tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-255646252024-03-13T18:44:04.915+00:00Torwen's Blogtorwenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04212683985774416002noreply@blogger.comBlogger364125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25564625.post-64967543074784410422013-12-03T23:09:00.001+00:002013-12-03T23:22:38.968+00:00Sqash goes well with cranberries I had a bit of butternut squash left in the fridge and today I used up in this nice and spicy tagine:<br />
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The recipe was taken from the <a href="http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/146608/pumpkin-cranberry-and-red-onion-tagine" target="_blank">BBC Good Food</a> webpage (pumpkin, cranberry & red onion tagine) with minor adjustments. As I said, I used butternut squash instead of pumpkin and agave syrup instead of honey. I also didn't have harissa paste in the house, so I used some red Thai curry paste :)</div>
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A very yummy result. </div>
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The BBC webpage really has a nice collection of recipes, well worth browsing through them on a rainy day. You might for example want to look through their <a href="http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/collection/vegan-christmas" target="_blank">vegan Christmas recipes</a> :)<br /> It's a pity they do not publish the BBC Vegetarian Food magazine anymore. I absolutely adored that magazine :) but then the online option is not bad either.</div>
torwenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04212683985774416002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25564625.post-91250800613001558642013-12-03T00:22:00.000+00:002013-12-03T00:38:47.083+00:00Birthday Joys<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Yesterday I had a day full of surprises. The kids planned the day for me, and it started nicely with a pumpkin pie (slightly deformed, since their pie shell was way to big for their pie), full of spices and love. C and L made their first pumpkin pie ever, and without any tools for baking this must have been a really difficult enterprise. But they managed to make a nice smiling face on top of it :D</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">I really liked the filling which was rich in spices and had even a chocolatly touch :) and who judges by looks, certainly not me.</span></div>
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Then we headed towards Frankfurt and went straight to the Old Opera House. <br />
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Here you can see some Christmas decoration in front of the Opera:<br />
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and this is the building itself:</div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">I then had the pleasure of being treated to a </span><a href="https://www.alteoper.de/de/programm/veranstaltung.php?id=512252658" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: inherit;">piano concerto</span></a><span style="font-family: inherit;"> by four students of Lev Natochenny. The just 17 year old </span><span style="color: #333333;"><a href="http://www.natochenny.com/?lang=en&cat=5&scat=1016" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Nuron Mukumiy</span></a><span style="font-family: inherit;"> was outstanding. I hope I will have the chance to hear him again.<br />The small Mozart hall was quite plain, but the grand piano was beautiful :)</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">After the concert we had dinner at a vegetarian </span><a href="http://www.happycow.net/reviews/saravanaa-bhavan-frankfurt-43065" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Indian restaurant</span></a><span style="font-family: inherit;"> and I received the next sweet surprise. P and B donned their apron and made some vegan </span><a href="http://www.simonscat.com/" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Simon's-cat</span></a><span style="font-family: inherit;"> cookies for me :D</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Thank you all for preparing such a wonderful day! I utterly enjoyed it :D</span></div>
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torwenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04212683985774416002noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25564625.post-80570169755343779762013-11-25T22:24:00.001+00:002013-12-03T01:48:07.251+00:00Savoury Sweet Potato Pie<div style="text-align: justify;">
The first snowflakes officially herald the advent of oven-baked food in our home, like this sweet potato pie:</div>
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The recipe is based on one which I posted here a while ago as <a href="http://torwen.blogspot.com/2011/07/potato-mash-quiche.html">potato-mash quiche.</a> This time I used a 1-2 shortcrust pastry (1 part non-hydrogenated margarine, 2 parts flour and of course some salt, turmeric and ice-water) and the filling base consisted of half sweet potatoes and half floury normal potatoes. The added vegetables were golden ball turnips, carrots and pointed cabbage. Add some chili flakes for extra spice and enjoy :)</div>
torwenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04212683985774416002noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25564625.post-12825047333970971322013-11-24T21:31:00.002+00:002013-11-24T21:31:25.100+00:00Christmas time is drawing closeToday the <a href="http://www.huben.de/index.php?function=cms_show&id=103">garden nursery</a> Huben in Ladenburg, not far from our home, held a pre-Advent event. Mainly to sell their wreaths and other deco for the Christmas tides. We didn't expect the crowd that was there, they had to set up people to control the parking and their even was a doorman who made people wait at the entrance of the glasshouse where the main exhibition was held. Thus, long queues were waiting patiently in front of it.<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-dTwm3mRfsc8/UpJrB4RhTuI/AAAAAAAAEZ0/M0JkGelu9gg/s1600/Huben+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="318" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-dTwm3mRfsc8/UpJrB4RhTuI/AAAAAAAAEZ0/M0JkGelu9gg/s400/Huben+1.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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For the children there was a roundabout and some, unimpressed by all the people, sheep wagging their tails at us.</div>
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Outside you could have a look at their ponds, morbid and beautiful with fallen leaves, instead of rustling on the soil, now rotting slowly on top of the pool floor.</div>
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They also have a Zen garden which was quite nice, albeit a bit too much of an Asian mix :)</div>
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One of the most visited sites were of course the mulled wine and 'Bratwurst' (sausage) stands. Obviously the favourite Advent food for Germans.</div>
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At some point we fled the crowded nursery and headed for a more quiet place, the Roman villa in Hirschberg:</div>
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This is the little byway to the little temple they had on their estate:</div>
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It got quite late or rather it is getting dark quite early, anyway, on our way back we saw the first public Christmas decoration in Schriesheim. It's not even the first Sunday of Advent! Still, it had a nice and cozy ambiance :) and gave, together with some tapas in our Kaffeehaus, a nice finishing touch to the day :D</div>
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torwenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04212683985774416002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25564625.post-37598825779549915032013-10-31T17:50:00.000+00:002013-10-31T18:49:47.317+00:00Happy Halloween 2013What better to read on Hallow's Eve than a story about the dead or rather the dead who came to life again. Yes, I'm talking about <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frankenstein">Frankenstein</a>. But not Mary Shelley's novel is what I read, but the play based on her novel and adapted for the stage: <a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/Frankenstein-based-novel-Mary-Shelley/dp/0571277217">Nick Dear's Frankenstein</a> (2011).<br />
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I saw the play at the <a href="http://ntlive.nationaltheatre.org.uk/productions/16546-frankenstein">National Theatre</a> in London in 2011 - no, not with Benedict Cumberbatch, he was ill that day, but with an equally superb cast. That's when I bought the book and really enjoyed it. So I read it again (a mere 80 pages, perfect for this special evening). Maybe you want to read it for next year's Halloween. And, just maybe the National Theatre will have their DVD released by then, by all means watch that, too :)<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://electrastreet.net/2012/08/frankenstein-at-the-movies/">http://electrastreet.net/2012/08/frankenstein-at-the-movies/</a></td></tr>
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torwenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04212683985774416002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25564625.post-7942073633016096622013-10-28T23:06:00.000+00:002013-10-28T23:06:37.059+00:00Weekly Photo Challenge: HorizonSometimes the horizon seems a bit hazy<br />
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and at other times your path seems crystal clear <br />
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I'm reaching out to new horizons</div>
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... and am back blogging :D</div>
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Inspired by the <a href="http://dailypost.wordpress.com/">Daily Post</a>'s <a href="http://dailypost.wordpress.com/category/photo-challenges/">weekly photo challenge</a></div>
torwenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04212683985774416002noreply@blogger.com0London, Vereinigtes Königreich51.511213899999987 -0.1198243999999704151.195100899999986 -0.7652713999999704 51.827326899999989 0.52562260000002958tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25564625.post-62753257033569779852012-12-06T00:10:00.002+00:002012-12-06T00:10:59.994+00:00Christmas Market in KarlsruheSome impressions from the Christmas Market in Karlsruhe (Christkindlesmarkt):<br />
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The ice rink:</div>
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The big Christmas windmill near the shopping centre:<br />
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Christmas stars:</div>
