Museum Mascarade

I am so sorry that my blog didn't get posted yesterday. We came home late, it was 10:00, and I still had to write my blog. Dad had left for a walk and I didn't know his password to log in to his computer. Now that is out of the way and I can tell you what we did yesterday.

First we woke up really late and ate breakfast. We woke up so late because it was pouring. I ate a sandwich with eggs, cheese, and sausage (Kolbaska). I don't know what the girls ate. After we were done with breakfast, Sasha washed the plates and we went to the toy museum where there are toys from a long time ago, till now. There were the toys from the middle ages and even toys from the Stone age! We hadn't even went halfway when we turned around and went back home. Hey, we weren't prepared for the weather. :( When we got to the toy museum, we found out it was closed. and it only opened at 12:00. Luckily it was 10 to 12:00, so we waited a couple of minutes and went in to the building. During those 10 long minutes, Sasha and Isabella fought constantly over awkward stuff which I didn't understand. In the building we found a gift shop, some games and a front desk. Grandma payed for the tickets and we got a tour. First we were shown the game volchek, and then the game were you spin two strings with a bone in the middle. The bone then spins the other way making a strange sound. After that we explored on our own. I played a game called Battle Ship. Sasha and Isabella played hockey, and then Isabella and I played baseball. We played some other games, but then we went to the main room and played there. Isabella and Sasha argued again. Soon we left the museum and met Dad for lunch. After we were finished with lunch we started walking to Kibinas Inn. On the way there we stopped by another museum to see some Chinese art. 

When we came out of that museum, we walked to Kibinas Inn, got me a Kibinai, Grandma a slice of cake, Isabella a muffin and Sasha some ice cream. We walked to my great-grandma's house. On the way there, we stopped by a store to get some food. When we came to my great-grandma's house, dad broke apart her old bed and replaced it with a new bed, with the help of Inga and me. Then we ate dinner and Dad left us for a phone call. When he left, we went to Aunt Nina's house. When we came to her house, we were greeted warmly with lots of talk and black currant. After we ate, the children went to the playground and played for a while. When we went back to our great-grandma's house,we helped dad finish the bed and after that went home. Getting home started our usual evening routine: we washed ourselves in the Jacuzzi upstairs and went to bed. 

Botanical bonanza

Tuesday July 12, 2016

Today we had the best day ever in the Botanical Gardens even though we had to take a trolleybus and a normal bus to get there. It was really annoying doing that because there were flies that always landed on us and it smelled. The bus was better because it didn't smell and drove faster. Getting of the Bus was easy, but then, we had to walk to the destination which was 170 meters away! Oh My God! Okay, to tell the truth it was an extremely short walk. While we were walking Isabella found a frog and i caught it for her and then I let it go. I did this a couple of times in the Botanical Gardens. When we got to the Botanical Gardens, Grandma bought our tickets and we went into the Gardens. I also forgot to mention that there were five of us at the Gardens, Sasha (Alexandra), Isabella, Grandma and Inga. I was there too, of course! After that we went to a Chinese themed pond. On the way there I was telling the girls that a fearsome creature lived at the bottom of the pond and was sleeping, so if you threw even the smallest rock into the lake the creature would awaken and eat you. I told them that the only thing that the creature ate was children and many had disappeared in the neighboring villages. Isabella believed and was freaking out, but Sasha didn't so she stayed calm. Soon we got to the pond and took some pictures. Some of them are shown below:

After we took the pictures, we sat down and ate and pastry each.
Then we talked about food. After that, we took off again. We saw
an arch made of wood. At the arch we turned right and went deep

