Sunday 11 September 2011

Croatian Lavender Ice Cream, Hvar 2011


Ok so I ordered the usual Caramel sort of ice cream at the little ice cream shop at the harbour. And then I noticed a sign on one saying 'lavande' so I explained to the guy that I sell Croatian Lavender on my website and I love it as it's sweeter than french lavender, and asked was this really ice cream made from lavender. Wow-wee it was! and he gave me some for free and I loved it!

I was also massivley laid back for the next couple of hours. This soon disappeared though once I had fed (the contents of the local supermarket shelf of dog food) to all the dogs from the mad house down the road from our apartment at Luka's hostel, and they followed me home like the pied piper - I secretly wanted to let them all in to come and play but suspected Helen and Gill wouldn't see the funny side of it. And indeed nor would Nicky the apartment owner who lived in the house next door!

Nicky was telling me how he once had lavender fields but they all burnt in a very harsh summer, but that we had just missed the 3 day lavender festival in his village, I think when they harvest all the fields and began to make the oils. How lovely that people still do such nice things. It reminded me of some good festivals I have been too - one in Figline Val d'Arno where I worked in Florence, at the local village oh my it was such good fun with jousting and all kinds in the middle of the night. And then one in Cyprus, when we went for the Christening of my cousins there, and we took the babies to a night time festival where all the locals gathered and nattered and ate.

I really do love the continent for the family and community values they still retain. Ooh which also reminds me of another festival we (me and my friend Helen) happened upon in Monterosso in the Ligurian Cinque Terre. It was a religious festival with statues carried through the tiny cobbled streets and lots of candles. We met lots of locals and had great fun!

No comments: