Modern Country: Ferie/Holiday

Showing posts with label Ferie/Holiday. Show all posts

End of summer

Hi everyone, how was your summer ? What did you do ?

I hope you had a wonderful time and feel energized and happy now when we are heading towards autumn. Personally I can`t believe that four months has passed and this is actually the end of another summer. The evenings are a bit more chilly now and I am busy harvesting the last tomatoes.

Surely my intention was to update my little blog more often this past season and tell you all about my adventures, but somehow it felt more important to be present and enjoy one of the best summer in years. We did not have a single drop of water for many many weeks, not sure what the farmers felt about that, however I am very thankful for every single ray of sunlight that made my cheeks look red and healthy.

I honestly have not spent much time indoors, being occupied with living life to the fullest. What else could you do when summer seduce with such abundance of lively green and rich flavors of seasonal vegetables, fruits, fish and herbs. And the evenings are filled with conversations while enjoying the sunset when another day is coming to an end. You just have to take it all in.
These moments I will remember and treasure the most when winter is cold and rough.

One morning my husband served me this delicious looking plate. An utterly savory moment I appreciated very much, as he never cooks !

Here a few images I captured this summer.

We watched our friends` lovely little hen house being built, with nest boxes for egg laying and with a couple of perches.

The second time we arrived the hens eagerly waited to get out digging and airing their feathers a little bit.

With silky feathers they are lovely to hold and cuddle.

We took a couple of weeks off and drove to our rented holiday home in Denmark. We spent a few days in Kerteminde, an old market town and fishing port, which lies at the second largest island of Denmark. Beautiful view here at the harbor. I like spending time by the seaside, I feel very quickly energized.

I loved this small fisherman hut painted in black.

Salty air. Smell of fish, tar and rope.

During our stay in Denmark we also had a couple of memorable days at Gelskov Gods. A charming and unusual Bed & Breakfast, combined with art and French Antiques. Although we originally came to celebrate our 17 years together, I left feeling hugely Inspired by the exterior of the buildings and the fantastic interior.

This kitchen !!

Our bedroom had such nice floorboards. And I liked the rather artful solution with an old antique bench for lamps and books as a headboard.

A fabulous old barn crammed full of French antiques and collectables. Only sad that we drove a "tiny little" car.

All Photos © Aina - Modern Country

As I am very much interested in Scandinavian Art, I experienced a few reflective moments here at the museum of Johannes Larsen.

As I have much to recap here in blogland, I can`t wait to read about your summer activities. I am looking forward to blog more often with you also. Do have a nice evening and a glass of wine,

ENJOY A LOVELY WEEKEND !

~ Aina ~

Back from holiday

Hi everyone ! How was your summer ? I hope you had a marvelous few months. Myself was lucky enough to spend a couple of weeks with my husband in one of our favourite scandinavian country, Denmark. Staying there, it is like a feeling of relaxation washing over me like an old familiar friend. I feel safe and calm and it is easy to unwind.

Out in the garden outside our rented holiday home. This is the third year coming back to Lejre, a peaceful cultural village outside Roskilde town. It feels like home now.

The garden is sheltered, lush and green, home for vegetables, lavender, butterflies and also a little family of blackbirds.

There are a lot of different things to explore in Lejre, it is called the "land of the Legends". It is actually an open-air park in the most beautiful Danish countryside, where you can stroll among reconstructions of the ancient living enviroments, like the Age village, the stone Age camp, the viking market and the 19th century farm cottages.

Photos © Aina - Modern Country

The fabulous castle of Ledreborg or Fredriksborg is worth a visit also, but my favourite thing to do is just have a quiet walk or drive around and soak up the peacefulness and the natural surroundings. I could watch the beautiful horses grazing on the fields forever..

Photo credit : Herslev Bryghus

Taking time to unwind is lovely, but of course we could not sit still for long. Lejre is a meetingplace for people with interest in organic lifestyle, myself included. Lejre has the aim of becoming the first "organic municipality" in Denmark, and has therefore a huge number of local farmers and others that produces a healthy and varied range of products. With markets every Wednesday and Saturday, you are spoiled with a large assortment of freshly made salamis, locally produced cheeses (got to have my cheese!!), organic bread, honey, fish, fruits and vegetables.

There are plenty of organic places to visit nearby Lejre, one of them are Herslev Bryghus. A charming micro brewery in the village of Herslev. The day we went was incredible hot and humid, it could not have been a better moment to arrive at their doorstep. It was perfect for a little taste of their cold organic beers. Have you ever tasted beer made with honey and chamomile ?? None of us had. Very surprised by the bitter taste it was not as sweet as I thought it might be. But I really liked their "Midsommerbryg", sweet and light as summer. I had this great plan to take a lot of tasty pictures, well I didn`t. Cooling down was the only thing on my mind...

- The Herslev farm shop is a member of Regional madkultur Sjælland and Culinary Heritage Europe. I loved the look of their shop !These green boxes, what a beautiful way to display your products. I had to buy a bottles of their beer vinegar, curious about how it will work with what I normal cook.

Photos © Aina - Modern Country

Fields of grain nearby our holiday home. I just had to stop and have a look. What a sight..