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Loads of people drinking mulled wine:<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-mKfS3LpLYlA/UL_gqMlYNJI/AAAAAAAAEVE/mQUQwvDQJZw/s1600/ka4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-mKfS3LpLYlA/UL_gqMlYNJI/AAAAAAAAEVE/mQUQwvDQJZw/s400/ka4.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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And my friend T brought me a birthday gift: vegan cookies and look closely at that cookie cutter! Yup it's a camel :))</div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-e_8X8LPG8-I/UL_gtnRjWmI/AAAAAAAAEVM/tVqjiPe7KNI/s1600/ka5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="321" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-e_8X8LPG8-I/UL_gtnRjWmI/AAAAAAAAEVM/tVqjiPe7KNI/s400/ka5.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
torwenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04212683985774416002noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25564625.post-57753512062410030132012-11-28T23:53:00.001+00:002012-11-28T23:55:07.079+00:00Exhibition in Frankfurt: Queens of the Merovingians Last week I was in Frankfurt to see the Exhibition about the <a href="http://www.archaeologisches-museum.frankfurt.de/english/temporary/temporary.html">Queens of the Merovingians</a>. To not bore you too much, I will put information about the exhibition on my archaeology blog here.<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-vUr0fCkw1qE/ULaV5BOMgqI/AAAAAAAAER4/KrCRfS1yKqM/s1600/fra+alle.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-vUr0fCkw1qE/ULaV5BOMgqI/AAAAAAAAER4/KrCRfS1yKqM/s400/fra+alle.jpg" width="232" /></a></div>
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The museum itself is quite nicely placed in the old Carmelite cloister and <em>lapidarium</em>. An additional extension from the 1980s adds space for administrational and functional areas.</div>
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I didn't have time to explore Frankfurt in depth but what I saw from walking from the train station to the museum was not exactly overwhelming; even the cathedral was very plain and unimpressive.</div>
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This is the Ratskeller, a restaurant within the 'Römer' (name for the city hall):</div>
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Frankfurt cathedral, reconstructed in the 1950s after it had been almost completely been destroyed during WWII:</div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-YUd5wfFzLos/ULaakoIEphI/AAAAAAAAETA/I9mvTuPCVxY/s1600/fra6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-YUd5wfFzLos/ULaakoIEphI/AAAAAAAAETA/I9mvTuPCVxY/s400/fra6.jpg" width="267" /></a></div>
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The most precious relic of the cathedral is the skullcap of the apostle <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bartholomew_the_Apostle">Bartholomew</a>. The Bartholomew relief by <a href="http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hans_Mettel">Hans Mettel</a> from 1957 on the northern wall of the cathedral probably depicts the flayed apostle:</div>
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A stained glass window in the cathedral:</div>
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A Gothic tomb slab, now set into the wall of the cathedral, showing the mayor of Frankfurt, <a href="http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Johann_von_Holzhausen">John of Holzhausen</a> († 1393) and his wife Guda Goldsteyn († 1371):</div>
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torwenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04212683985774416002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25564625.post-31999910984953381642012-11-10T00:57:00.000+00:002012-11-10T13:03:20.273+00:00Funny ads for the exhibition ‘World of the Celts’ in Stuttgart<div style="text-align: justify;">
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The state museum of archaeology in Stuttgart is showing a special exhibition ‘T<a href="http://www.kelten-stuttgart.de/en/">he World of the Celts</a>‘. You can go and see it until 17th of February next year.</div>
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On this occasion they published some funny videos. Although the Celtic warriors appear a tad too barbaric, the videos are quite some eye-catchers <img alt=":)" class="wp-smiley" scale="0" src="http://s0.wp.com/wp-includes/images/smilies/icon_smile.gif?m=1129645325g" /> <br />
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<em>Noch bis zum 17.02.2013 ist in Stuttgart die Ausstellung ‘</em><a href="http://www.kelten-stuttgart.de/"><em>Die Welt der Kelten</em></a><em>” zu sehen.</em></div>
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<em>Dazu wurden vom Landesmuseum einige witzige Videos gedreht. Auch wenn die armen keltischen Krieger dabei ein bißchen zu barbarisch abgeschnitten haben, ein Hingucker ist es allemal :)</em><br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="344" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/videoseries?list=PL5FE01C4EDF0A974A&hl=en_GB" width="425"></iframe><br /></div>
torwenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04212683985774416002noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25564625.post-5866303004841768522012-11-05T18:46:00.000+00:002012-11-05T22:04:30.752+00:00Squash Ragout with potato-dumplingsAfter yesterdays<a href="http://torwen.blogspot.de/2012/11/early-ukiyo-e-master-in.html" target="_blank"> ukiyo-e exhibition</a> we were quite hungry and it was time to feed the lions (well only two of them, but they were hungry for three).<br />
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I had planned to test a recipe from a German so-called <em>vegetarian</em> magazine 'Vegetarisch Fit' (they publicise<a href="http://www.vegsoc.org/saycheese#" target="_blank"> Parmesan which, in Europe is <strong>never ever</strong> vegetarian</a> and other non-vegetarian cheeses - dumb people in the editorial department, I guess), but it contained so much half raw egg yolks (and raisins, imagine: raisins! I hate raisins!) that all I used were the main ingredients, i.e. squash, oyster mushrooms, and green onions.<br />
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Here is my recipe including a mobile cam pic (I know hideous, isn't it):<br />
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<strong>Squash Ragout with potato-dumplings</strong><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;">serves 3 persons</span><br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-I1fIt82lePU/UJgDz7986wI/AAAAAAAAEQ8/Q3KKeq77L2w/s1600/K%C3%BCrbisragout.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-I1fIt82lePU/UJgDz7986wI/AAAAAAAAEQ8/Q3KKeq77L2w/s400/K%C3%BCrbisragout.jpg" width="282" /></a></div>
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<strong>Ingredients:</strong><br />
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<strong>for the ragout</strong><br />
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600 g squash (I used half butternut and half Hokkaido squash)<br />
200 g oyster mushrooms<br />
1 bunch green onions<br />
2 cloves of garlic<br />
2 sprigs rosemary<br />
olive oil<br />
400 ml vegetable broth<br />
2 tablespoons grainy mustard (whole-grain mustard)<br />
100 ml soy creme<br />
salt, pepper, paprika<br />
parsley<br />
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<strong>for the dumplings</strong><br />
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potato dough, half&half (either <a href="http://www.brunofischer.de/brunofischer/produkte/kartoffelprodukte/kartoffel_knoedel.php" target="_blank">store-bought</a> or <a href="http://www.wunderkessel.de/forum/beilagen-vegetarisch-vegan/75805-kartoffelkloesse-halb-halb.html" target="_blank">self made</a>)<br />
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<strong>What to do</strong><br />
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<strong>for the dumplings:</strong><br />
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Prepare the dumplings according to your package or the according recipe in a large pot of boiling and salted water. Once they appear on the surface they are ready (ca. 20 min). If your timing was perfect add them to the ragout instantly, otherwise keep them warm in the oven till your ragout is finished.<br />
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<strong>for the ragout:</strong><br />
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<li>Peel and cut the squash into cubes (about 2-3 cm)</li>
<li>Clean the oyster mushrooms, remove tough stems and cut them about three times across</li>
<li>Clean and wash the green onions and cut into large pieces.</li>
<li>Mince garlic and rosemary needles.</li>
<li>Heat the oil in a large pan and fry garlic and rosemary (smells lovely, doesn't it?)</li>
<li>Add the prepared vegetables and sauté for a couple of minutes.</li>
<li>Then add the vegetable broth, season with salt, pepper, and paprika and let simmer for about 15minutes.</li>
<li>Add the grainy mustard and soy creme, and check your seasoning.</li>
<li>Add the prepared dumplings and sprinkle with parsley.</li>
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torwenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04212683985774416002noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25564625.post-6588370729053948292012-11-05T17:47:00.001+00:002012-11-05T20:58:20.097+00:00'Early Ukiyo-e Masters' in the Völkerkundemuseum in Heidelberg<div style="text-align: justify;">
<a href="http://www.voelkerkundemuseum-vpst.de/ausstellungen.htm" target="_blank">'Early Ukiyo-e Master'</a> is an exhibition still running at the <a href="http://www.voelkerkundemuseum-vpst.de/index.htm" target="_blank">Völkerkunde Museum</a> (ethnology museum) in Heidelberg. Since it was raining all day I thought it would be a nice alternative program for a sunday afternoon. </div>
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<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ukiyo-e" target="_blank">Ukiyo-e</a> is a genre of Japanese woodblock prints; the name means 'pictures of the floating world'. A sixteen-foot long scroll from 868 AD is believed to be the oldest dated woodblock printing still in existence. The British Museum currently houses the scroll which was discovered in the early 20th century. </div>
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The exhibition in Heidelberg started with some early monochromatic woodblock prints from the first half of the 17th century. Unfortunately photography wasn't allowed and the ukiyo-e of the Heidelberg Collection are nowhere to find in the world wide web, some non-Heidelberg prints will have to do.</div>
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The first is an early monochromatic print (sumizuri-e) from an anonymous artist, c. 1625</div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-_KFwwNnI1LM/UJfuBWtvEpI/AAAAAAAAENU/lEbqBi5TS_s/s1600/Early-woodblock-print-book-illustration.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-_KFwwNnI1LM/UJfuBWtvEpI/AAAAAAAAENU/lEbqBi5TS_s/s400/Early-woodblock-print-book-illustration.jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/65/Early-woodblock-print-book-illustration.jpg" target="_blank">wikipedia.commons</a><br />
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They soon began to add paint by hand (benizuri-e): <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-MrPQHAM6Tcc/UJfwsL-_ojI/AAAAAAAAEOM/gmRA_B6t8Sk/s1600/benizuri-e.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-MrPQHAM6Tcc/UJfwsL-_ojI/AAAAAAAAEOM/gmRA_B6t8Sk/s400/benizuri-e.jpg" width="206" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Young girl as a komuso amid chrysanthemums, early 18th century<br />
(c) <a href="http://www.britishmuseum.org/system_pages/beta_collection_introduction/beta_collection_object_details.aspx?objectId=784525&partId=1&searchText=benizuri-e&numpages=52&page=1" target="_blank">British Museum</a> (1924,0514,0.1)<br />
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And from here it was only a small step to make the first multiple-block print with a different colour for each block (nishiki-e), using three to four colours. The first full colour print was made by <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suzuki_Harunobu" target="_blank">Suzuki Harunobu</a> in 1765.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-l-Cu86sbGcI/UJfxeV9Mc4I/AAAAAAAAEOU/FWM-wR7Q9sc/s1600/nishiki-e.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="272" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-l-Cu86sbGcI/UJfxeV9Mc4I/AAAAAAAAEOU/FWM-wR7Q9sc/s400/nishiki-e.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Autumn Moon at Ishiyama, 1854<br />
(c) <a href="http://educators.mfa.org/objects/detail/269905?related_people_text=Utagawa+Fusatane" target="_blank">Museum of Fine Arts, Boston</a> (49.1226)<br />
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There were also beautiful prints of Kabuki actors like Ichikawa Ebizou II. Here is a benzuri-e similar to the one in the exhibition:<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/--dRr3BuSA1I/UJf2Y0NYgLI/AAAAAAAAEPM/hWvvXJWShDQ/s1600/ichikawa.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/--dRr3BuSA1I/UJf2Y0NYgLI/AAAAAAAAEPM/hWvvXJWShDQ/s400/ichikawa.jpg" width="290" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Kabuki actor Ichikawa Ebizô II as Kagekiyo by Torii Kiyomasu II (benizuri-e, 1752)<br />
(c) <a href="http://educators.mfa.org/objects/detail/136221?keyword=Torii+Kiyomasu+II&curGallery=0&sort=artist&culture=&classification=&page=6" target="_blank">Museum of Fine Arts, Boston</a> (47.231)<br />
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Equally beautiful and obviously more precious (because they were behind glass) were some urushi-e which have nothing to do with urushi lacquer. In an urushi-e the ink was thickened with glue to embolden the image:</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Okumura Toshinobu, 'Young Lovers by Mount Fuji', About 1720<br />
<a href="http://www.google.de/imgres?hl=en&rls=com.microsoft:en-GB:IE-Address&rlz=1I7GGHP_deDE429&biw=1204&bih=652&tbm=isch&tbnid=TgFNUIE2O3C4FM:&imgrefurl=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Urushie.jpg&docid=LU-Cv-9HzfaMQM&imgurl=http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/5/52/Urushie.jpg&w=263&h=519&ei=-_eXUJrdIIbKsgaf_oDIBA&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=657&vpy=96&dur=1332&hovh=316&hovw=160&tx=85&ty=208&sig=106535937867849172740&page=1&tbnh=154&tbnw=80&start=0&ndsp=24&ved=1t:429,r:4,s:0,i:78" target="_blank">wikipedia 'urushi-e'</a></td></tr>
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By now you are probably as hungry as we were; so we went home and had a delicious <a href="http://torwen.blogspot.de/2012/11/sqash-ragout-with-potato-dumplings.html" target="_blank">squash ragout</a> :)</div>
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To end a fine day we watched a movie, called <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1393746/" target="_blank">'Aftershock'</a>. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://lifeisreallybeautiful.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/09/Aftershock-poster.jpg">http://lifeisreallybeautiful.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/09/Aftershock-poster.jpg</a></td></tr>
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It was filmed after a novel with the same title, written by <a href="http://english.cri.cn/7146/2009/07/29/1901s504964.htm" target="_blank">Zhang Ling</a>, a Chinese expat living in Canada and tells the story of the great earthquake in Tangshan in 1976. It did not so much concentrate on the earthquake itself than rather how it affected a family, ripped apart and suffering from the post-traumatic experiences they had to go through. Very touching stories. <strike>When</strike> If I can read actual Chinese, I will read this book for sure :))</div>
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torwenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04212683985774416002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25564625.post-73845513732084147292012-11-01T22:11:00.002+00:002012-11-05T21:01:05.101+00:00Roasted Butternut Squash Soup<div style="text-align: justify;">
Today was kind of a strange day. We are living in the state of Baden-Wuerttemberg (now can you pronounce this one *grin*), in a part that borders to another state of Germany. And today I had a holiday and M, who works only 20 km away (but in Hesse) had to go to work. No holiday and no free time for him. Bad for him but good for me :)</div>
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So I used my time to tend to my slipped disc (basically meaning, I slept long), made a brownie cake for M's birthday and also this wonderfully rich and smoky butternut squash soup which I will gladly share with you, since, although it might look like an ordinary sqash soup, is far from it.<br />
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And since it is nearly week-end, it is also time for souper sundays, my favourite food event. It is hosted by Deb from <a href="http://kahakaikitchen.blogspot.com/p/souper-sundays.html" target="_blank">Kahakai Kitchen</a> directly from paradise (i.e. Hawaii - that alone would make it my favourite event, but there are also lots of yummy soups and salads). Although I only infrequently pop in, (after all I'm not a food blog) you should seriously go and have a look at the <a href="http://kahakaikitchen.blogspot.de/" target="_blank">round-ups</a>. Lots of new ideas (not only) for soups. With winter coming, lots of hot soups are needed to survive the cold :)<br />
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<a href="http://i273.photobucket.com/albums/jj214/girlichef/misc%20blog%20badges/Souper_Sundays2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://i273.photobucket.com/albums/jj214/girlichef/misc%20blog%20badges/Souper_Sundays2.jpg" /></a></div>
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<strong>Roasted Butternut Squash Soup</strong><br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Yr6G9GB6LaM/UJLxT6jbatI/AAAAAAAAEMM/f3eCReW7sLE/s1600/soup3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="298" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Yr6G9GB6LaM/UJLxT6jbatI/AAAAAAAAEMM/f3eCReW7sLE/s400/soup3.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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These are the ingredients you will need (the olive oil escaped the photo):<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-8EdhMQinBYs/UJLtCM-Z11I/AAAAAAAAEL8/ilt3i7S7hCY/s1600/soup1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="330" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-8EdhMQinBYs/UJLtCM-Z11I/AAAAAAAAEL8/ilt3i7S7hCY/s400/soup1.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<strong>Ingredients:</strong></div>
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750 g butternut squash</div>
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fresh rosmary</div>
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1 onion</div>
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1 clove of garlic</div>
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1 litre vegetable stock</div>
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5 carrots</div>
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1 starchy potato</div>
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olive oil</div>
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1 teaspoon smoked paprika</div>
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salt, freshly ground pepper</div>
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soy creme</div>
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<strong>What do do:</strong></div>
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Half the squash, peel, and scoop out seeds. Cut in slices and put on a baking tray with the rosmary needles and splash with olive oil. Bake for about 20 min at 180°C until the squash turns brownish at the corners.</div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pUdeVksSAOg/UJLvP74-J-I/AAAAAAAAEME/JKgtjCv-UDA/s1600/soup2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="299" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pUdeVksSAOg/UJLvP74-J-I/AAAAAAAAEME/JKgtjCv-UDA/s320/soup2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Meanwhile sauté the chopped onion and minced garlic in some olive oil. When onions become translucent add diced potato and diced carrots as well as the smoky paprika. Let everything sweat for a while; then add the veggie stock and let simmer for about 10 min. Add the roasted butternut squash and simmer for a further 10 minutes. When everything is softened, turn off heat, add the soy creme and blend the soup in your blender or with the help of an immersion blender.</div>
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Serve with some some herbs and ideally with some croutons (forgot them though).</div>
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Tip: If you don't like it thick and creamy you might need to add some more veggie broth or some plant milk</div>
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I left it thick and creamy and served it with some spinach-and-blue-cheese filo pastries from an old BBC recipe (BBC Vegetarian Good Food magazine, November 1999).</div>
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It's got a nice filling with spinach, onions, garlic, oregano, dried apricots, and roasted pine nuts. Originally blue cheese was added, but I just left it out. You might add crumbled tofu with some spritz of lemon juice to make it more substantial.</div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Fi_NMogflac/UJLyY5K0czI/AAAAAAAAEMU/--0fvmmEXc4/s1600/fish1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="363" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Fi_NMogflac/UJLyY5K0czI/AAAAAAAAEMU/--0fvmmEXc4/s400/fish1.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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After wrapping it in vegan filo pastry, I 'egg-washed' it with soy creme and sprinkled some sesame seeds on top of it. I'm not good at making nice parcels though; M said they look like unhappy fish :(</div>