into the uncharted forest. Okay not so deep. We came out into a clearing where we saw many giant snails. Grandma and I wanted to collect them for supper, but the others didn't let us. After that we went into the forest and there was a wooden sculpture just sitting in the air. So cool! We saw another pond which had ducks in it and they swam to us wanting to get fed but we didn't have any food. We walked on and came to another pond and then a river. The bridge that went across the
 river was covered in crochet flowers. Then the girls
ran to a waterfall that they spotted ahead, yet Grandma,
 Inga and I stayed back and admired the flowers that
grew there. We took some pictures in the flowers and
in the huge wooden apple that was in the middle of a
field. We walked on and spotted some ripe apples,
which we picked and ate. Sooner or later we came
 to a field of Lilies. They where beautiful, gorgeous,
 and I have no words that are powerful enough to describe it. Going on with the blog now. We went on one of the paths and came to a restaurant. Since we were starving we ordered a great amount of food. We ordered two soups, one Russian burger, two batches of pancakes with strawberry jam and two salads. The soups and salads were for Grandma and Inga, the pancakes were for the girls, and the burger was for me. The girls didn't even finish their second pancakes when they declared that they weren't hungry. They went outside to play on the playground and soon came back again because they were still hungry. When we were done, we payed and then we went to the Gardens again. We found a little house made of vines and played in it for a while. Then we found a path and went down it. We stopped at a bush which was a black currant bush. Quickly we stuffed as many currants as we could into our mouths. then we left. We saw another pond with a strange chair. We sat in it and the girls almost started sleeping on me. Then all of us sat down on a bench. Two ducks came to us and we fed them apples. Then we went to a tree-house. Soon we left and saw another sculpture. Then we had ice cream and went to a gallery. Later at about 4:00, we left the Botanical Gardens and sat on a bus, then on another one. Soon we got to my Great-Grandma's house and had dinner. Later Dad, Sasha, Isabella and I walked home and Grandma stayed with Inga to buy my Great-Grandma a sofa.

Traveling with Style and Sweets in Vilnius 2016

Today when we woke up at seven-thirty, we had breakfast and waited for Isabella to wake up since she was sleeping in late. While she was sleeping, Sasha and I worked on the gift that our great-grandma gave us. It was an egg that had an animal inside which grew and broke the shell. We only did our eggs, so when Isabella woke up, she threw a tantrum that we didn't do her's. Of course we got in trouble.We also went to the store with grandma and brought sugar, some water and a couple of fruits. Soon Isabella ate her breakfast which consisted of Russian pancakes and wild blueberries. After that we went to the playground and the girls (not me) were trowing rocks at each other because they were mad at each other. Then we played a game. Later we started moving to the Gedimino Tower. On the way to the Tower, we had ice cream and Grandma had coffee. After that we started on our path again and sooner or later we came to the tower. I took loads and loads of pictures. We went down to the park and played for a while. Grandma said that we had to go, but we still played with a water fountain for a while. Grandma asked for us to go again and we finally went to a little restaurant where our dad met us to say hi. I had a soup made of mushrooms, which I really liked, so I asked Isabella to try it and she loved it. Sasha also tried it and liked it as well. At the end, the girls ate my soup and I had to eat something else.

When we were done, Grandma payed because dad left earlier. We went home and relaxed. On the way home, we saw a beautiful door-nob. Soon my great-grandma and my grandma's sister met us at our house and all of us walked to a restaurant called Lokys and ate. I didn't like my food so I traded my food with Dad. At some point it started to rain, buckets of water poured down, luckily we were inside, so we didn't get wet. When we were done with our food, we walked to the coffee shop near by and ate dessert. I had chocolate potatoes, Isabella and Sasha had chocolate candy, and my great-grandma and grandma's sister, Inga, ate some cake. Later we walked home and chatted for a while, and I had to sit down and write, while my sister and cousin watched movies. (At least we got dessert twice!! ;) )

First Day in Vilnius 2016

Yesterday we landed in Vilnius and got off of our plane. Grandma Anna, Alexandra (Sasha), Isabella, Dad, and I were met by my grandma's friend, Olga, and her her husband, Vaidas. They greeted us warmly and we walked to two cars which they had come on. The adults loaded the first car with our suitcases which we had four of and Dad and Vaidas drove to our rented apartment in the same car. As of for the rest of us, we loaded into the other car and left to the same destination. When we came to the apartment the kids got a slice of pizza and when to bed. It was then when we noticed that we din't have enough beds and blankets/pillows. Luckily Olga went to her house and got us the supplies that we needed. Soon we went to bed. We slept for about 10 hours from 1 to 11.

