Diesel Gala in Swanage

I like trains.  In the train world that comes across as a bit strange but I find them fascinating.  I think because I love machines.  I love steam trains and my husband is into D & Es.  So a year ago this weekend we headed to Swanage to see my in-laws and to attend the Diesel Gala.  It is happening again this weekend and I hope it is as successful as it was last year as it was a lot of fun.  Swanage Diesel Gala.

The weather was perfect and they had a wonderful beer festival at Harmon’s Cross so there was a great festive feel to the whole weekend.  In Swanage there is a great spot on the bridge to take pictures of all the action coming and going.

The next day was gorgeous so we hiked to Corfe Castle and saw the trains rumble past.

And of course we had to stop at Harmon’s Cross to sample the local beers and ciders.

And lucky for me they still kept the steam trains running.    They had a bit of fun and added the D to the number for the occasion.

Personally, I like to be where all the fun is so I grab a footplate ride when I can.  My FIL is the driver on this trip.    It’s the best seat in the house!

They have the steam gala in September and some day I hope to go to that one.  That would be amazing.

Abbotsbury and their swans…

Awhile ago My Beautiful Things posted a picture of a swan which reminded me of our trip last year.  While they are beautiful creatures I have a bit of a mixed history with them.  My Grandparents lived in Fairford back in the 70′s and we were visiting one time when I was 3 or 4.  They had swans down by the river and I got a little too close.  At the time they were bigger than me so when one of them warned me off it was a bit scary!   I’m bigger now so it’s not a problem. 

Last May my husband and I visited Abbotsbury Swannery in Dorset.  A wonderful sanctuary for swans.  These are not owned by the queen!  Neither do they have their wings clipped.  They do wear leg rings so the swannery knows which swans belong and which don’t.  We were lucky to go about the time the eggs were hatching.  The little signets are adorable.  People need to be careful walking about as the swans can put their nests anywhere including the pathways.

Apparently swans will mate for life.  Unless there is a divorce.  Interestingly enough they are similar to humans in this way. 

They were just fluffy bundles of cuteness.  Sometimes the parents can’t care for them or there are too many to care for so Abbotsbury has adoption programs where they have other swans look after them.  Also, swans imprint on the parents voices and as it is a small area they can’t always imprint given the thousands of voices so that family may be isolated until the imprinting is complete.

Thank goodness for a zoom lens and a nest near the pathway. 

There were still many eggs to hatch.  Both parents take turns keeping the eggs warm.

Notice the interloper?  Yes, black swans are not native to the UK, they are Australian.  Once in a while one shows up and stays for bit.  Usually from somewhere local and they got loose.  If they don’t cause any issues they are ok, however, they get evicted if they are a problem child.

This swan came out of nowhere to defend his lady’s honour.  There was a cad bothering her and her babes doing the “Hey, you come here often” bit that is so popular with the ladies.  The flying bugs in this area were horrible!  It was like bug season here stateside.  You don’t see screens on the windows in the UK as it usually isn’t a problem but here there were clouds of them!

Swans are graceful looking when they are sitting or flying.  Walking, landing, or trying to take off is a whole other story!  They “crash” land more than anything else while just avoiding faceplanting in the water. 

Couple of times a day it is feeding time.  They know which side their bread is buttered on!  They love it and it was great to watch.

This guy thought a few of us were close enough, thank you very much.  We were about 10 feet away but he gave us a lovely show.

Another beautiful family.

Every once in awhile we’d catch a glimpse of some pheasant.  I hope next year to take our kids to see this place.  It’s fascinating.

Texas Renfest 2012

It all started with a corset.  And I found myself camping in 36F weather.  What happened?!?

Back in 2011 we were visiting our friends in Austin. They are huge Renfest fans and love to dress up in medieval costumes and camp to boot.  They also sew their costumes and one of our friends made this beautiful corset but it was too small for her and as it fit me she gave it to me.  Hence, the now you have to wear it and come along.    So we picked a weekend to go back down this past November.  The weekend we picked was the Highland Games weekend.  Though funnily enough we didn’t see any Highland games.  But there was a lot to see!

We drove to the outside of Houston to set up camp.  Now I’m not a camper in the best of times.  I like plumbing and comfort.  As they want us to do this again we got quite the set up!

Air mattress, electric blanket.  Though I  have to say at 36F it was still really cold.  We figured out on the next night to put the pillows under the blanket to warm them up as it was a bit of a shock putting our heads on the cold pillows.