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in any case ... a tasty unhappy fish :)</div>
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torwenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04212683985774416002noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25564625.post-46338851102157563862012-10-31T18:18:00.003+00:002012-10-31T19:21:10.240+00:00Happy Halloween<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-5RpEqRynV5c/UJFqRByOsjI/AAAAAAAAEKI/Fn4-SSEvACY/s1600/halloween+ray+bradbury.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="303" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-5RpEqRynV5c/UJFqRByOsjI/AAAAAAAAEKI/Fn4-SSEvACY/s400/halloween+ray+bradbury.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ray Bradbury's own oil painting of the Halloween Tree<br />source: <a href="http://garysgoods.blogspot.de/2010/10/halloween-countdown-day-10-halloween.html" target="_blank">from this webpage</a></td></tr>
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Will be spending the evening reading Ray Bradbury's <a href="http://www.amazon.de/The-Halloween-Tree-Joseph-Mugnaini/dp/0375803017/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1351707342&sr=8-1" target="_blank">'The Halloween Tree'</a>!<br />
Nice for archaeologists, since the children go on timetravel (from Ancient Egypt to the Medieval times) to find their mate who vanished on All Hallows' Eve :)<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.fright.com/edge/HalloweenTree.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://www.fright.com/edge/HalloweenTree.jpg" width="222" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.fright.com/edge/HalloweenTree.htm">http://www.fright.com/edge/HalloweenTree.htm</a></td></tr>
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<br />torwenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04212683985774416002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25564625.post-34187845900960327672012-10-25T20:51:00.001+01:002013-01-08T21:07:24.936+00:00Abu Dhabi - In the DesertIn the afternoon we went on a desert safari. Our tourguide was a bit grumpy and hardly talked at all; mostly just bellowing orders like: 'camel. 5 minutes. photos'<br />
So this was the 5-minute-camel:<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-IT2Npn4DPwI/UImS5qo9API/AAAAAAAAEHI/4EvO5TDk9Yw/s1600/abu1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-IT2Npn4DPwI/UImS5qo9API/AAAAAAAAEHI/4EvO5TDk9Yw/s400/abu1.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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We then had some 'dune bashing' in other words you drive the dunes up and down and get car sick:<br />
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However, they didn't succed in getting us car sick enough; we were still able to admire the beauty of the desert:</div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_YNQmakTxRs/UImTCcnqtiI/AAAAAAAAEHY/cjKDpGrRfkc/s1600/abu2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_YNQmakTxRs/UImTCcnqtiI/AAAAAAAAEHY/cjKDpGrRfkc/s400/abu2.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Then Mr Grumpy dropped us off at a campsite: 'camel ride first' and left to do what Arabic men do in the desert (<strike>God</strike> Allah knows what). The camel ride was not what I would call a camel ride. It rather was a circus ride: ride your camel around a pole in a circle of 3 m in diameter.</div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-f8vvPAUNIZA/UImTW9Af59I/AAAAAAAAEHo/4qjZw2gIsRY/s1600/abu4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="297" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-f8vvPAUNIZA/UImTW9Af59I/AAAAAAAAEHo/4qjZw2gIsRY/s400/abu4.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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The rest of the day was much more relaxed. My friend T got a henna tattoo:</div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-OltpedTIDEg/UImUlo3g1PI/AAAAAAAAEIA/no1t6IU0jhE/s1600/abu7.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="278" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-OltpedTIDEg/UImUlo3g1PI/AAAAAAAAEIA/no1t6IU0jhE/s400/abu7.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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We also had a <strike>nice</strike> decent Arabic dinner (although they didn't manage to get the barbecue going - not really a bother for a vegetarian though):</div>
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And we also had a Russian girl for belly dancing:</div>
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torwenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04212683985774416002noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25564625.post-43699690263900846192012-10-24T21:25:00.003+01:002012-10-24T21:25:24.814+01:00Abu Dhabi - Falcon Hospital This morning we went to the <a href="http://www.falconhospital.com/" target="_blank">Falcon Hospital</a> in Abu Dhabi. We got a tour through the hospital which was was tremendously interesting. Here some photos:<br />
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The waiting room<br />
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Doctor's office:</div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-rNit4eB0RJo/UIhMQkBm5II/AAAAAAAAEFU/v-1RBXZhszU/s1600/abu+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="276" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-rNit4eB0RJo/UIhMQkBm5II/AAAAAAAAEFU/v-1RBXZhszU/s400/abu+2.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Manicure:</div>
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Say ahhhh....<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-et2sPk_pt_k/UIhNiIILaxI/AAAAAAAAEFs/c6yYF1z3AOw/s1600/abu+5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="285" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-et2sPk_pt_k/UIhNiIILaxI/AAAAAAAAEFs/c6yYF1z3AOw/s400/abu+5.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Not just for falcons ....</div>
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There is also a small museum about falcons and falcon hunting:</div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-7BTzt22Cux0/UIhNvk5phmI/AAAAAAAAEGE/yy0QIuCwXgE/s1600/abu+7.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="282" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-7BTzt22Cux0/UIhNvk5phmI/AAAAAAAAEGE/yy0QIuCwXgE/s400/abu+7.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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torwenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04212683985774416002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25564625.post-7863024816929467332012-10-23T21:48:00.000+01:002012-10-31T18:40:48.899+00:00Abu DhabiToday:<br />
<a href="http://visitabudhabi.ae/en/what.to.see/culture.and.heritage/more.culture.and.heritage/womens.handicraft.centre.aspx">Women's Handicraft Centre</a><br />
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<img border="0" height="317" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Nhhdw1rD4Rk/UIcABOs9J6I/AAAAAAAAECo/s6Ed0xvoW98/s400/abu+1.jpg" width="400" /></div>
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Art from the Centre's exhibition hall:</div>
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Lunchbreak after a stroll through the gold souk in a Vegetarian Indian Restaurant:</div>
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Potato Samosa and Pasta (!) Samosa:</div>
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Pineapple and Melon juice</div>
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Marina Mall</div>
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View from a café in the 55 floors high Burj al Marina:</div>
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<br />torwenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04212683985774416002noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25564625.post-47097268249991142852012-10-21T21:11:00.001+01:002012-10-21T23:17:02.842+01:00Animalistic SundayThis morning we caught a little mouse. A sweet and little one like this one:<br />
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But since I can't allow it to stay in our house, after all in protected environment they have 5 to 10 litters a year with up to 14 youngsters per litter, we had to take it outside and give it its freedom. Since this autumn is unusally warm and food is still abundant we took her to the woods not too far from us. It was very curious and obviously enjoyed being outdoors .... that is until a magpie shot down from a tree and tried to grab little mousey. So we ran around like madmen and tried to shoo away the magpie to at least give it a small survival chance. After all it was the first day in the wilderness.</div>
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I've never seen magpies actively hunting mice, but they are quite fierce in what they do. But then magpies are highly intelligent creatures. They are the only birds that <a href="http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn14552-mirror-test-shows-magpies-arent-so-birdbrained.html">recognize their mirror image</a>:</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.birdorable.com/blog/mirror-mirror-on-the-wall/">http://www.birdorable.com/blog/mirror-mirror-on-the-wall/</a></td></tr>
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After a while the magpie got weary of us and took off, I hope mousey survived the day.</div>
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Now we could go for our planned walk around Lampenhain not too far from our place. To our surprise we met some <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alpaca">alpacas</a> which enjoyed the warm autumn sun.</div>
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After more sheep, dogs, and horses we had a cup of coffe in a country 'pub' (<a href="http://www.landgasthof-heiss.de/index.html">Landgasthof</a>) where we met ... hairy coos :) = <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Highland_cattle">Scottish Highland cattle</a></div>
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torwenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04212683985774416002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25564625.post-41719737076475609692012-10-21T01:36:00.000+01:002012-10-21T01:37:38.451+01:00Taiko Drumming in HeidelbergTonight we went for a performance of a taiko group called <a href="http://www.dong-xi-taiko.de/main.htm" target="_blank">Sakura no ki</a> (Cherry Tree):<br />
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The nearly all female group under the direction of Liliana Bulic joined Koji Nakamura from Los Angelos and his pupil Takeshi Demise from Milano to present a variety of different arrangements from Bhuddist religious songs over shinto influenced pieces to modern choreographies. The choreography and precision in general was superb and the pieces very well performed. </div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-OvszlheDk4A/UINB9BgsEsI/AAAAAAAAD-o/AlHxFwicRf0/s1600/taiko3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-OvszlheDk4A/UINB9BgsEsI/AAAAAAAAD-o/AlHxFwicRf0/s320/taiko3.jpg" width="272" /></a></div>
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If you not only want to see the 'amazon' taiko group, but also hear them, there are several videos on youtube:<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/7FkSY9tk4xI?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
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Drums are, together with wind instruments, Japan's oldest musical instruments. <a href="http://www.last.fm/music/Toshi+Tsuchitori/+wiki/diff?&a=1&b=2" target="_blank">Toshi Tsuchitori</a> (土取利行) a percussionist from Kagawa, Japan has been studying Japanese prehistoric music for more than three decades. His performances on Jomon replica clay drums (Jomon-ko) are spectacular; there are many videos on youtube, here is just one example:</div>
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Here you can watch a very interesting three-part program describing the research of Toshi Tsuchitori (<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AIHGksG19W4" target="_blank">part 1</a>) and how he produces his own instruments, integrating Ainu and other ethnic music to perform 'Jomon music'. Even though it is in Japanese, it is very interesting and informative for non Japanese speakers. There is enough to watch and hear, so try it out if you are interesting in ancient music.</div>
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If you want to know more about Jomon music, here is an excellent article about music and musical instruments in the Jomon period: <a href="http://heritageofjapan.wordpress.com/just-what-was-so-amazing-about-jomon-japan/ways-of-the-jomon-world-2/customs-of-the-jomon-people/music-and-musical-instruments-the-jomon-people-made/" target="_blank">Jomon music</a>.</div>
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torwenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04212683985774416002noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25564625.post-2634299085674993782012-10-17T23:48:00.003+01:002012-10-18T01:38:13.800+01:00St. John's wort oil and a quick fix dinner for one<div style="text-align: justify;">
In July I collected some St. John's wort (<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St_John%27s_wort" target="_blank">Hypericum perforatum</a>) - I know, I know - I was one month late. Ideally you should collect St. John's wort on the 24th of June which is the festival of the birthday of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_the_Baptist" target="_blank">St. John the Baptist</a>. The red colour that oozes out of the leaves if you squeeze them is a symbol of his blood when he was beheaded. Here a quite unconventional painting of John the Baptist :)</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio: John the Baptist<br />
from: Malte Goga 2009, fig. 1</td></tr>
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However, usage of St. John's wort is much older than that and therefore it might not be a coincidence that St. John's Birthday happened to take place at the heathen midsummer festival. Yeah, the Christian church was very clever. It also said that St. John's wort causes evil spirits to depart (the Greek name Hypericum means somethink like "over an apparition"). Maybe psychosomatic disorders were thought to be caused by evil spirits and since Hypericum works as an antidepressant when taken orally it is understandable that St. John's wort was used as an apotropaic flower.</div>
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Pliny the Elder prescribed Hypericum against burns in his Naturalis Historiæ (book XXVI chapter lxxx) ca. AD 77 and it was used extensivly during the Medieval period.</div>
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Buth enough history, here is the simple recipe for making your own beautifully red oil against infected wounds, abrasions, burns, muscle pain, inflammatory skin diseases, you name it ...</div>
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Put your Hypericum florescence in a glass jar</div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-5Wi861On-50/UH8xioQSHWI/AAAAAAAAD7I/QFmeMfSMHcE/s1600/johannis0.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="363" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-5Wi861On-50/UH8xioQSHWI/AAAAAAAAD7I/QFmeMfSMHcE/s400/johannis0.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Pour a good quality olive oil over it, so that the oil just covers the inflorescences<br />
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Put it in a warm and sunny place and let stand for about 6 to 8 weeks or until the petals are drained of their colour and the oil turns red</div>
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Put it through a tea or coffee filter paper and fill into a tightly closable bottle<br />
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From now on keep it cool and dark and use whenever something hurts :)<br />
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And to let you know what I eat when alone: Spicy glass noodles with squash<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-R-F6nIhG6AA/UH8z5T_flpI/AAAAAAAAD7o/JiH1v38BR7Q/s1600/glassnoodles.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="306" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-R-F6nIhG6AA/UH8z5T_flpI/AAAAAAAAD7o/JiH1v38BR7Q/s400/glassnoodles.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Pour some boiling water over dry glass noodles, let sit for a couple of minutes and drain. Meanwhile fry some garlic and ginger in a wok, add vegetables to your liking (green onions, Chinese cabbage, celery, squash), add spices (chili flakes, Sechuan pepper, salt) and glass noodles. Done in under 30 minutes.torwenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04212683985774416002noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25564625.post-44629649589309404162012-10-14T16:30:00.004+01:002012-10-14T16:57:23.719+01:00Killer Mashed-Potato-Salad <div style="text-align: justify;">
It's been a while, and even longer since I posted a recipe here. Since Barbara from <a href="http://barbaras-spielwiese.blogspot.de/2012/10/asiatische-spielwiesen.html" target="_blank">Barbara's Spielwiese</a> is on business in China at the moment, I got tremendously jealous, so today I want to share a recipe I found on the Chinese recipe site <a href="http://www.xiachufang.com/">下厨房</a> (xiachufang). It is called <a href="http://www.xiachufang.com/recipe/1000231/" target="_blank">夺命土豆泥</a> (killer mashed potatoes), deadly only because it is so good. Although I have to admit it could easily be a Japanese recipe, because I had some similar mashed potato salad in sandwiches when I was in Japan.</div>
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I changed the originally recipe a bit, because it wasn't vegetarian and also tried blue potatoes to see whether a purplish colour would look good in mashed potatoes. Judge for yourself :)</div>
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This is the blue potato (Blue Swede), peeled. I like the marbled look of them :)</div>
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And this is the end result; I shaped it in balls like in the original recipe, but it ended up spread on some yummie wholemeal rolls after all:</div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/--7XbSIogCAY/UHrXXUIKJPI/AAAAAAAAD6I/WUKN5BzyBPI/s1600/potato2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/--7XbSIogCAY/UHrXXUIKJPI/AAAAAAAAD6I/WUKN5BzyBPI/s400/potato2.jpg" width="396" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><strong>Killer Mashed-Potato-Salad</strong></span><br />
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<strong>Ingredients</strong><br />
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4 floury potatoes</div>
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2 carrots</div>
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1/2 cup of corn kernels (from can)</div>
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a handful green beans</div>
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1/2 cup plant milk (I used oat milk)</div>
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2 tablespoons vegan mayonnaise</div>
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white wine vinegar</div>
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salt and pepper </div>
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<strong>What to do</strong></div>
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Peel and boil potatoes in salty water. While potatoes boil cut carrots into small dices and boil together with cut beans in salty water until tender (don't overcook them!).</div>
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When potatoes are soft, drain, add plant milk and bring the milk to the boil (you can do this in an extra pot to better control the consistency but I sometimes just use the pot with the potatoes in it). Immediately take the pot from the heat and mash the potatoes; the mash should be quite firm. Add carrots, beans, corn, spices, mayonnaise, and vinegar and carefully mix the ingredients.</div>
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Shape them in balls (if I had an ice cream scoop I would have tried it because my balls are a bit misshapen) or just put it in a bowl. </div>
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torwenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04212683985774416002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25564625.post-3069607277660039972012-09-02T22:20:00.002+01:002012-09-02T22:25:26.795+01:00Helsinki - sightseeing and boat tourThe conference is over, so today was a day off and I had a closer look at Helsinki. I passed St. John's church, a Lutheran church, which at that moment held mass, so I couldn't see the inside.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-VpBETxy7Tqk/UEO8Rrio4nI/AAAAAAAAD2U/VJtkyXeO91Y/s1600/hel10.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-VpBETxy7Tqk/UEO8Rrio4nI/AAAAAAAAD2U/VJtkyXeO91Y/s400/hel10.jpg" width="290" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I passed Atlas (?) holding not the celestial sphere, but a balcony</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-dIeB0CY5sKo/UEO9HiZNdlI/AAAAAAAAD2c/GzPGyPPl5Z4/s1600/hel9.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="278" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-dIeB0CY5sKo/UEO9HiZNdlI/AAAAAAAAD2c/GzPGyPPl5Z4/s400/hel9.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div>and, as you all know, Hercules took over Atlas' job, so Atlas could help him get the golden apples from Hera's garden:<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ISOpsNvjtMM/UEO95ZjVDyI/AAAAAAAAD2k/a0Y-GUR07Ak/s1600/hel8.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="363" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ISOpsNvjtMM/UEO95ZjVDyI/AAAAAAAAD2k/a0Y-GUR07Ak/s400/hel8.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">Then I went back to the National Museum since last time I had no time to visit the Finnish Sami folk section. I loved the 'grandmother' clock :)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HEgiJ5g7wd0/UEO_CB0uXRI/AAAAAAAAD2s/5HJWrJ3CwlM/s1600/hel3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HEgiJ5g7wd0/UEO_CB0uXRI/AAAAAAAAD2s/5HJWrJ3CwlM/s400/hel3.jpg" width="345" /></a></div><br />
A shaman's grave with magic drum, but also a Christian cross:<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-2M7BRiWJDTY/UEO_GSQ3kqI/AAAAAAAAD20/gBTSWrYaDkY/s1600/hel4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="238" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-2M7BRiWJDTY/UEO_GSQ3kqI/AAAAAAAAD20/gBTSWrYaDkY/s400/hel4.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div align="left" class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div align="left" class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">A fashionable handbag made from a waterfowl foot</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-JEKmaP3-BpM/UEO_KSNMf-I/AAAAAAAAD28/rVqcK5qUMSU/s1600/hel5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-JEKmaP3-BpM/UEO_KSNMf-I/AAAAAAAAD28/rVqcK5qUMSU/s320/hel5.jpg" width="256" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">If you need to buy wedding rings, why not consider some rings made from svan's trachea; eco-sensitive, natural materials, fashionable, and endurable - although not exactly suitable for vegetarians:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-AtC45_sSNDs/UEO_O1e7ZiI/AAAAAAAAD3E/E1dlcFL0e20/s1600/hel6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="260" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-AtC45_sSNDs/UEO_O1e7ZiI/AAAAAAAAD3E/E1dlcFL0e20/s400/hel6.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">On the way back to the city centre I ran over some art (which is not too difficult in Helsinki). Some art is outdoors:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-JZWEADS1Ok4/UEO_VtxuPqI/AAAAAAAAD3M/D7o7SzAGcDs/s1600/hel7.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-JZWEADS1Ok4/UEO_VtxuPqI/AAAAAAAAD3M/D7o7SzAGcDs/s400/hel7.jpg" width="306" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">Others is indoors:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-z1Me8HM909Q/UEPBMMJu8lI/AAAAAAAAD3U/ib53fcuXcuY/s1600/hel2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="310" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-z1Me8HM909Q/UEPBMMJu8lI/AAAAAAAAD3U/ib53fcuXcuY/s320/hel2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">There inevitably comes a time when you get hungry (especially if you missed the breakfast time at the hotel). Finland is about as bad for vegans as Germany. In the city centre there are only two vegan coffee shops/bistros and only one is open on Sundays. So I went to <a href="http://www.happycow.net/reviews.php?id=27339" target="_blank">Vegemesta</a> which is an all vegetarian fast food restaurant and has some vegan options. It had a bit of a rancid smell about it and the tiny place looked a bit scruffy, but you can't be picky in Helsinki and the hot dog with sweet potato fries I had were yummy enough :)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-HM8ORlbCt74/UEPEKGbnXFI/AAAAAAAAD38/Ob5-DQO0eyk/s1600/hel11.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="321" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-HM8ORlbCt74/UEPEKGbnXFI/AAAAAAAAD38/Ob5-DQO0eyk/s400/hel11.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-waagQuHao7k/UEPENEMECnI/AAAAAAAAD4E/yyE_CDcUlrw/s1600/hel1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="123" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-waagQuHao7k/UEPENEMECnI/AAAAAAAAD4E/yyE_CDcUlrw/s200/hel1.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Well fed, I went to the harbour and made a boat tour (the 'beautiful canal route') through the many islands that lie before Helsinki.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-tmqHvguXu-0/UEPFNVc1xmI/AAAAAAAAD4M/Z5yRw7f2wU0/s1600/Canal+route+map.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="258" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-tmqHvguXu-0/UEPFNVc1xmI/AAAAAAAAD4M/Z5yRw7f2wU0/s400/Canal+route+map.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suomenlinna">Suomenlinna Fortress</a>:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-mRZA9UDxu78/UEPFyHksrZI/AAAAAAAAD4U/9UldnPJEl7o/s1600/hel12.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="268" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-mRZA9UDxu78/UEPFyHksrZI/AAAAAAAAD4U/9UldnPJEl7o/s400/hel12.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Where there are beaches, there are also little saunas lining the beach; this is one of the larger ones:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ml4el6ufzgY/UEPGJSAw5vI/AAAAAAAAD4k/NKazG_28G_g/s1600/hel14.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="280" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ml4el6ufzgY/UEPGJSAw5vI/AAAAAAAAD4k/NKazG_28G_g/s400/hel14.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Some islands are connected to the mainland via bridges, others are not and the inhabitants need boats ... or even better a waterplane:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-5VgLbyqToac/UEPHfZrJOOI/AAAAAAAAD4s/2pUG_vw8Dp4/s1600/hel15.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="302" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-5VgLbyqToac/UEPHfZrJOOI/AAAAAAAAD4s/2pUG_vw8Dp4/s400/hel15.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">A small channel with a traffic light:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pgasAcgFx5M/UEPH9VImOPI/AAAAAAAAD40/OjLld6CuFyM/s1600/hel16.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pgasAcgFx5M/UEPH9VImOPI/AAAAAAAAD40/OjLld6CuFyM/s400/hel16.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">The summer residence of Helsinki's fleet of icebreakers:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-zDwiVWRHR2g/UEPIWVr2XII/AAAAAAAAD48/7x9WGXutfM0/s1600/hel17.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="247" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-zDwiVWRHR2g/UEPIWVr2XII/AAAAAAAAD48/7x9WGXutfM0/s400/hel17.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Towards evening it got cold and windy on the boat and a warm pulla (cardamom bun) with coffee saved me from freezing: </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zZ_s_EYflNQ/UEPF-QM3bkI/AAAAAAAAD4c/HmzCjIom10s/s1600/hel13.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="317" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zZ_s_EYflNQ/UEPF-QM3bkI/AAAAAAAAD4c/HmzCjIom10s/s400/hel13.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">After being back it quickly became dark and I will have to end my Helsinki tour with a look at the central railway station; here you can see the 'Stone Men' by <a href="http://www.visavuori.com/english/emil.html">Emil Wikström</a>, erected 1914. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-rPWXI7cR3m8/UEPJh5HbLxI/AAAAAAAAD5E/bqU6BE8eKhc/s1600/hel18.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-rPWXI7cR3m8/UEPJh5HbLxI/AAAAAAAAD5E/bqU6BE8eKhc/s400/hel18.jpg" width="262" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">And a last look at the cathedral:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-sDl6OVIkA8s/UEPJnmqmeJI/AAAAAAAAD5M/eTGv-_hh-wY/s1600/hel19.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="273" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-sDl6OVIkA8s/UEPJnmqmeJI/AAAAAAAAD5M/eTGv-_hh-wY/s400/hel19.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"> </div>torwenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04212683985774416002noreply@blogger.com2Helsinki, Finland60.169845 24.9385508000000337.385143 -34.82707419999997 82.954547 84.70417580000003tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25564625.post-85039170154913111682012-09-01T22:31:00.012+01:002012-11-10T17:00:52.176+00:00Helsinki - Last Conference Day and Aida<div style="text-align: justify;">
I think you had enough archaeology yesterday, so I don't want to bother you with any more of it. I just want to add that you can not only learn something about archaeology on such conferences, but also general skills, like making attractive posters:</div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-PPakBd1X_BM/UEJtUrZ5X3I/AAAAAAAADy4/0ctV5YR93ZA/s1600/hel0.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-PPakBd1X_BM/UEJtUrZ5X3I/AAAAAAAADy4/0ctV5YR93ZA/s400/hel0.jpg" width="300" /></a></div>
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or effectively presenting them:</div>
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...NOT.<br />
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Since the Unicafé was closed today we went to the harbour and had some food at one of the market stalls ... nearly vegan. Fried veggies and potatoes with garlic mayonaise:<br />
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After all this archaeology I think I deserved some culture, so off I went to the <a href="http://www.opera.fi/en" target="_blank">Finnish National Opera</a>. I had a ticket for Verdi's Aida.</div>
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The opera house is very modern, with costumes from previous productions all over the place:</div>
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The National Opera's web page describes their Aida in the following way:</div>
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Verdi's Aida is a magnificent and spectacular grand opera but also a sensitive and intimate tale of the forbidden love of an Egyptian military commander and an Ethiopian slave. <br />
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The poor guy is torn between an ageing Egyptian princess and an Ethiopian princess taken prisoner in an even worse state (in the text Rhadames says that Aida is "in the flower of youth"). Claire Rutter who performed as Aida keeps her age a web secret, but the unflattering costume lets us guess her age at around fifty. Where is the young generation of singers and why can't they take the roles of young people in an opera??? Here you can see the 'young' women fighting for their man (all photos are from the official Facebook site of the National Opera):<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.facebook.com/ooppera">https://www.facebook.com/ooppera</a></td></tr>
