Quirky things

When I was overseas, I saw a few quirky things. Quirky things were not limited to any particular country-they were everywhere. My favourite quirky thing was the potato offerings left at the grave of Frederick the Great at Sansoucci Palace in Potsdam. He introduced the potato into Germany and people are still thanking him.

This is the refreshments trolley on the Bernina Express train in Switzerland. Enough said.

The Swiss just love their mountain goats. Here are a couple more:

This is a bucherwald or book forest in suburban Prenzlauerberg, Berlin. People put books they no longer want into the bookcase and you can take them home to read.

Street art of the random blue plaque variety in East London.

Alfred Hitchcock's head at the Gainsborough Studios (now apartments) in Shoreditch, East London.  It's big.

And last, but not least, life size plastic corgis sporting blue balloons in the Selfridge's window to celebrate the birth of Prince George.  I wanted to take one home with me.

Market Colours

I haven't dropped off the face of the earth.  I have just got back after six weeks in Europe, and the weeks leading up to it were crazy busy, hence no recent posts.  However, I am feeling refreshed and inspired and have a few posts in the germination stage.  A few holiday snaps to start with, to get back into the swing of things.

I was in London for nearly two weeks, and spent four weeks in Switzerland, Austria and Berlin.  The food, oh the food.  Beautiful fresh produce, amazing cakes and pastries, and the best chocolate I have ever eaten. I loved the ritual of having coffee and cake in the afternoon, always served with a glass of water in Austria, a tradition which goes back to the old coffee houses of yore.  Strudel in Austria is served with creme anglaise and cream, which was such an indulgent joy.

Cake buffet, Roseg valley (near St Moritz), Switzerland

And then there was the icecream, of which I ate copious amounts. Haselnuss was my favourite flavour in all the countries I visited, but I do need to make special mention of the honey and ginger icecream I had in the Cotswolds.

It was also berry season while I was away, and I took full advantage of that, particularly raspberries which are such a luxury in Perth. In Berlin, there were strawberry huts dotted around the place selling baskets of strawberries. There was one near my hotel, and every day I would get wafts of strawberry as I walked to and from my u-bahn stop.

Strawberry hut, Berlin

I also visited a lot of markets, which were full of colour and atmosphere.

Umbrellas, Borough Market, London

My local supermarket seems so clinical and soul-less after what I experienced overseas.  More markets are popping up in Perth, which is great, but we will never be a city where people do their weekly shop at a market. We like good parking and air-conditioning too much.  Here are some of my favourite market snaps:

Strawberries, Lucerne

Raspberries, Lucerne

Sunflowers, Lucerne

Fruit loaf I don't know the name of, Salzburg

Mushrooms, Naschmarkt, Vienna

Summer fruit, Naschmarkt, Vienna

Rustic bread, Brixton Market, London

Despite the six week food frenzy, I was walking for nearly eight hours a day so there have been no long lasting effects that require drastic low-carb action, thank goodness!