This is what I meant when I mentioned lavender bottles Jen

2005-03-11T08:55:00.000+01:00

Lavender Bottles

Information provided by Sandra Bowles.

This article first appeared in Shuttle Spindle & Dyepot (SS&D), Issue 110, Spring 1997.

Weaving with fresh lavender was popular in Victorian times. Woven bunches or "bottles," as they were sometimes called, were ideal for scenting clothes or linens. Lavender bottles dry naturally and keep their clean, fresh scent. They can be hung in closets or placed in drawers to add a touch of spring!

Supplies Needed: fresh lavender stems, about 15 to 17 (always use an odd number)thread (dark color)needlescissorsabout 1 1/4 yards of 1/4 inch ribbon

Directions:

Step 1Group lavender stems of even diameter and tie tightly just below the flower heads with thread.

Step 2Turn upside down and gently hold flower heads in one hand. Using your other hand carefully turn stems back over the flower heads.

Step 3Begin weaving with the ribbon, leaving a small tail-which will be tucked inside the "cage" later.

Step 4Continue weaving under one stem and over the next stem, forming a cage or basket around the flower heads.

Step 5

Wrap ribbon tightly around the stems and tie. Cut off the excess ribbon.
Step 6Using the remaining piece of ribbon, tie a bow and a hanging loop.

Decoupage

2005-03-09T08:24:00.000+01:00

Decoupage
Anyone into this? Here is some information I found.

All you need to do is to cut a picture from a book or magazine and stick it onto a chosen surface which can be anything that you like: ceilings,walls,doors , a mirror, teapots, crockery, wardrobe, chest of drawers, a tray, a wastepaper basket, a hairbrush, even a book cover. Odd wallpaper rolls are a good source of material especially flowery and exotic patterns.Designs can be scanned from old books and printed out repeatedly in different colours or colored in by hand.Magazines, old books and advertising and travel brochures.Mail order catalogues are a good source of colorful shiny images.Don't forget photographs, they can add a personal touch to childrens bedrooms etc.Images can also be scanned into a photocopier; useful if you want to color them yourself.Remember that paper can discolor easily so protect your cut-outs with a coat of varnish especially where they might get wet. Collage is decoupage at its most extreme. That is, the complete surface, wall or ceiling or door, is entirely covered with cuttings. They are often a mixture of pictures and text. An eye-catching effect can be achieved by allowing the collage to fade before adding striking new highly-colored images. Then applying the protective varnish.When cutting out it is unecessary to follow every intricate detail if you are sticking it onto a wall you have painted. Merely touch up around the image with your wall color.

2005-03-08T19:54:00.000+01:00

For Elizabeth. A picture to share for Mimosa Day. Un bacione da Julia e Luciano

MIMOSA DAY

2005-03-08T08:00:00.000+01:00

MIMOSA DAY FOR WOMEN
Do women really know what they want?

Do the giggling belly-button women of our western world really get consideration and respect from the other half?

Do thousands of women like leaving their babies and old parents in the hands of other people who certainly don't love them?

Do they like working in noisy factories or doing domestic work in other people's homes? Homes that are much better than theirs and then go back to their own perhaps dirty and untidy homes and start all over again?

Do many of them play the martyr because they can't get their husbands to do their bit?

Do they ever have time for their children, for each other, for a hobby?

How many of them quarrel over how the money should be spent? One of the main reasons for divorce.

How many of them have husbands who compare them with the 'beauties' on TV? Look how lovely she is and she's much older than you!

Don't some of you get the idea that we have sold our souls to the devil for money ofcourse. Money which is never enough anyway for basic modern living? How many women work just to pay the rent?

Wouldn't you be happier with a simple family life based on more thought for God whatever your religion?

And when anyone in your family dies, don't you always have the gnawing feeling that you could have been closer and done better?

2005-03-03T21:49:00.000+01:00

Thanks for the lovely badger card Penny. I saw what I thought was a badger lumbering over a rock a few months ago whilst we were passing in the car, going towards the house. It all happened so quickly that I can't say for sure it was a badger. But we do have a dormouse up there and I think he must be able to get into the house because something has been gnawing the straw seat of one of the chairs and we seemed to see little footprints on the earthy floor.

