Skiing Holiday at Big White BC Canada

Mutti's Lentil Soup Recipe

Mutti’s Lentil Soup Recipe

Ingredients:

1 pound of dry brown lentils

3 medium size potatoes peeled and diced

1 Suppengrün (soup mix?) – cut up onion, carrot, leek, kohlrabi

1 cube of vegetable stock

4 german style beef sausages or as many as you like

250 gram (35 oz) Speck or Dörrfleisch see pic

Cover lentils overnight with about 1cm (2 inches) of water above the lentils to soften them. Drain water the next day.

Put lentils in a big pot and cover with water about 15cm (6 inches) above the lentils. Add some salt, vegetable stock and Suppengrün as well as the Dörrfleisch. Bring it to a simmer – never boil!!

About ½ hour before lentils are soft – which is when they still have a bit of a bite to them, add the potatoes as well as the sausages. Take the Dörrfleisch out and cut it up, then put it back to the soup.

Guten Appetit J

The Winner is.... Skydiving

This must have been one of most exhilarating moments of my life...










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Bedtime Story "Sir Rupert, the Gay Knight" [CC]

For Luca, Tyler, Tobian, Madelena, Ina, Marie, Max, Moritz, Philip and Ari.




From Onkel Markus and Uncle Tony :) xx


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Happy 2009

May all your dreams and wishes come true in 2009. Thanks for making this a gr8 night :)



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Frohe Weihnachten, Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah Aussie Style

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Greetings from San Francisco and "Happy Thanksgiving"

San Francisco is one of my favourite City in the US - besides New York of course! I love coming here and I never get bored.
Today is Thanksgiving in the US, one of the most important bank holiday in this country. Besides a few seedy drinking holes and Starbucks most restaurants, shops and museums in town are closed, except in Chinatown, where business is as usual.

Here are 10 things you should do when visiting this fantastic City - besides the obvious touristy things.

1. Start the day with a hardy breakfast at an American Diner
2. Hire a bike, cross the Golden Gate Bridge, continue on to Sausalito, have lunch at Scoma's and then take the ferry back to San Fran.
3. Visit the California Academy of Science at the Golden Gate Park.
4. Make your way to the Top of the Mark bar of the Intercontinental Hotel around sunset. The view is spectacular and the 100 Martinis menu is a reason in itself.
5. Then walk down the Hill to Chinatown and have dinner at the cheap and cheerful House of Nanking or the more upmarket but equally delicious R&G Lounge
6. Check out the more alternative neighbourhood of Ashbury Heights for some groovy second hand shops and organic restaurants. If Thai food is your cup of tea then Thep Phanom is a must at Lower Heights
   
7. Beach Blanket Babylon is an institution in this city. It's an outrages musical revue in its 34th year. Lots of colour and movement and lots, lots of laughter is garanteed - a must do!
8. Afterwards make your way to Amelie, a wine bar on Polk Street. Great selection of wine, great food, great atmosphere, great neighbourhood crowd and very friendly service.
9. At some stage you will end up at Union Square. Why not stop at Scala Bistro for a "Three Martini Lunch". A cool $50 will snag you all the necessary supplies: Caesar salad, grilled flat iron steak with "Cafe de Paris" butter and pomme frites, a small dessert and -- as promised -- three martinis :)
   
10. Last but not least. Just walk around and discover the city for yourself - you won't be disappointed.
    

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The Winner is ... The Wild Boys

Yesterday I went to see a play called The Wild Boys which was absolutely brilliant.
I wasn't sure what to expect. I read up on the story line and I knew it was presented by the Australian Theatre of the Deaf and that Alex Jones and Alexandria Wailes, who I personnally know were part of the cast.

The performance totally blew me away. In all about four words were spoken. The performance was a combination of universal sign language and physical performance. Anyone could have understood what was going, which I thought was extraordinary. The play was not carried by one actors performance alone, but by the whole ensemble (total of 4) and the music accompanying was simple, yet effective.