Grandma, Sasha, Isabella, and I awoke when Dad came home from the bakery and called us down for breakfast. Later, about half an our later, walked to the bazaar and got wild blueberries and mini wild strawberries. We also got water at the store nearby, washed the berries and ate them really quickly. After that, we went to the park and played on the playground. As we where walking to the park we stopped at one of my Mom's favorite stores, but we only stopped at one of them because the other one was not there but a cafe was in it's place. At my Mom's favorite store we bought a ceramic figure for our Christmas tree. We walked back home and each of us did our own thing. Sasha and Isabella played on our iPad's and watched movies, Grandma went through our things to find something that my Dad was looking for, and I washed the dishes and watched some of the movies, and dad went to the airport to get our grandma's sister who was arriving. After that we went to our great-grandma's house and ate dinner there. Our old nanny, Irina, also came and brought muffins for dessert. After we ate, my grandma's sister, Inga, did the children's nails. After dinner, us,children went outside and played with our friends. Then we left for our house. When we came back to our house, we all went to the store and bought some food. After about half an hour, we came back home and had to go to bed, that is when I had to write this blog.

July 21. New Jersey!

Can't believe it's been over a month already!! Been meaning to write about Dima and Nicole coming over and us having some good times together in the UK and then having a weekend of extreme gluttony (Isabella was sick to her stomach) in Vilnius... And our move back to the US! And our first week with Dima in New Hampshire, followed by the next week catching up with our friends in LBI.

And now we are back to stay. And there are some changes in our work lives that would take international telecommuting off the map for the time being. Adjusting to the life in the suburbs. There are still amazing and interesting things happening each day. We just have to look a bit harder. And explore more of what local life here has to offer. We did visit Statue of Liberty in one of our first weekends here... for the first time after 24 years of living in this country. Must say it looks just fine from the boat :)

Until the next time.. Will keep updating this blog .. at least with some food entries :)
 

June 15th. Stonehedge, Salisbury, Bodiam castle, Herstmonceux castle, & Hastings

The week flew by quickly with Dan being away during most of it to attend a meeting in US. On Tuesday morning Georgia and I rode bikes to Teddington lock. We will miss being able to get out of the house and grab our bikes and go without having to drive somewhere first. I've had an evening meeting in London. Got to see Daniel Defoe's grave on the way. In a strange way, it connects some things as Robinson Crusoe was one of my favorite books when I was growing up and Georgia enjoyed it too when her grandpa Michael read it to her over Skype. The author had a fascinating life history.

On Wednesday kids and I went to Yo Sushi for dinner. They are so grown up, confidently picking up the dishes of the conveyor, discussing the choices. It was very enjoyable.

On Thursday kids had some more "grown up" fun with Isabella spending most of the day at the Isabella plantation in Richmond park and Georgia having a playdate with one of her classmates, Oscar. Back to my favorite topic, she'd shared that she had trifle, the British parfait desert, for tea. We looked it up and decided that we will need to make it at home. Amazing that this had come up so late during our stay here. We did see those things sold in the supermarket in the yogurt isle and kind of ignored them until now.

On Friday we welcomed Dan back together with Dima & Nicky. Dima is the most faithful visitor, having come 3 times during our stay here. So wonderful! We walked them through completely finished marketplace and the boardwalk. Had dinner @ Las Iguanas. All very nice.

This was our last weekend of exploration. On Saturday we headed out to the Stonehenge for the final time. Even though we saw it with Dan's parents, Romiks, Kostik, Dima (2), Coray, by ourselves a few times, it really does look different each time. This time the surrounding fields were alight with fiery poppies. The next stop was Salisbury. We started with the Cathedral. By chance we noticed that it features one of four original copies of Magna Carta. Discoveries are continuing! Nicky was really excited because she had recently studied about it in school.

Had disappointing lunch at the Mill Restaurant - nothing on the menu would harken for repeat visit. Really, having such a lovely location should not be an excuse. Plus Georgia chocked on her food. For real.I thought she was being nauseous but Dan came up on time and did Heimlich maneuver and rescued her.  Then we finished our visit with viewing Doomstay painting @ St. Thomas church. Just like with the Stonehenge, new aspects of it are revealed each time.

Then we rushed to Ricardo & Irina. I've miscalculated our traveling time and had left them starving for hours in the midst of exceptional, completely exorbitant Brazilian meal they prepared for us. We had a wonderful time with them. The weather was perfect - sun lit up fenced up backyard with its large lawn, tree house and climbing wall. Adults also sat outside at a grand table. The hosts completely transformed the Victorian house we saw about a year ago by knocking down the living room wall separating the narrow kitchen from the never-visited living room and expanded the house into the back yard creating huge, modern open space ideal for entertaining.