STICKY MALT LOAF

2005-03-03T11:30:00.000+01:00

Sticky malt bread First published on the 31st January 2005
I have procured a jar of malt! Hadn't seen it since I was a small child. Here's the recipe taken from Deilia Smith's Book of Cakes. I'll be using later on. I haven't got any golden syrup though! I'll let you know how it goes.........

Thursday 3rd march 2005. I have just made these loves for the third time and now they are rising. I think my problem is that I can't get Golden Syrup and I didbn't have a scales. Now I have the scales and I used honey and maple syrup to substitute the golden syrup. This time the mixture reallyt is soft and sticky so I'm optimistic................ù

Wow! They came out just fine this time. I substituted the 2 tbs of golden syrup with one of honey and one of maple syrup. Great recipe!

Sticky Malt Loaf

This, being a very rich yeast dough, takes a long time to rise but, provided you're not in a hurry, is very simple.
Makes 2 small loaves

1 lb (450 g) plain flour
1 level teaspoon salt
1 level tablespoon easy-blend dried yeast
8 oz (225 g) sultanas
1 level teaspoon brown sugar
4 tablespoons malt extract
2 tablespoons black treacle
1 oz (25 g) butter or margarine
honey or golden syrup to glaze

You will also need two 1 lb (450 g) loaf tins brushed with melted butter.
No pre-heating temperature because it's not needed till much later!

First sift the flour, salt and yeast into a bowl and stir in the sultanas.

Then put the sugar into a glass measuring jug and pour in 8 fl oz (225 ml) hand-hot water and stir well.

Now combine the malt extract, treacle and butter or margarine together in a small saucepan and heat gently until the fat melts.

Then take the pan from the heat and leave it until it's just warm.

Next pour the warm water mixture and barely warm syrup mixture on to the flour and mix very thoroughly to a soft, sticky, dough.

Now spoon an equal quantity of the mix into the prepared tins. Level off the mixture, using the back of a spoon, or the back of your hand.

Place the tins in a large, oiled plastic bag. Trap a little air in the bag so it balloons up and the plastic is not in contact with the top of the tins. Then seal the bag and leave in a warm place to rise to the top of the tins. This can take between 2 and 5 hours, depending on the warmth.

Then bake the loaves at gas mark 5, 375°F (190°C) for 40 minutes.
Turn the loaves out of the tins and tap the bases – they should sound hollow. If not, return them to the oven upside down without the tins for a further 5 minutes.

Then brush the loaves with honey or golden syrup and leave them to cool on a wire rack before slicing and buttering.

The English Country Garden

2005-03-01T21:36:00.000+01:00

If anyone asked me what I missed most about England I would say the flowers.

Ofcourse there are lots of beautiful flowers here in Italy too but I miss the flowers I grew up with: the bluebell woods, the clumps of wild lupins on the dunes in Jersey, the foxgloves along the country roads, the colombines, sweetpeas and delphiniums and snapdragons in my grandfather's garden, the tulips and forget-me-nots in my father's garden and the lily of the valley, the wallflowers in the park.

I buy seeds every year without success. Today I bought a packet of lupin seeds and a pack of acidic soil. I'm going to keep my fingers crossed.

Another thing I can't grow is rhubarb. Has anybody got any ideas?
Hurrah! Five little shoots have courageously emerged. 1/3/05
This blog was first published on the 18th Feb. 05

THE EARTH GODDESS

2005-02-28T12:43:00.000+01:00

Although not traditional. I love this picture of Demeter found on the web. I hope shortly to be able to add my own contributions. As you will see I have started writing a poem in her honour which will have to be quite long to cover the legend and if you happen to drop in and are interested you will see a lot of changes as I go along.

Tall and strong and tawny

With hair black as a raven's wings, long and tangled

Adorned with scarlet poppies,

And knowing eyes as blue

as a Sicilian sky in August,

Demeter strides,

Through fields of waving corn.