The play is on until the 29th November. A must see.

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'Yes I gained some weight!' or 'The Yugoslav Connection'

Longtime Friend Lilly Kovacevic, Mo and I

Papa's 76.Birthday, Mo and I

Longtime Friend Luka Vucobratovic, his Mo, Mo and I and gut

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Newsflash - Gay Marriage

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Thanks Orlando :)

The Winner is..... Barack Obama

Yes We Can!
888

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Movember is here!

This one is for Papa!

Movember aims to change the attitude of men towards their health and make men's health fun by putting the Mo back on the face of fashion and in the process raise some serious funds for key men's health issues, including:

Prostate Cancer: because every year 2,900 Australian men die from prostate cancer and over 18,000 men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer.

Depression in Men: because one in six men experience depression at any given time but most don't seek help.

So come on guys, support Movember, get a Mo and make a donation. Pictures of my Mo will follow soon :)




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Oh my God/ Allah / or the One who shall not be named, what have I done!!!

FRI, NOV. 7, 2008

Obama's Loss Traced

To Markus Lessing

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Thanks Kymoftheking

Trick or Treat

Today is Halloween. I don't believe it would make any difference to us Aussies. It's more of an North American thing.

Actually the other day I had a chat with DutchieKiwiAussie about Halloween. She told me that the kids in her neighbourhood will be trick or treat' ing. Last year she was ill prepared, but this year she wanted to make an effort without having to spent to much money. My word of advice was "Don't give them [kids] to much and go to Aldi for your supplies."

I thought to myself 'Thank God/Allah or the one who shall not be named, I don't have to worry about these things here in the big smoke'

Around 4pm today someone knocked at my door . My face was a Kodakt moment when I opened the door or maybe it was Master Card - priceless. Anyhu there they were, six little munschkins- kids that is!
Three of them were dressed as little fairies, one as Superman, one as Spiderman, one was wearing a George W Bush mask - he didn't look as scary as the fairies.

Imagine the dialogue as followed:

Kids: Triiiiiiick oooooor Treeeeeeeaat?

Me mumbeling: SHIT!

Kids: Triiiiiiick oooooor Treeeeeeeaat?

Me: Trick?

One Fairy: Trick???

Me: Yeah, Trick!

Superman: But we want Treat!

Me: But I don't have any Treat!

Another Fairy: No treat? Nothing?

Me : No sorry guys , I don't have anything. Not even gum.

I tell you what, you should have seen the disappointment in their little dark eyes - except George W Bush, I couldn't really see his.. It almost broke my heart

Oh well, such is life, sometimes it just does its own little thing.

However, I believe, Yes We Can make a difference in life and next year I'll make sure I'll have some Treat at home.

Beware and prepared, someone may be knocking on your door tonight.

4ever Kylie Minogue

Kylie and I go way back when I lived in London in the late '80. Kylie back then was Charlene in Neighbours and I was struggling through one of those endless drab English winters. She was my daily highlight at 6pm on the BBC and she got me lost to "Je Ne Sais Pas Pourquoi" and "Locomotion" at Heaven nightclub.
We sort of lost touch when I moved to Canada - nobody knew Kylie in Canada back then. None the less we reconnected again when I came to Australia in the early '90 and we haven't left each others side ever since. I've seen multiple concerts of hers with my camp sister Michael. I even met her on a flight once. I came out of the First Class toilet and she went in after me, to fast for me to warn her....
Anyhu, here is her latest clip. She is fabulous! Enjoy




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Obama vs McCain

Only 14 days to go until we find out who will be the next President of the United States. It's been over two years in the running now and I don't know about you but I can't wait until it's over.
Meanwhile I have come across some online Voting Polls, where anyone in the world can cast a vote. As you can imagine the results are overwhelming pro Obama. Check it out and cast your vote.

http://www.voteforpresident.org

http://www.iftheworldcouldvote.com

http://www.economist.com/Vote2008


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What's your Inner Demon?

