Impressions of Bulgaria, Part 2 (Churches and Walls)

As I went to Bulgaria as a part of an art history field trip, most of our time was spent looking at brickwork, buildings and battlements. And of course churches. Especially the brickwork on churches.

Sibylle Bergemann

If I was in Berlin, or had a chance to go any time soon, I’d love to see the Sibylle Bergemann exhibition ”Polaroids” at the C/O.

“I am interested in the margin of the world, not the center. For me, it is the non-interchangable that is crucial. When something in the faces or landscapes is not quite right.”
Sibylle Bergemann

(How perfect is that last photo of a girl on a swing in the Mauerpark? I am absolutely in love with it.)

Something for the Weekend

Things I enjoyed this weekend:

• Picking up the first, tiny, red apples that had fallen from the trees – We’ll be juicing them soon!
• Engaging barter trade – I gave my friend’s family a bottle of home made apricot syrup and received a pound of bacon and home grown tomatoes and peppers in return. (I think the swap was a bit uneven, I might have to bring a few more bottles next time.)
• Going for a long run with my mum (or make that, having gone for a long run, because running is just one of the things that I cannot really enjoy doing, but do them entirely for the great feeling of having done them) and then swimming across the lake and back. Yay!
• Reading more and more about Kara Walker and her disconcerting scissor cut art ...
• Apricot cake!
• A Saturday night of videos and Scrabble ... A Sunday night of getting drunk and not getting into a concert and sitting around outside discussing the world’s problems.

And here are some pictures.

Impressions of Bulgaria, Part 1 (Soviet Aesthetics)

A Rainy Picture.

Max.

Summer Food: Tofu Chili Wraps

A while ago, Max and I made these Tofu Chili Wraps, a nice, vegetarian alternative to meaty Burritos. I really love making these in the summer, because sometimes, even though it’s really hot, I don’t want to forego cooked meals altogether, and this recipe is a nice sort of in-between option that can be varied freely on a scale from fresh and salady to hot and filling.
Strange though, if you look at traditional cuisines, spicy food and hot weather don’t seem to be a contradiction. In fact, spicy food seems to be expecially popular in countries with a hot climate? I’ve been wondering for a while if there’s some hidden logic to it, or some underlying scientific reason, so if anybody has a clue, enlighten me.

Anyways - tofu chili wraps: I’ll tell you how we made them, although there’s basically nothing to it - you more or less just have to throw all the ingredients into a frying pan, and then roll them up in a tortilla with some lettuce and sour cream.
Another reason why this is a good recipe for the summer - minimize the time spent in a stuffy kitchen - maximize the time spent outside in the sun or immersed in a lake.
So here are the basic ingredients:

Ingredients:
1 block of firm tofu, cut into small cubes
1 onion, chopped finely
1 small can of sweet corn
1 small can of kidney beans
200g mushrooms (optional, because not a typical ingredient of chili, but I think we had some left over in the fridge, and I am ever happy to improvise. In my kitchen, supply usually influences demand. I encourage you to do the same and utilise whatever leftover vegetable you have that goes well in chili - especially bell peppers or green beans, but also courgettes, carrots, whatever you like!)
1 cup tomato puree
1/2 tsp chili powder (you can use fresh chilis as well, although I'm not sure of the equivalent amount in terms of spiciness)
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1/2 tsp cumin
fresh parsley, chopped
salt, pepper to taste

Classic pan-fry procedure: Heat oil in a frying pan, add onions, fry until golden, add crushed garlic and tofu, fry until browned and a bit crispy (it’s no problem if it breaks into smaller bits). Add sweet corn and kidney beans along with the tomato puree and cook for about 7 minutes. Season.
Ready.

Line some tortillas with some lettuce (and maybe some sliced cucumbers, carrots, and other crudités if you desire), add filling and sour cream, and voila.
Perfect summer food.

If only we tried.

Cites could have lungs.

Ghosting.