A golden sea dancing

To the tune of the summer breeze

Blowing in from the ocean.

To the green and flower spangled banks

of a lazy river

Meandering nonchalantly down to the coast.

And sweet Persephone and her half-sisters

The nymphs running on ahead

Laughing and snatching

At rainbow hued dragonflies

And black spotted ladybirds

In the summer morning air...............................

2005-02-28T08:16:00.000+01:00

This will be the front of the second one! My tension is tight I know. I expect it will come out flat if I press it. Don't you think?

2005-02-27T23:05:00.000+01:00

For Perpetualaft and Anna
Persephone picking flowers painted by Waldher. Thank you both for your interesting comments which certainly add colour to the blog. I pasted this from the following site Where the story is re-told in a very informal and modern manner. I would like to use the pomegranite as a theme for one of my rooms. Any ideas?

The First Promise of Spring dedicated to Judy in Jersey C.I.

2005-02-27T21:36:00.000+01:00

Hi Judy and everyone,

It's snowing today 3rd March but I wrote this blog last week as you will see by the date!

The mimosa trees are in full bloom along the coast. Yesterday was cold but sunny. They looked very bright against the blue sky. March 8th is Women's Day and everyone will be wanting their sprig of mimosa. I hate this! I like to see it on the trees. I don't think women should need to have a special day. I think it's rather humiliating although I realise that here in Italy it is probably the only day in the year where some women will be let free to go out and have a pizza with their friends.

THE FLOWERING POMEGRANITE

2005-02-25T08:29:00.000+01:00

The Flowering Pomegranite

I have always been fascinated by this fruit ever since my father sent us one in one of his home-made wooden boxes from Italy at the end of WW2. We were amazed when we cut it in half and saw all the pips. Ofcourse it finished up in the dustbin leaving us most perplexed.

If I remember rightly the pomegranite comes up in the Greek legend of Demeter (or Ceres) and Persephone. Anybody like to add anything about that?

The photo below is of the flowering pomegranite of which fruit is unedible. I saw some lovely bushes in the garden of the country pub last year and lately I bought a plant from the local supermarket but it's not budding yet.

2005-02-25T08:27:00.000+01:00

These are for you Penny.

For My Italo-Canadian Friend Marie

2005-02-25T08:24:00.000+01:00

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MARIE

Wasn't sure of the day Marie. Please forgive.

This is an illustration by two famous English ladies.

One painted the children and the other, the animals.

I'll look for their names later and add.

This is from The Snow Queen. Greta's friend Hans has been whisked away by the queen in her sleigh and Greta is desperately searching for him. On her travels she gets involved with a band of robbers. I hope you like it. It's seasonal and will remind you of Canada. I don't suppose there are reindeers there though!

Have a lovely week. If you can make it we're having coffee at the Gabbiano but in the bar dowstairs because the coffee is much better.

LUCIO and JULES (Genoa 2003)

2005-02-25T08:21:00.000+01:00

Just thought you might like to see what we looked like!

A TUSSIE-MUSSIE from JEN in NZ

2005-02-25T07:44:00.000+01:00

A TUSSIE-MUSSIE from JENNY in NZ
Jenny writes,

'Have you heard of tussie-mussies?

There was an article about them in the paper and I asked Isobel what the difference was between tussie-mussies and posies

– tussie-mussies are made of neat rings of tightly packed flowers and herbs, and are not put in water but allowed to dry. They are supposed to have a flat top and harmony of colour.

I tried to make one with a rose in the centre with lavender, rosemary and thyme with a collar of strawberry. It wouldn’t win any prizes but it smells lovely and I’ve hung it in the wardrobe to dry.

How lovely it must have been to have sheets smelling of lavender, like your mother and grandmother used to have. I was worried about the rooms becoming musty while we were away in England and hurriedly gathered up lavender and tied it up in hankies (no time to make proper bags) but it worked very well'.