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"The Finnish National Opera brings one of the best-known works in the opera repertoire to the stage in a stylish fashion."</blockquote>
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Yes, stylish indeed. It breaths the decadent atmosphere of the 1920s and the zenana had more similarities with a nightclub. Toyboys with transparent overalls, lesbians, you get it.</div>
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"Director Georg Rootering and his team have retained the original story, but they also wanted to highlight the universal nature of the narrative."</blockquote>
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Which is: decadent societies are also likely to commit atrocities and war crimes? At least I hope that all the scenes of raping done by the victorious soldiers must have been there for a reason. And all the prisoners in Guantanamo outfit were obviously the desperate bid to make the opera topical for our time ... I guess.</div>
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Here is Rhadames "young in years" all lovey-dovey<br />
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The only thing I still don't get, is: why did Rhadames start strangling his love objects every now and then? Maybe someone can help out...<br />
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To make things even I have to add that the music was good, lovely harp in the orchestra, the singing was in general good, too, and the wine during the break was equally nice. </div>
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<br />torwenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04212683985774416002noreply@blogger.com2Helsinki, Finland60.169845 24.9385508000000337.385143 -34.82707419999997 82.954547 84.70417580000003tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25564625.post-28687564384249642432012-08-31T21:56:00.002+01:002012-08-31T22:02:35.078+01:00Helsinki - talks, talks, talks<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-yM71TXlzYI8/UEEl4Dl9pxI/AAAAAAAADyM/01cfxLgnBGc/s1600/eaa.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="317" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-yM71TXlzYI8/UEEl4Dl9pxI/AAAAAAAADyM/01cfxLgnBGc/s320/eaa.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
Today there was no time to visit anything; talks from morning till late.<br />
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At first I had a session on the 'role of plants in paleonutritional reassessment' which was quite interesting, especially the recently discovered underwater site of <a href="http://www.maasvlakte2.com/en/news/show/id/3351" target="_blank">Amsterdam-Yangtzehaven</a>. The site which is 20 m below water level still gave up lots of information about plant food in the Mesolithic. From charred acorn over club rush to prepared celandine tubers (buttercup), a lot of wild plants were used for food in the Mesolithic.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://science.halleyhosting.com/nature/plants/5petal/butter/ranunculus/ficaria/ficaria3a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://science.halleyhosting.com/nature/plants/5petal/butter/ranunculus/ficaria/ficaria3a.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://science.halleyhosting.com/nature/plants/5petal/butter/ranunculus/ficaria.html">http://science.halleyhosting.com/nature/plants/5petal/butter/ranunculus/ficaria.html</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table><div style="text-align: justify;">The second session was about circumpolar rock art and somehow taken over by shamans. Still, I didn't know too much about Canadian rock art so it was quite interesting to see some examples from the New World. This is the site of <a href="http://www.nunatsiaqonline.ca/stories/article/150344_avataq_seeks_protection_for_nunaviks_rock_carvings/" target="_blank">Qajartalik</a>, Quebec which was made by the Dorset culture (2500 BC to AD 500):<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.nunatsiaqonline.ca/pub/photos/354-1.va_large_.jpe_.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="http://www.nunatsiaqonline.ca/pub/photos/354-1.va_large_.jpe_.jpeg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.nunatsiaqonline.ca/pub/photos/354-1.va_large_.jpe_.jpeg">http://www.nunatsiaqonline.ca/pub/photos/354-1.va_large_.jpe_.jpeg</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table><div style="text-align: justify;">Time for lunch with the unicafé's vegan choice of a wrap, a vegetable chili, brown rice and a soy-yogurt sauce:</div><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-4eQzLnc1IWk/UEEU_iIK1vI/AAAAAAAADw4/zFsEDdoHW-c/s1600/hel2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="297" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-4eQzLnc1IWk/UEEU_iIK1vI/AAAAAAAADw4/zFsEDdoHW-c/s400/hel2.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><div style="text-align: justify;">In the afternoon I ended up in the climate archaeology section where climatologists were mocking archaeologists for not having a deeper appreciation of their art and still had typologies based on pottery. Some nice talks with an interesting one by Gunhild Eriksdotter about the Little Ice Age and its impact on indoor climate and living comfort. Although working in historical archaeology her findings were interesting and easily transferable into prehistory. Hardwick Hall, a stately manor in England for example had so much windows that it would have been really cold in winter, let alone during the Little Ice Age. But she showed how people could show off with their manors and still live relatively comforting. Bess of Hardwick, who had the manor built moved her smaller sized sleeping rooms to the south side with few windows and had 8 (!) carpets on the floor. So the cold rooms were more or less just for receptions and kitchens.</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/08/Hardwick_Hall_in_Doe_Lea_-_Derbyshire.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/08/Hardwick_Hall_in_Doe_Lea_-_Derbyshire.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/08/Hardwick_Hall_in_Doe_Lea_-_Derbyshire.jpg">http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/08/Hardwick_Hall_in_Doe_Lea_-_Derbyshire.jpg</a><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://studydroid.net/imageCards/0g/3f/card-16891318-front.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="246" src="http://studydroid.net/imageCards/0g/3f/card-16891318-front.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://studydroid.net/imageCards/0g/3f/card-16891318-front.jpg">http://studydroid.net/imageCards/0g/3f/card-16891318-front.jpg</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div style="text-align: justify;">See her small sleeping chamber in the back? By the way, Hardwick Hall's facade was used for the exterior scenes for Malfoy Manor in Harry Potter 1 and 2.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://images2.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20120129015658/harrypotter/images/f/fb/HP7A-TRL2-0446.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="263" src="http://images2.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20120129015658/harrypotter/images/f/fb/HP7A-TRL2-0446.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://harrypotter.wikia.com/wiki/Malfoy_Manor">http://harrypotter.wikia.com/wiki/Malfoy_Manor</a><br />
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</tbody></table><div style="text-align: justify;">The last session for today was about 'animal agency'; a lot of criticism against raising animals as capital came through and some carefully softened voices for animal rights. But in general they kept to the archaeological side of it. Kristin Armstrong Oma presented a nice paper (based on her article in the World Archaeology - if you are by any chance an archaeologist, you might want to read it <a href="http://uio.academia.edu/KristinArmstrongOma/Papers/237789/Between_trust_and_domination" target="_blank">here</a>). </div><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><div style="text-align: justify;">Her talk was about the social interaction between sheep, dog, and man in the Bronze Age when sheep farming intensified because wool was extensively used for textiles and how new husbandry practises evolved that changed not only landscape (grazing areas) and technology but also house architecture (from a two-aisled house -upper illustration- in the Neolithic to a three-aisled house in the Early Bronze Age -lower illustration) to allow animals to be stocked in the house.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ZBRPqYTbqJE/UEEhXO1h3bI/AAAAAAAADxg/if7QnMYs2Iw/s1600/house.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="264" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ZBRPqYTbqJE/UEEhXO1h3bI/AAAAAAAADxg/if7QnMYs2Iw/s320/house.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">taken from: <a href="http://www.niku.no/filestore/Publikasjoner/NIKUTemahefte30.pdf" target="_blank">www.niku.no/filestore/Publikasjoner/NIKUTemahefte30.pdf</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><div style="text-align: justify;">A nice rock art scene of a shepherd and his dog herding a flock of sheep illustrated her theory that the shared living also built a source of trust which made it easier to handle the sheep.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-LAaQ2Qnk4A8/UEEjLST0D-I/AAAAAAAADxo/x2JTcaq4WSU/s1600/herd.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="315" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-LAaQ2Qnk4A8/UEEjLST0D-I/AAAAAAAADxo/x2JTcaq4WSU/s400/herd.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Rock art scene from Valhaug 1, Rogaland Norway <br />
K. Armstrong Oma 2010, plate 2</td></tr>