On Sunday we drove to Bodiam Castle. Entertaining exhibits provided the most in-depth coverage we ever saw on the subject of bathrooms in castles. It was a very nice castle. Staff members were dressed in period costumes and really added to the atmosphere. Highly recommended for kids and adults. It was Nicky's first castle. Then we crossed the road to visit antique car show. It was very enjoyable too - it is not that often that you see this much variety and history of car manufacture together. Dima and Nicky particularly enjoyed it.

The next stop was Herstmonceux Castle. It had an interesting history. It is pretty unusual to see a castle of this size made from the red brick. We did not go in but took a long walk through the range of different gardens: rose, herb, magical, folly and more behind the castle. At one point Dima stepped away to read one of the signs on the trail. After he came back I went to read what it said too. He had a strange expression when I passed him like he did not want me to see what it says. The sign was about the snakes one can find in the area. As I was reading, Dima called out: "Look to your left very carefully." I shuddered and looked, but there was nothing. Very funny!! In general there is only one venomous snake in England. It has clear diamond markings and generally prefers to stay out of the way. There is also another "popular" snake that is not venomous. It has yellow "collar." When someone approaches it, plays dead by secreting red liquid near its month and releasing foul odor. Foul odor aside, I'd like to see that.

We heard a peacock and walked over to see if tail feathers were available for picking. Not really as the male had itself perched high on the tree. Dan & Dima tried to initiate a conversation by making a sound through a grass between the palms. Georgia, Nicky and I learned to make this sound as well. So cool. After going about it for a while Dan managed to elicit a very loud reaction from the peacock after all. Probably asking to be left alone :) Incidentally the sound is very similar to the mating call of the black and white ruffled lemur :).

Passed a garden with a tiny fake house in the front. It just had a small narrow room between the front door and back opening to the garden. The house was called "Folly." Like a doll house for the grownups.

We got back on the road and finished our day of travels in Hastings. Really lovely town. Walked through the fishermen's area. Cute black smoking huts but the area kind of looks like that business is all but abandoned. We climbed the hill for the final views of the town and harbor. Walked down to enjoy lattes and cake at Hanushka café.

Busy week ahead!!

June 15th. Southern Pecan Pie Recipe

I've long been thinking of starting a separate blog related to our favorite family dishes. In the end decided to keep them all here. I am really really hoping to get the family to contribute some of the favorites that everyone loves. Please reach out to be added as a writer to the blog or just email me the recipe.

So here is the first one: Southern Pecan Pie Recipe

We've been craving the real pecan pie. But some of the ingredients such as molasses and corn syrup and pie crust were hard to come by. After much pointless searching we got brown sugar and dark treackle syrup which a simple Wikipedia search would instantly reveal as molasses. So here is the recipe. It was adopted for local ingredients from this absolutely wonderful recipe courtesy Cynthia Ann Briscoe of Alabama. It is very easy to make with kids.

Cook Time:  5 Minutes 
Prep Time:  10 Minutes 
Bake: 55 Minutes

Ingredients:
1) 2 12oz packages of soft pie crust dough: some US supermarkets sell already frozen deep dish dough in aluminum pans - those are the best
2) 1 cup  molasses
3) 0.5 cup dark brown sugar
4) 2 tbl spoons of bourbon/whisky
5) 0.25 cup of water
6) 4   large eggs
7) 0.25 cup  melted butter
8) 2 tsp vanilla extract 
9) 0.5 tsp salt 
10) 1.5-2 cups pecans: it is better to get a 2 6oz packs of chopped & halves; chopped for the inside, halves for the outside design respectively
11) 1 cup  (6oz) semisweet or dark chocolate morsels 

Instructions:
1) Fit piecrust into the deep-dish pie dish
2) Combine molasses, brown sugar, bourbon & water. Bring to boil over a medium heat. Cook, stirring constantly for 3 minutes. It may increase in volume so keep on eye on it so it does not escape from the pot.
3) Combine eggs, melted butter, vanilla, & salt and whisk together
4) Slowly add hot molasses mix to the egg mix taking care not to cook the eggs in the process - add very slowly constantly whisking
5) Add 1 cup of chopped pecans & 0.5 of chocolate morsels
6) Pour mixture into prepared piecrust.
7) Lay out halved pecans and remaining chocolate morsels in a decorative pattern
8) Bake in a pre-warmed oven at 325° for 55 minutes or until set. Cool outside.