Hello world. Sorry for the longish absence.
I’m back, now, and have a huge bunch of pictures and impressions of Bulgaria in store. But beware. A lot of it is going to be about byzantine architecture or wall paintings or masonry. Sorry, if that’s boring for many of you, only not really.
I can appease you by throwing some food in as well.

Tomorrow I’d like ...

Warm sun and a fresh breeze, cool blues and browns, a bicycle ride with Julien Ribot in my ears, a lawn and a tree to lean my back against, to do some work outdoors, to make a map, to look at paintings of seascapes.
To feel light and the wind in my hair.

All I Need by housewitheyebrows

I’m turning 25 tomorrow.
I have no words.

How to make Elderflower Syrup!

Today we’re making Elderflower Syrup.
First let me tell you why.
Because once you know how to do that, you will never have to buy sugary soft drinks any more, even if once in a while you get a craving for a sugary soft drink. Because homemade Elderflower Syrup is still loads cheaper than any sugary soft drinks you get in the supermarket (I haven’t acutally done the math but I’m sure if one were to do it one would end up with really impressive figures). Because in case of your own homemade syrup you know that all the ingredients are 100% natural, and you get absolutely no icky additives or artificial flavours. Because, have you tried shop bought Elderflower syrup, and compared it to the homemade version? The latter is ridiculous amounts of better. Because, every spring hundreds of elder trees are flowering, probably also in your vicinity, and they’re like a gift of nature that you absolutely should not let go to waste. Because it’s absolutely fabulous to make stuff yourself, especially when using ingredients that are just growing in the wild.

I think that’s just about enough advertisment for my product, right?
Let’s get going.

What you’ll need:

approx. 30 umbels of elderflower blossoms 2 litres of fresh water 4 kg of sugar 100 g citric acid (granulated) 5 untreated lemons

a pot large enough to hold water + sugar (6-7 litres) a large plastic container with a lid (like a large mixing bowl, dough bowl or perhaps a cake container turned upside down)

1. Go for a walk, find a nice solitary elder tree, and get cutting. Bring home your spoils in a wickerbasket (optional).

2. Briefly rinse the elderflower umbels under hot tapwater to remove any unwanted residents like bugs. The water must not be too hot or boiling, or your elder flowers will wilt and turn brown. Also do not rinse for too long, or you will wash away all the sweet and aromatic pollen. Place the flowers in your plastic container and set aside.

3. Cut the lemons into slices, they should be about 3 mm thick – the thinner, the more aroma they will give off. Add to plastic container.

4. Heat the water in the pot. When hot, stir in the sugar. Reduce to medium to low heat and keep stirring, because it will both help the sugar to dissolve, and keep it from burning at the bottom of the pot.

5. When the sugar is fully dissolved and you are left with a homogeneous syrup, gradually pour it over the flowers and the lemon slices. Again, watch out that the syrup is not boiling hot at this point.

6. Add the citric acid and give your mixture a stir.

7. Cover with the lid and let your syrup rest and soak for 7 days. There is no need to refrigerate it (we usually just place it on the patio) – just keep it safe from ants!

8. When finished, fill your Elderflower Syrup into bottles (you can re-use any glass bottle with a screw top, as long as it’s clean!). Store in a cool, dark place. Give away as a present. Enjoy in a tall glass, with ice cubes and a slice of lemon.

Interrail #7

It’s been months since my last Interrail post, right? I thought it was about time to get another one done. And hence, on this cloudy Sunday, we arrive in a similarly rainy Paris for a brief stopover, on Juillet 14 - national holiday, day of parades, free museum entries and heavy rainfall endangering historical sites!

Parades!

Wet frenchmen on wet horses. Is this a bad time to mention Waterloo?

Sainte Chapelle - lower level

Pardon my obsession ...

And again ...

Vaults: They are not what they seem.

Palais de Justice.

Buildings, buildings, buildings.

Sudden irony in front of the Musé d’Orsay

Max at our dodgy youth hostel!

As a tragic consequence of the camera-unfriendly weather, far too few pictures taken that day. :(

Bumpics.

(via everydayishow)

Let’s go and take bumpics and talk about feminism.
Today’s song comes from PJ Harvey.