Apicultura Curso/Bee keeping course

The lengthy wait for a new post was due to a bee course I am attending being facilitated by Associaçao de Agricultores da Ilha do Faial. The lecturers are from North of Portugal. It has been every evening from 7-11 and today we got to have hands on experience - absolutely incredible. The course has been informative and interesting and it was all in Portuguese! shoo wee, mega concentration required and homework to fill in the blanks I did not understand. We are 20 and of that number 12 are female and two of us are foreigners. Great group all attending for their own reasons.  An acupuncturist is attending the course and is interested in bees for acupuncture, take a look at this video. Nature can continually amaze us.




We have viewed the processing room, seen how to rewire and re wax frames, how to identify Varroa, anatomy of the bee, its reproductive process, diseases, application of chemicals and organic methods of disease control, uses for various by products of bee keeping eg, propolis, wax, pollen etc

Happy Birthday to Me

It is My Birthday Today and another golden day has arisen, especially for Me.
I would like to thank all the Angels that have come into my life and continue to guide and assist me on this beautiful journey .

My new birthday proposal - I would very much like a tree to be planted, site irrelevant. Friends/Angels gifts you would like to give me  - would you mind that they be a tree, either given or planted. Just think how we could do our bit to renew forests that are being cut down daily. Here on Faial there are many ancient trees, Pat has two trees in her garden that according to her neighbour are at least 120 years. We could call these Age Markers.

Swallows

It is clear spring has sprung, we have had a full week of glorious weather and the evidence is out, windows are wide open, all winter clothing is being washed and put away. Summer wear is being reviewed and given a refreshing wash and the last signs of spring are the return of the SWALLOWS and I do not mean the feathered kind. It is our other family that leave for warmer climates and return to warmer days here on Faial. Welcome home Rosemarie and Werni and thank you Robyn for your kind words of encouragement regarding our blog. Just under a month now and you will be back to enjoy the Good Life.

In the beginning, we were totally out of sync with the rhythm of Faial and now we anticipate the sound of the tractor and know when it is full moon and what is being planted. I always wondered how they knew when to do what. It also helps that we are more involved now in our own garden and planting. Found a useful site too, which gives a bit of structure to our daily garden routine. Click Farmers Almanac

Make your own cordial

I had two bags of the sour oranges (I will get their proper name) from the dia da troca but what was I going to do with them, definitely not clean pigs intestines, nor did I have fishes to feed the masses that I needed a marinade of that quantity, so instead I made Veronica's cordial.
You take 1litre of the freshly squeezed juice and 500g sugar. You place both ingredients in a pot on the stove and bring it to the boil, then allow it to simmer for approx 15 mins. While that is simmering away, sterilise some bottles you would like to store them in. Once the juice has cooked for 15 min pour into sterilised jars and cap.
Perfect for summer - pour a little into a glass and top with cold water, super refreshing.

Bandarra New video and beauty of Faial

Here is a video by a band we enjoy from Faial- it shows some of the beauty of the Island, and some places we go to eg. - the Caldeira, and also has some shots in the bar "Fim do Mundo" (End of the world) owned by Pat and Manny  - enjoy the music and also the scenery.
Bandarra had a concert in the Teatro Faialense, where they had the release of their new CD - we went along and it was an awesome evening

Dia da Troca

 A couple of times a year we have dia da troca, we get together to swop produce we have an excess of in our garden, or home crafts.  It is absolutely wonderful, you never know what will be there.  Yesterday was the first time that someone brought 2 pigeons.

I seem to go with a bag of goodies and come back with a bulging bag of devine produce.

Lets see, I took some bottles of kefir, grape jam, small bottle marmalade, tobacco seeds, rosemary, lemongrass, sage and eggs from my chooks. I returned with a tea towel that had been crocheted round the edge, celery, two bags of sour oranges (not sure what they call them here) in Faial they use them to marinade fish and clean the intestines of the pig when making linguiça but the lady who gave them to me, makes a great cordial with these beauties. The juice from these sour oranges is cooked up with a certain quantity of sugar, then bottled to be used as and when you like.
 Carrying on, I got a coffee plant, laurel and tamarillo plant (love them) cant wait for their fruit. Some okra and pumpkin seeds, oh and organic toilet cleaner. I mean really how does life get better than this!!

The day was gorgeous, warm sun , no wind and everyone was just so happy to see one another. I left with a super full feeling from a magical day.

Look up www.biclaapedal.com this lady had created wonderful products with up-cycled materials.

Potatoes in the bag

Coming back to the experiment of the potatoes in the bag - I am happy to report they are doing extremely well. The bag has protected the new plants from the wind and I have been able to add more soil, without the birds scattering it everywhere.
The plan now is to keep filling more bags and keep planting, in order to have an on going supply.
You will notice the middle bag has a different leaf, this is a French potato, do not know the name but it was black. I recently bought some Scottish ones, so will give them a go.

Garlic, fava beans and artichoke all doing well.

Whales in the Azores

Here is an interesting video about whaling in the Azores  - WARNING may contain scenes upsetting to some viewers - today the whales are a tourist attraction and there is the opportunity to take whale watching trips to enjoy these beautiful animals






here is a link to the NEW BEDFORD WHALING MUSEUM

Aniversário da Casa do Povo

This is Praia do Nortes Casa do Povo - which translates house of the people or community centre.

Yesterday the new building celebrated its second anniversary, and the 32nd anniversary of the Casa do Povo.
It is believed that this building was funded by a ship that ran aground on Fajas beach. The warm hearted people of Praia do Norte, took the crew and the salvage team into their homes and housed them for quiet some time. To show their appreciation of their kind heartedness they donated a large sum of money which was to go towards the building of a new Casa do Povo. Now it proudly boasts a large hall, with stage and all the equipment to put on a first class performance. Then there is the kitchen with traditional bread oven. Laundry room, doctors consulting room, bathrooms, offices for tax, general room, plus garages for the vans.

The president made an opening speach, followed by the elders singing for us, then lunch and the cutting of the cake. Do you not love the picture of the kids- all the shoes put on the roof of the truck while they all sit in the back playing happily