Mushroom Hunt!

Mushroom as we all know is a kind of fungus. As such, it trives especially well in Summer together with the rain! The best time to go mushroom picking would be a few days after the rain stops, just enough time for the fungus to sprout from the earth.

We did manage to harvest quite some mushrooms, small ones though whilst the insects already beaten us to the bigger and matured ones.

It was quite an experience for me, a city dweller whose encounter with mushrooms are limited to either that at the supermarket or those grown in farms.

Here, in the wild, we had to literally pick our ways through the forest - brushing through prinkling branches, uneven grounds, sometimes even steep declines just to pick that one golden mushroom 'shimmering' in the faint sunlight. And of course, the eyes must be trained to spot the tiny mushrooms hidden amidst the dead leaves, fallen branches and similarly coloured earth.

At the end of our somewhat satisfatory harvest, we treated ourselves to some Jause, bread and hot drinks. Jause is a typical snack served in higher altitudes and consist mainly of thick slabs of fatty air-dried meat, thinly sliced hams, cheeses and gherkins. In the past, it is a fatty diet, an ideal one in fact for workers dealing with labour-intensive work in the harsh climate at higher altitudes. Now, it is tradition passed down and a form of comfort food which should only be indulged occasionally.

And lastly, a joke we often share whenever the topic of mushrooms crops up:

The last words from a mushroom picker are: "Those...I do not recognise..."

Villacher Kirchtag - Part 02

Umzug, the highlight of the Kirchtag, is a colourful parade of traditional costumes, headdresses, more folks music, bigger-than-normal horses from the breweries and many, many more!

Participating performers came from neighbouring states within Austria as well as from nearby Italy and Slovenia. Hours before the procession, the city center were already dotted with these performers and their colourful costumes transformed the town center into a wonderful display of colours.

Flags representing each state were flying along the bridge across River Drau and spectators were all hyped up, queuing along the street to occupy the best possible spot to witness the grand procession. Airplane with the Kirchtag banner could also be seen circling around town, giving last notices to those still cooped up in the comfort of their own apartments to join in the fun! Meanwhile, tentages in the city center were filled with smoke from the big woks, cooking up a feast to satisfy the constantly hungry crowd. What better ways to show the festivity of the procession than with pictures and videos? :)

Villacher Kirchtag - Part 01

Kirchtag literally translates to Church Day.

It is one of the most celebrated festivities in the small town of Villach where the celebration of traditional music, folk dances, food and beer took place over a duration of 7 days starting end-July.

The little town was livened up with colourful decorations throughout the town centre. A centre stage was erected right infront of the Rathaus where a continuous stream of performers kept the audiences in a constant state of high, game stores kept the children busy, streets were lined with makeshift stores selling sausages, bonbons, pastries, deadly concoction of cocktails in giant wine glasses, roasted pig, grilled chicken, beer, beer and more beer!

It is a common sight to see the locals dressed in the traditional lederhosen for man and dirndl for ladies. An interesting fact I learned about the lederhosen was that while one is wearing it, he is supposed to 'fatten' the pants by smearing animal fat leftovers from the food on the pants. And...the pants are not supposed to be washed, only to be worn over the years! And as with all evolution, young girls also took a liking to the short lederhosen and quite honesty, they look rather stylish in it!

And what is truly unique on this festivity is the kirchtag suppe served with reindling bread. The soup was stewed with 3 or more meat (chicken, pork, mutton etc) in it and every shop has their own secret recipe claiming to be THE traditional recipe. What works for me though would be the additional of mutton in the soup and the taste is akin to Gambing soup! A taste of familiarity in a foreign land ~ Oh la la ~

Run! Sushi Run!

While it's a common sight to see conveyor sushi belts in the all-popular Sakae Sushi restaurant chain littered throughout Singapore, this is still a relatively new concept in Austria.

Thus when I spotted the all-too-familiar sight of the moving sushi belt in the Atrio shopping center in Villach, I was literally running towards it in joy!

But my state of euphoria was shortlived as I furrowed my brows in puzzlement of the objects sitting on the similarly colourful plates. Along came a big slab of watermelon, followed by two golden brown deep-fried balls of something draped in golden syrup, then some cold beansprouts, fried rice, fried duck meat slices served on somemore beansprouts and 1 lonely chocolate cube whizzed past with the ocassional few chunks of aged sushi in between.

I think, the proprietors of Sakae Sushi would be clutching their stomachs, rolling on the floor and guffawing out loud if they were to ever witness such a sight...

Stir-fry Pork Cubes

Stir-fry Pork Cubes

Ingredients:

garlic (finely diced)

pork cubes

light soy sauce

oyster sauce

carrot strips

green peas

corn flour

Method:
(1) Dissolve corn flour in water and set aside

(2) Fry garlic in heated oil

(3) Add pork cubes

(4) Add light soy sauce and oyster sauce to taste

(5) Add carrot strips and green peas

(6) Add corn flour paste

(7) Fry till pork cubes are cooked and serve immediately


Verdict:
(+) This is an easy and nutritious dish to serve with rice.

Happy Potter Must Speak English!

While many of us takes it for granted to watch movies in the original languages in Singapore, this proved to be quite a challenge in Austria!

Almost everything in Austria is dubbed in the national language of German; from the Hollywood movies to even old Bruce Lee movies screening at 3am in the morning. So naturally, it was inevitable that Harry Potter and his gang of two had to converse in German language as well.

It took us a couple of days and many phone calls to the respective cinemas throughout the country before we found one cinema in Graz screening Harry Potter in the brillant language of English!

The journey there took us 3 hours and after collecting the movie tickets and tucking it into the safety of our pockets, we ventured to the city centre for a rewarding dinner.

The venue was a touristy Italian restaurant smacked right in the center of town. The antipasto was free which included a basket of bread with 3 options of spread - olive, tuna-paprika paste and olive oil. Personally, I'm still not quite accustomed to dipping bread in olive oil.

In addition to the bread antipasto, there was also a small portion of cold squid which I found to be quite unappetising. The squid tasted as if it was dead for many days and has since been soaked in the same sauce till it was served 5 minutes ago.

The main course proved to be more appealing, with the squid ink black pasta served with fresh seafood in just the right portion and another teller which resembles giant raviolis drapped with a light cream sauce.

Being the second largest city in Austria after Vienna, the city seems more alive in the evening and there was also a lined-up of programmes in Summer. For this particular evening, an outdoor theatre was setup with free seatings and a roll-cart selling snack and drinks of all sorts were there as well to satisfy the itching mouths.

Road Trip - Mainau, Germany

Early next morning, we set off for the "Flower Island" of Mainau situated on Bodensee, in South Germany. The drive there was extremely scenic - with the rolling green hills, blue skies, white clouds and the tranquil lakes.



The island is only accessible by ferry and it was an interesting experience for me to be in a car, boarding the big ship. The journey took merely 30 minutes and soon, we were queuing up at the ticketing counter of the island's main entrance. No car is allowed on the island and has to be parked at the big car park before the main entrance.

In the lake, just next to a bridge leading to the island lies a very prominent Christian Cross. It is known as the "Schwedenkreuz" which literally translates to "Swedish Cross". And why is this cross found in the middle of nowhere? Well, as history has it, Mainau came under the rule of the Swedish following a defeat in the Thirty Years war. However, the occupation ended a few months later with the Swedish taking with them all valuables during the withdrawal from the island. And for some unknown reason, this cross was carried halfway but eventually left behind.


Once across the bridge, a giant smiley face greeted all tourists and began what is to be a neatly pedicured tour around the flower island.


A small plot of land is allocated to small animals; the likes of ponies and goats where children can interact with. And what was interesting for me were the goats...they are pretty smart to begin with. :)

Outside some small shops, I noticed candies for sale which were contained in semi-circular plastic domes with openings for the placement of scoops. And in almost all of the domes, wasps were clearly having an enjoyable time licking up the sugar. I wonder if anybody buys the candies after seeing such a sight?


By early afternoon, we ended the tour around the small island with a rewarding lunch at one of the touristy restaurants beside a small castle. Interestingly, the Swedish meatballs usually served at Ikea were also available here!

Cream Pumpkin Soup

Grilled Chicken Steak with Rice

Swedish Meatballs with Lingoberry Jam!

Cake Teller - which was included in the set lunch