We ate it far too quickly to produce a more presentable picture. At least maybe this one is an indication that it is highly eatable. Maybe next time.

June 13th. I demand free champagne for my 4 year old!

Dima & Nicky are here! While working on the plans to visit London they looked up this link regarding the London Eye pricing. Apparently Champagne tasting trip is 35.04 pounds if you are adult (16+) or child (4-16). But those under 4 get in for free. That is to diversify from the whisky or chocolate tasting  experiences that have a flat price regardless of the age. OK. It is not self serving since Isabella over 4 but I think it is slightly unfair and demand justice for other parents!!

June 10th. BTInternet Service cancellation. Parts 2, 3, and 4. OMG!!

OK. So I called to BTInternet last week to cancel our service even though we are still alive. The last time we've agreed that although we are leaving on the 28th, BT only cancels service on the weekdays so the official last day will be the 30th. And following that they will send a cancellation letter with the final bill to the non-existent mailbox for no one to receive. That was their deal.

All good... but something was still nagging me. So I called back late last week and went through the usual "Are you dead yet?" routine with the automated answering system. Then I spoke with the rep regarding whether to return the equipment. 'Cause you can never be too sure when they will suddenly remember and start charging you for it ad infinitum. The rep cheerfully informed me that there is nothing to do about the equipment. "Like it is OK to throw it out?' I've asked. "Sure, anytime."

Then, a few days later, I got a letter stating that on account of the cancellation, box to deposit the equipment was dispatched. I am to put the equipment in the box and send it out or arrange a pick up to avoid the equipment charges.

So I called back again. After the death part there was the usual, "Not to worry" sequence. But they sensed a bit of discomfort and redirected me to another team. There, a girl informed me that for my convenience the box will be sent out on the 30th. I've countered that we will be out of the house on the 28th. She countered that they do not provide boxes with shipping labels until the account is closed. I've countered that we will be out of the house on the 28th. She said she is trying to be helpful so she will schedule for someone to come pick up the equipment on the 13th. I've countered that we will be out of the house on the 28th. We'd compromised on the 27th. Based on the fact that no one had shown up for the prior 3 house calls to fix the cable box, we'll be putting the equipment in the dumpster come June 28th. Or we will have to fight for it on the 13th.

Maybe they were onto something with the automated telephone system message?  

June 8th. Farnham & Alice Holt forest

Some of our best sightseeing experiences were in the South so in the morning we headed out to Farnham to see the ruins of the Waverley abbey. The weather was perfect. It was amazing how quickly the summer had some and everything around had started to bloom.

The ruins alongside a small river with yellow water lilies were very scenic. It was also great that there was no one around for some time so we took our time enjoying the scenery. After the abbey, we drove up a few miles to Farnham to see the castle keep.

It was built around the same time as the abbey and hardly anything had remained besides the walls but in its heyday some 800 years ago the castle has a well tower that was built in the center of the keep. It had the walls 3 meter thick that ran into the base of the castle below - some distance below the ground level and the castle was built on a hill. Pretty impressive feat that probably made it one of the most capable castles in the area for withstanding a siege.

We caught lunch in, as Georgia calls is, "very posh" Farnham. It is clearly a very upscale area - both from the look of local real estate office listings that do not feature anything bellow a few million pounds and Waitrose supermarket, hidden away in a nook with similar fine establishments.

We had stopped at the Maison Blanc - highly recommended for lunch and desert. Isabella downed her red lentil soup with surprising alacrity. I had eggs, cheese, and smoked salmon that arrived in a very hot clay bowl - the eggs were still raw when they brought it out. Would be cool to try it at home.

After lunch we drove a bit more down South to Alice Holt forest. It was an interesting experience. The "forest" was highly developed with crowds of people walking and cycling around myriad of roads and trails. We ventured into the "wild part" only to emerge, to Isabella's relief back on the trail in about 100 meters. They did have some of the nicest most interesting playgrounds I've ever seen.

We drove back home after a while... After dinner we sat downstairs on the boardwalk and watched the sunset and swans floating around. Kids did some drawing. It was a perfect way to end the weekend. We do miss our friends and are looking forward to seeing them again soon.     

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