Thanks for sharing Jenny. I can't wait to try it later on this year. Julie :)

HAPPY BIRTHDAY GAYNOR

2005-02-23T18:35:00.000+01:00

Narcissus tazetta tazetta (Amarillidaceae)
Dear Gaynor

Dear Gaynor

I'm sure you'll like these first flowers of the season

growing on the slopes right now by the house

Hope you enjoy your day.

Lots of love

Julie..

2005-02-23T08:26:00.000+01:00

The TOWN HOUSE ??

I have a strange little house as you can see. It has it's good points and it's bad. One of the bad points is that it's on a hill overlooking the town and you have to climb a whole lot of steps to get up there. We're doing the bathroom up this spring. It's in a drastic state. We

might let it out another year.

BIRDS

2005-02-23T08:15:00.000+01:00

BIRDS I couldn't resist adding this beautiful Christmas Card Robin.

Yesterday was a strange and eerie day. In the afternoon it turned very icy and started snowing lightly. From my bedroom window I saw a host of robins fluttering about amongst the olive trees. I had never seen so many robins all at once. It was a very pretty sight and as I watched a flock of ducks flew overhead.

When Luciano came back from work I told him about it and later in the evening we took our two dogs Rollo and Gypsy for a walk around town. There were a lot of seagulls squealing and wailing, sailing pale and fantasmatic against the dark but moonlit sky. We came into the large and empty Town Hall square, not a soul in sight, and from there we could see them clearly. They seemed to be prey to some unknown force and were obviously in a state of panic hovering in all directions and mewing pitifully. It was uncanny!

L is much more pragmatic and doesn't ponder or get involved as I do. But these events left me in an emotional state which robbed me of a good night's sleep and brought on a nasty headache earlier on this morning.

Keep it Simple

2005-02-20T08:11:00.000+01:00

My friend Farida sent me this through the post.

Keeping it simple is what I have been trying to do throughout my life.

I thought it was in tune with country living and

that's why I'm pasting it here.

When NASA began the launch of astronauts into space, they found out that the pens wouldn't work at zero gravity (Ink won't flow down to the writing surface).In order to solve this problem, it took them one decade and $12 million. They developed a pen that worked at zero gravity, upside down, underwater, in practically any surface including crystal and in a temperature range from below freezing to over 300 degrees C. And what did Russians do.....................?? The Russians used a Pencil!!! ______________________________________________________
Moral of the story: Keep It Simple i.e. always look for simple solutions. Devise the simplest possible solution that solves the problem :-) So, learn to focus on solutions not on problems "If you look at what you do not have in life, you don't have anything" "If you look at what you have in life, you have everything"

Orange Tulips

2005-02-09T13:40:00.000+01:00

Orange Tulips A couple of months ago I filled a pot with purple tulips which are now just showing. today I filled another pot with orange bulbs.

La Faina (Stoat?)

2005-02-09T13:39:00.000+01:00

These animals are very inquisitive and intelligent. It is thought that they came to Europe from the Middle East in the wake of nomadic tribes.
They are brown with a big splash of white on the chest.
They live in the woodlands and near the houses and roam around at sunset in search for food especially squirrels and mice but they also eat fruit and eggs. They usually take the prey to their dens and are either consumed at once or stored in selected areas. They in turn are preys to large birds and foxes.
On Sunday on the vegetable plot we found some chicken feathers and surmised that a fox, a stoat or perhaps a buzzard had enjoyed a meal there.

BUGIE (Fibs) for CARNEVAL

2005-02-08T23:25:00.000+01:00

Ingredients:
1/2 Kg flour
50 g butter
4 eggs
2 tbsps liqueur (rum, whisky, amaretto, white wine)
pinch salt
icing sugar
oil

Method:

Make a dough with the flour, eggs, liqueur and salt. Knead well.
Wrap in a cloth and leave to rest for a little while.
Roll out thinly about 3mm thick and cut into strips at palm length and three fingers wide.
Fry in hot oil turning as soon as lightly coloured.
Remove from pan with slotted spoon and dry on absorbent kitchen paper.
Put icing sugar in a small sieve and shake over the bugie.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY JENNY

