joshua and i coming back from a mushroom hunt,
with curious hungry horses and a curiously frightened bunbury

i really meant to take more photos from the interior of novy mlyn,
but there was so much going on, and my last day there crept up on me faster than i would have liked.
i did manage to take a photo of the view from my bedroom window, at dusk.

at long last i can finally post more photos.
ive got over 150 photos to post, and am trying to organize them well.
lets start with my favorites:

baked good from the farm

i helped joshua very little with this beauty:
apple pie with an almond crust (the leaves were my idea)

eggs florentine!
joshua made the english muffins and hollandaise sauce,
i gathered the chanterelles from the woods, joshua gathered the sorrel,
and i finally learned how to poach eggs

wheat germ muffins with honey and dried apricots,
perfect for elevenses with english tea

my faithful traveling buddy, rain, has found me yet again.

its hard to embrace a new city when its gloomy and raining.
i hear budapest is usually quite lovely...

im leaving for budapest tomorrow.
i didnt spend enough time to really take in bratislava,
but i am on a time constraint and want to spend at least a week in budapest.

so much to see and so little time...

im leaving for bratislava tomorrow, and have many photos from the past 2 weeks.
unfortunately i wont be able to post them until i get a memory card adapter for the camera i am borrowing.

today was spend biking through vienna, with favorable weather and lots of people watching.

with my good luck, yesterday being the first saturday of the month also meant flea market day.
the flea market came as a great pleasure and surprise as i was already enjoying the vast outdoors food market.
countless stands with colorful fruit, vegetables, mushrooms, cheese, wine, beer, candy, nuts, dried fruit etc.
also, intermixed with the produce stands were cafes, restaurants, and quick eats food stands.

it was a lot to take in, especially with a hungry belly and the willpower not to buy anything.
someday i will travel with more money, and when i do i will made sure to come back to vienna for there outdoor market.


pictures on the way

echinacea flowers from the garden

tasty pavalova that rosie made, with bilberries and lime zest

lavender to dry in the kitchen window

lavender from the garden

im slowly packing up before leaving the farm, which is very sad since this feels like home.

im heading out for prague next, then on to vienna, bratislava and budapest.

ive got loads of pictures to come, including some taken this past weekend from the sumava national park,
which borders austria, germany and the czech republic.
everything was beautiful despite the cold weather and rain in the tent...
i also will include pictures from cesky krumlov, a lovely castle village with a darling antique shop as well.

im trying to start a food diary with all the tasty food ohers have made on the farm,
including all the food i have made for others.

until i get more pictures uploaded, here is my very first apple pie :)

cider making:


apples being washed in trough before being smashed

smashing apples

pressing apples for juice

straining juice through cheesecloth

and last but not least, brewing!

this is a parasol mushroom, which is edible, and this particular specimen happens to be about a foot tall!
also, there is a ring that you can move up and down like opening and closing an umbrella.

its been a very strange contrast of heavy rain and hot sunshine these past few days.
the weather changes so many times each day that its hard to dress for...
today was finally supposed to be hot enough to go swimming in the quary,
but no such luck.

this is a bakery with beautifully woven bread for their window display

this is a Zsabka, sleeping on her favorite chair

apple cider brewing in the sunshine

ive got 10 more days left on the farm and havent planned where im going next.
these past 20 days have gone by very quickly, but have been very wonderful.
i havent taken as many photos as i would have liked to, beacuse ive been too busy just enjoying the beauty of the czech countryside.
photos also dont do justice to how everything looks...
for the meantime:


courgettes from the garden

these are fairy ring mushrooms that ive collected from the yard,
and stung the caps on thread to dry.
when put in water again they regain their form

we've been having really nice weather and warm sunshine,
so we took a break from making cider and dried apples instead.
these will be stored in jars and used in the winter when there are no ripe apples

i made it to the czech republic safely and finally got around to taking photos of the farm
my first week spend here has been mostly domestic chores around the house,
lots of berry picking. mushroom hunting in the woods,
baking tasty treats and breads,
playing with cute kittens,
and eating lots and lots of tasty food