Cats! To be honest I am not a big fan off cats - they just make me sneeze. On the other hand I strongly believe that my Inner Demon is a cat, a LeOpard to be precise. I can truly identity myself with most characteristics of a cat. I love their independents and freedom. They do as they wish and can only be tempted by the prospect of food. At times I wish I would be as flexible and athletic as most cats - specially being able to lick my own balls sounds most fascinating. Cats have it really worked out for themselves and only the fact that they can't open a can of cat food, makes them just that little less supirior.
It seems I am not the only one on 888DAG attracted to cats. Just read the posts of Kym of the King and her cat Max or Off the Hoof and The difference between cats and dogs - very funny. The cat is also a popular image used in blogs - Feelion, Off the Hoof, Furball and myself have some sort of cat as a profile image.
So what's your Inner Demon? Or should I ask. What is it with 888DAGgers and Cats?


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Sculpture by The Sea Bondi

Click HERE to see my favourite sculpture.












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Greetings from Hong Kong - Tian Tan Buddha

In all those years of traveling to Hong Kong I always wanted to see the Tian Tan Buddha which is the largest outdoor seated bronze Buddha. Now I had no excuse as it is very close to the Regal Airport Hotel were I was staying last time I was in town. I took the shuttle bus from the Regal to Tun Chung - if you are coming from Kowloon take the MTR to Tun Chung Station. From there a cable car takes you on a beautiful ride with spectacular views up the mountain. Once on top you'll find a little theme park, shops, cafes etc and its only a short stroll to the Buddha. I would also recommend to check out the Po Lin Monastery nearby. The main temple houses 3 bronze statues of the Buddha representing his past, present and future lives as well as many Buddhist scriptures. You will also find people do offerings and prayers.

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A special day

Yesterday was a very special day. It was Miss M's 1. Birthday Party - daughter of DutchKiwiAussie. Going back 12 months ago we weren't sure if we would see Miss M 1. Birthday at all. Miss M was born pre-mature and when I saw her at the hospital she looked so tiny and fractile, in a crib connected to tubes. DutchKiwiAussie's pregnacy was anything but easy, especially at the final stages where she had to be hospitalized and wasn't aloud to move. In order to save the live of mother and child, birth had to be induced. It was a worrying time. But never the less hope, trust and believe was all Miss M's parents had. Therefore yesterday was a very special day and I'm proud that I was able to be part of Miss M 1. Birthday Party and I look forward to many, many more to come.

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Greetings from Sydney - playing Tour Guide

Yesterday I had a friend visiting. Debbie and I used to work together in Toronto 17 years ago at the Royal York Hotel and haven't seen each other ever since. Thanks to facebook we touched base again just a few months ago.
Debbie was on her away from Vancouver to Wellington, NZ and had about 7 hours spare in Sydney. So what do you do if you have only 7 hours in Sydney.
We started off at Mr Ts City Pat in Potts Point and Debbie was blown away by the view :) We then went along Victoria St, took the stairs down to Woolloomooloo, passed Harrys Cafe de Wheel, which is a Must Stop and famous for its Hot Dogs and Pies, mmmh and continued towards the Royal Botanic Gardens. I Love the RBG for its spectacular view of the City and Harbour, its diversity of plants and trees and the fruit bats hanging of trees - such interesting creatures. Once passed through the RBG, there it was, the Opera House, world famous and surely one of the most photograhed structures in the world - we took at least 10 pix! Debbie then took the ferry from Circular Quay to Manly, which is another Must Do and a great way to explore the beautiful Sydney Harbour. She went to see her 80 year old Aunt for lunch and it turned out that her Aunt has not been to the City side for 24 years - bless. I picked Debbie up from Circular Quay 3 1/2 later and drove her to the airport where she caught her connecting flight to Wellington. I hope next time Debbie visits I will have more time to show her around.

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