2005-02-03T08:28:00.000+01:00

What's it like down there in New Zealand? I suppose you'll be coming into Autumn before long. I hope that one day you'll sit down and make a few comments on the blog.It would be nice to hear about what you're doing over there with your hazelnut trees and the blog wouldn't be so lob-sided.
Do you remember the pink hyacinth I had in my room in Cheam Rd? So fragnant. I've never had such a nice one since. by all accounts though, these look lovely. I hope you enjoy your day and ofcourse MANY HAPPY RETURNS.. Wish I could be there to enjoy the cake and the bubbly or the nice cup of tea you will be drinking with it. Love Julie

JARS AND JARS of ...............

2005-02-02T10:39:00.000+01:00

I like to keep a row of jars on the dresser. These jars of beans are particularly colourful. I have an enormous jar for flour and a special area, on the wall in the kitchen for breakfast things: tea, coffee, cocoa, cereal and lump sugar.

A FEW MOANS

2005-01-31T08:24:00.000+01:00

EVERY MAN IS AN ISLAND.....

Yesterday was Sunday. A crisp sunny day. A deep blue sky.

Up in the country I spent half the morning clearing and burning
dead leaves and dry grass in the orchard
in the company of a rather small but friendly robin.

Then I made up a fire in the grate and cooked lunch over the hot coals.

After clearing up I went to the manure heap, with the wheel barrow,
and spread some of it over the vegetable patch.
It was hard work because it was frozen and I had to break it down.
The earth was hard too so I couldn't work it in.
Perhaps it wasn't the right moment but
what do you do
if the right moment never seems to arrive?
I was also hampered by the behaviour of Gypsy
my Shetland Sheep Dog who
although usually extremely passive, has a thing about wheel barrows
and people coughing and sneezing
and she gave me a few little nips in the backs of my legs.

I then helped the men with the pruning by clearing away all the branches.

Maybe it doesn't sound much but I'm not young. I have rheumatism, I not very agile on rough sloping land and I don't have much experience in farm-type life but I enjoy it and do my best.

When we got back home tired after a day's work there was the evening meal to prepare and the usual tram tram.

If I ever complain, Luciano (my husband) says and keeps saying I never do anything and never have, which takes some living with!

HOUSEHOçD HINTS (sent from Farida)

2005-01-31T08:03:00.000+01:00

Flies or bees bothering you? Spray them with hairspray and they will disintigrate.

Sealed envelope? - Pu it in the freezer for a few hours, then slide a knife under the flap. The envelope can then be resealed.
hmmm...)

For icy doorsteps in freezing temperatures: Pour water with washing liquid in it all over the steps. They won't refreeze.

Blood stains on clothes? Not to worry! Just pour a little peroxide on a cloth and proceed to wipe them off. Work every time!

Spray a bit of perfume on the light bulb in any room to create a lovely light scent in each room when the light is turned on.

Candles will last a lot longer if placed in the freezer for at least 3 hours prior to burning.

To clean artificial flowers, pour some salt into a paper bag and add the flowers. Shake vigorously as the salt will absorb all the dust and dirt and leave your artificial flowers looking like new!

Wrap celery in aluminum foil when putting in the refrigerator and it will keep for weeks.

When boiling corn on the cob, add a pinch of sugar to help bring out the corn's natural sweetness.
To get rid of itch from mosquito bites, try applying soap on the area and you will experience instant relief.

Ants, ants, ants everywhere . Well, they are said too never cross a chalk line. So get your chalk out and draw a line on the floor or wherever ants tend to march.

Use air-freshener to clean mirrors. It does a good job and better still, leaves a lovely smell to the shine.

When you get a splinter, reach for the scotch tape before resorting to tweezers or a needle. Simply put the scotch tape over the splinter, and then pull it off. cello tape removes most splinters painlessly and easily.

2005-01-27T22:34:00.000+01:00

My potato bread
I don't know how many of you have time or enjoy making your own bread. Potato bread is delicious and easy to make, just add some mashed potato to your usual bread mixture. I also sometimes make olive bread and walnut bread in the same way.