</tbody></table><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div>torwenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04212683985774416002noreply@blogger.com0Helsinki, Finland60.169845 24.9385508000000337.385143 -34.82707419999997 82.954547 84.70417580000003tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25564625.post-51520423922732933092012-08-30T22:01:00.006+01:002012-08-30T22:29:40.673+01:00Helsinki - National Museum<div style="text-align: justify;">I spent the morning with talks concerning the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michelsberg_culture" target="_blank">Michelsberg Culture</a>, an important Central European Neolithic culture. The talks from French and German researchers were mostly about territoriality, enclosures, houses, but the most interesting ones were about salt exploitation in Germany (Olivier Weller) and Michelsberg along the Rhine and Main (Detlef Gronenborn). </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">For lunch I went to the Unicafé in the Porthania building and I was not disappointed: a vegan lunch option! Getting vegan food is difficult in Helsinki, cheese and milk products are everywhere. So I really enjoyed my beet steaks (<span class="st">Punajuuripihvit)</span> with potatoes and soy-yogurt sauce:</div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-FRhP_SBaX4M/UD_GLSSeshI/AAAAAAAADtU/PwatsRfmEh8/s1600/uni+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="211" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-FRhP_SBaX4M/UD_GLSSeshI/AAAAAAAADtU/PwatsRfmEh8/s400/uni+1.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">After lunch I went to the <a href="http://www.nba.fi/en/nationalmuseum" target="_blank">National Museum</a> to have a look at the Prehistoric section.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fBjVdUTUaLU/UD_HRXdi8wI/AAAAAAAADtc/p6ak-bXeo4U/s1600/hel1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fBjVdUTUaLU/UD_HRXdi8wI/AAAAAAAADtc/p6ak-bXeo4U/s400/hel1.jpg" width="268" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">So beautiful! I just have to show you an object ... or two ... you know what I mean ...</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">A cupmarked stone from Häme, Kalvola in Southern Finland. Probably Iron Age:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-1AG9fMQF9Mk/UD_H2u-JtrI/AAAAAAAADtk/taPHpjEK4vg/s1600/hel2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="263" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-1AG9fMQF9Mk/UD_H2u-JtrI/AAAAAAAADtk/taPHpjEK4vg/s400/hel2.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> Figure and axe head in animal form; mostly elks but these ones are lovely bears (from Antrea)</div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-DlnUfydAq7g/UD_IAxzsGXI/AAAAAAAADts/wcLle-wjIfY/s1600/hel3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="236" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-DlnUfydAq7g/UD_IAxzsGXI/AAAAAAAADts/wcLle-wjIfY/s400/hel3.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Clay figurine, Jettböle site (pitted ware culture)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-y_tgRRA2RqM/UD_IF0rM6AI/AAAAAAAADt0/2Jo1ciSdYqg/s1600/hel4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-y_tgRRA2RqM/UD_IF0rM6AI/AAAAAAAADt0/2Jo1ciSdYqg/s400/hel4.jpg" width="355" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Waist ornament from Viking dress, Humikkala, Masku. Made separately from wired beads and sewn onto the dress:</div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-gYaZ3ABBb2E/UD_ILNIujDI/AAAAAAAADt8/dbZeO-7mA7k/s1600/hel5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="221" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-gYaZ3ABBb2E/UD_ILNIujDI/AAAAAAAADt8/dbZeO-7mA7k/s400/hel5.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">And here are Viking dress replicas with similar ornaments on the apron of the woman's dress (Euran Luistarihauta, grave 56, ca. AD 900):</div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-wNQJJpnAwbw/UD_IRMZ6d-I/AAAAAAAADuE/djFumENoDX0/s1600/hel6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-wNQJJpnAwbw/UD_IRMZ6d-I/AAAAAAAADuE/djFumENoDX0/s400/hel6.jpg" width="232" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">After the museum I went to the market square in front of the harbour; berries abundant:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-_vxoT28i6uU/UD_LexmB_AI/AAAAAAAADuo/Qfpi1a1pGwg/s1600/hel7.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="306" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-_vxoT28i6uU/UD_LexmB_AI/AAAAAAAADuo/Qfpi1a1pGwg/s400/hel7.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">And of course it is the mushroom season!</div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-vdM9Z2uJx-Y/UD_LjS5dosI/AAAAAAAADuw/se4vAtKKQeo/s1600/hel8.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-vdM9Z2uJx-Y/UD_LjS5dosI/AAAAAAAADuw/se4vAtKKQeo/s400/hel8.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-q61To2Tg0do/UD_Lnn5C8XI/AAAAAAAADu4/TpI-Rv__QIw/s1600/hel9.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-q61To2Tg0do/UD_Lnn5C8XI/AAAAAAAADu4/TpI-Rv__QIw/s400/hel9.jpg" width="256" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Someone tried the Finnish pancakes called 'lettu':</div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-C8oqpe9KxiQ/UD_LtBE6h7I/AAAAAAAADvA/486Xq1J-6bo/s1600/hel10.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="308" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-C8oqpe9KxiQ/UD_LtBE6h7I/AAAAAAAADvA/486Xq1J-6bo/s400/hel10.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />
A bird brawl at the harbour:<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-yG2GSd59oss/UD_MRsxWa0I/AAAAAAAADvY/YYNz2vKGeY4/s1600/hel13.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="337" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-yG2GSd59oss/UD_MRsxWa0I/AAAAAAAADvY/YYNz2vKGeY4/s400/hel13.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Not far from the harbour is also the Orthodox <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uspenski_Cathedral,_Helsinki" target="_blank">Uspenski Cathedral</a> from the 19th century:</div><div align="left" class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-LNF07QZgMJI/UD_Lxj-9sjI/AAAAAAAADvI/6_Prd5OC1kw/s1600/hel11.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="350" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-LNF07QZgMJI/UD_Lxj-9sjI/AAAAAAAADvI/6_Prd5OC1kw/s400/hel11.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I think this island is the World Heritage Site Suomenlinna; if I have time left I will go there and then know for sure :)</div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Xi0bNIQZ_j8/UD_MM46-LiI/AAAAAAAADvQ/7JjGy6vExHU/s1600/hel12.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="236" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Xi0bNIQZ_j8/UD_MM46-LiI/AAAAAAAADvQ/7JjGy6vExHU/s400/hel12.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />
Strange looking flower hives:<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-cgpZIzMUHkI/UD_MYNe3liI/AAAAAAAADvg/s5aOPEa7otk/s1600/hel14.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="260" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-cgpZIzMUHkI/UD_MYNe3liI/AAAAAAAADvg/s5aOPEa7otk/s400/hel14.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">In the evening there was a free chamber concert in the Cathedral Crypt; it came with an art exhibition featuring art work from Nelly Jurvelius:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-SK5GKTM9D50/UD_PJaeLChI/AAAAAAAADwE/QyCuYZGL1QA/s1600/hel15.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-SK5GKTM9D50/UD_PJaeLChI/AAAAAAAADwE/QyCuYZGL1QA/s400/hel15.jpg" width="322" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-b3psJFanLoc/UD_POLxflnI/AAAAAAAADwM/xTvTkMZXCrA/s1600/hel16.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-b3psJFanLoc/UD_POLxflnI/AAAAAAAADwM/xTvTkMZXCrA/s400/hel16.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">The musicians consisted of four young artists, Pekko pulakka on a <a href="http://www.musicaviva.com/encyclopedia/display.html?phrase=silvestre-hippolyte" target="_blank">Silvestre</a> violin from 1843, Sauli Kulmala on a Maussiell viola from 1722, Samit Junnona (flute), and Anna Vaahtoranta (piano) whom you can see on the photo here:</div><br />
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torwenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04212683985774416002noreply@blogger.com2Helsinki, Finland60.166585599999991 24.94355530000007137.379854099999989 -34.822069699999929 82.953317099999992 84.709180300000071tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25564625.post-74687890152373506702012-08-29T23:15:00.001+01:002012-11-06T12:53:45.269+00:00Helsinki - Church in the RockI had a bit of time in the morning, so I went for the <span dir="auto"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Temppeliaukio_Church" target="_blank">Temppeliaukio Church</a> or better known as Church in the Rock. This astonishing church was built in 1969 and right into the rock of this hill in Helsinki. </span><br />
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Yet it is still full of natural light which comes in from huge window panels under the copper dome.</div>
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I came just in time for a piano concert in the church (well, actually I knew it already and therefore came in time):</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Oliver Wu playing the piano in the Church in the Rock</td></tr>
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A kind of flash mob school choir interrupted his performance:</div>
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And apart from loads of tourists buzzing around, a couple had his wedding photos shot:</div>
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Votive candles on the rocks :)</div>
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It was time to go to the conference registration which is not far from <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Helsinki_Cathedral" target="_blank">Helsinki Cathedral</a></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-mj-GXK5U-a4/UD6KqpoYSAI/AAAAAAAADsg/uK7YNzui1fw/s1600/hel7.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-mj-GXK5U-a4/UD6KqpoYSAI/AAAAAAAADsg/uK7YNzui1fw/s400/hel7.jpg" width="266" /></a></div>
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The Porthania building of the University of Helsinki where part of the sessions will be:</div>
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Opening reception in the auditorium of the main building:</div>
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There was also some entertainment; Maija Kauhanen, a post-grad at the Department of Folk Music played on the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kantele" target="_blank">kantele</a> of Saarijärvi, a Finnish and Karelian zither. Since I only had my handy cam, the optical quality sucks, but you can at least hear the instrument. Maija has a web presence on <a href="http://www.myspace.com/maijakauhanen" target="_blank">myspace</a> in case you want to see her more clearly :))</div>
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<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dym0T7cXR9k2FETf32z6vNne33eJGbzqDdSe-ipy94Uerupdn4lQbelWdxQSHPzkMuZEYVjNz9hQ4k' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
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The day ended with a reception, lots of wine but also some snacks (at least salads for me) including the lovely Finnish rye-malt bread (Saaristolaisleipä), sweetened with molasses.</div>
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<span dir="auto"></span><br />torwenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04212683985774416002noreply@blogger.com0Helsinki, Finland60.166585599999991 24.94355530000007137.379854099999989 -34.822069699999929 82.953317099999992 84.709180300000071