My favourite part of camping would be the camp fire.

As most of you who camp know you have to be creative with cooking so we “toasted” our bagels in a skillet. 

Once we got ready it was time to head into the Renfest.  We started off the day watching people compete in the dancing contest.  It was a sight to see….as no one knew how to do the dance.  LOL  And unfortunately one guy took to heart the idea that there should be nothing under the kilt.  Wrong, wrong, wrong.

We had fun with the food and drink.  The turkey legs were tasty but a bit much.  I gave it my best try.  My husband went another route with chicken on a stick with hot peppers.

Our friends provided the tartans.  I was hoping to find a store that I could get my clan pins for my bag.  No such luck.  Ah well.  I’ll plan a bit better next time.  Our friend also made the flower wreath I wore for the weekend.  She has some really good sewing skills, I have to say.

The Renfest had loads of shows we could check out.  Most of them bawdy.    This guy had a fabulous whip show.  The flames were quite something.  He also did a night show that was impressive.

We also got to listen to bagpipes.  I absolutely love bagpipes.  Just an amazing sound.  And these guys were as good on their instruments as they were bad at the Scottish accents.    So we had some incredible music.  And I’m a huge fan of drums as well so this was great.

And here is the corset that started the whole saga. 

We really enjoyed ourselves.  It was great letting our hair down a bit and just enjoying the sights.  We would definitely do it again but here’s to warmer nights! 

The Salt Lick in Texas

The company my husband works for has offices in Austin and we have friends there.  We went down in November to go to the Renfest (another post to come ) and a must stop is going to the Salt Lick outside of Austin.  Amazing BBQ! 

I’m talking finger licking good BBQ.    It’s a casual, cash based place with rustic picnic tables.  There are two main buildings and if you don’t time it right there is a very long wait.

The pit where all the flavours happen.

I would be remiss in not having some pecan pie for dessert.  Well, I ordered some for takeaway as there is a limit on what I can eat in one sitting. 

The best bit I think is part of the group of friends includes a lovely lady who is a wine importer.  As this place is a BYOB, she comes with a great selection of wines and glasses.  It’s all very civilized.  It’s funny how many people stop at our table to say they should have thought of that.  Salt Lick has started provided some wines from their winery but you have to buy the bottles from that and then have it at your table.

Of course when the food comes it gets a little quieter round the table.  I’m not a fan of coleslaw or beans so I just ask for the potatoes.  I always forget the double the potatoes!  Way too much.  We also get the BBQ sauces to bring home with us and the dry rub.  Yummy. 

Tuscany

In a recent post I mentioned going to Italy on our honeymoon and enjoying a private cooking lesson.  The place we had a cooking lesson was at Cassafrassi just north of Sienna.  The rooms were clean and basic but the view and the wine were out of this world.  A type of wine you can get over there is a Super Tuscan and that blend is by far my favourite.  We occasionally find it stateside but it’s not easy.

As soon as we arrived they asked if we would like a wine tasting and an olive oil tasting.  They had three wines and one olive oil.  We started off with a basic Chianti that the local farmers would have with their lunch.  It was inexpensive and went well with bread and cheese.  The next wine was a Chianti Classico and was lovely.  The gentleman pouring the wine said the first wine was good for hard work, the second for eating with, then he introduced the Super Tuscan and said this was for meditating with.  Oh my!  It was smooth and delicious.  Then we tried the olive oil.  It was interesting as I don’t normally have olive oil straight!  I can’t say I would rush out and do it again but it was good to do so I knew what I was putting in my food.

We then asked if it was ok to walk around with a glass of wine.  But of course!  My kind of place.  So we each got a glass of the Super Tuscan and I grabbed my camera for our walkabout.  This place has plenty of grapes and olive groves to wander through.

During the day looking out at this view it felt like it’s been this way for hundreds of years.  Only at night when the lights come on do you get a feel for any modernization.  Just to the left of where we were standing is a home for the caretaker.  At the time it was a couple from London who came to oversee the vineyard and grove.  To be able to wake up to this every morning!

The olive harvest would have happened a few weeks after we were there.

The grape harvest was complete at this time but the vines were still beautiful.

We live in New England and I wish rosemary was a perennial here.  So I was a little envious of all the rosemary we came across.

If we magically win the lottery we would love to buy a place like this.  It was amazing.