SIDINGE GÅRDBUTIK OG FRUGTPLANTAGE

We visited a numerous of Farm Shops also, since there is very few where I live. Sidinge (also member of the Culinary - Heritage, region Sjælland Denmark) was by far the most memorable with their wide range of high quality products like their own ageing beer, wine, chocolate, production of different kinds of jams and other delicacy, gift items, vegetables, apples from their own apple orchard and a huge selection of cheese. Homemade jam, chutney and relish are produced in the small kitchen behind the farm shop. I know these delicates goes well with the cheese !

My husband is Dutch, and they are known to be very passionate about their cheese. They eat it for breakfast, lunch, dinner or as snack. So this visit was inspiring for the both of us. I loved their homemade jams and chutney that I brought back, also can`t wait to taste their apple juice. Beautiful bottles, I will use them for water later when emptied...

Photo credit : Sidinge gårdbutik

I am still lingering in vacation mood, although I have been quite busy harvesting, parboiling and storing a lots of fruits and vegetables these last couple of weeks. Telling you more about that very soon. Have a great start to the week !

~ Aina ~

Denmark was Lovely

The view in Denmark is very beautiful. The air is fresh and you are surrounded by small villages, farms and fields.

Midsummer is Scandinavia`s most popular festival right along with christmas. A tradition of the summer solstice, midsummer is the longest day of the year ( June 21) Many had decorated their courtyards beautifully. With flags, flowers and garlands.

Among Danes it is also Sankt Hans aften, which they celebrate on the eve of June 23rd. On that day, Danes sing their traditional "we love our land" and burn straw witches on bonfires. This is also done in memory of the church`s witchburning of the 16th and 17th century.

The sound of peaceful ocean waves...

Denmark has a 7,500 km long coastline with beautiful white sand beaches. It is not difficult to find a favorite place.

Where we stayed - It was quiet and luscious green.

Many of the small farm houses situated in Lejre are built in the French neoclassical style. Many of the buildings also have a characteristic thatched roof. I think it looks like a house you would be happy to live in all your life. Totally charming.

A Jazzy night.

This group of older men have been playing together for more than 35 years. They had so much fun, and so did we. We were the last to leave..

This flower market was a treat. I am always very impressed by the creativity the Danish people put into their Displays. Love this !

Aaah, the fields !

Last evening spent together with our friends in their new built conservatory.

Thank you so much Nils and Solveig for another delightful holiday in your charming village. We both feel the same, relaxed, inspired and utterly happy.

Wherever you are I hope you all have a wonderful July !

~ Aina ~

Hilsen fra Danmark - Greetings from Denmark

Hi everyone!

Just a quick hello from beautiful Denmark. The weather finally turned, so we headed directly to the beach. As we enjoy quiet mornings in Lejre (outside Roskilde), set in the idyllic green surroundings of the Danish countryside, it could not be a more relaxing holiday. Far away from the noise and the hectic life in the city.

This weekend we will attend a little midsummer village fair, with arts and crafts, music and lighting of bonfires. I know many of you also are celebrating, so I just wanted to stop by and wish everyone a wonderful time. Have lots of fun, enjoy the laughter, the food, the dancing and each other.

Ha en herlig St. Hans feiring - trevlig midsommar - have a wonderful midsummer !!

~ Aina ~

Visiting places with Historical building materials

Inne på ett av bordene lå denne herlige stabelen med gamle industrilamper hos J. van Ijken - oude bouwmaterialen BV. En av de flotteste bedriftene jeg har vært hos !! Med hensyn til utvalg, beliggenhet og ikke minst pris. Ta gjerne en kikk på internettsiden for flere bilder..

Dere kjenner vel meg nå, jeg sitter ikke akkurat stille i feriene mine. Og er jeg i Nederland er programmet kanskje litt mer intensivt enn andre steder ettersom jeg kjenner meg litt mer "hjemme" her. Aller først pleier jeg å dra til det lokale markedet. Det blir arrangert ett par ganger i uka. Jeg går ditt fordi jeg vil spise godt, så enkelt er det. Og det er alltid et godt utvalg av grønnsaker, fersk fisk, oster, nøtter og krydder. Jeg savner det fryktelig når jeg nå bor i Norge !! Det jeg så gjør er å lage meg en liste med gamle og nye favoritt butikker og googler meg fram en rute på det Nederlandske kartet, og så drar jeg avgårde med mannen på slep. Det kan være super nifst å kjøre her nede med 4-8 felts motorveier i 140 kilometer i timen, og jeg er en forferdelig pyse i trafikken. Så den stakkars mannen min får bli med overalt da. - Du blir beriket av kultur i ditt eget land, sa jeg til han i går :)

Badekar i stein hos J. van Ijken - oude bouwmaterialen

Inne i de fleste Nederlanske butikker er det ikke lov til å ta bilder, men fritt frem i utearealer hos bedrifter som selger gamle byggematerialer. Og det er så moro å gå rundt å snoke!! Det er så mye fint å finne, gamle badekar i stein, stabler med takstein, snodige svingtrapper i tre, rekker med patinerte dører, dørhåndtak i messing, vasker fra 20 - tallet, flotte håndtak i messing, gamle franske kraner, industrilamper osv..Helt enkelt et paradis for de som har råd og lyst til å skape ett personlig hjem.

Detaljer hos J. van Ijken - oude bouwmaterialen

Tusenvis av med fliser, både ute og inne, i alle mønstre, farger og stilperioder...

Foran inngangen hos Piet Jonker

Det er veldig Inspirerende å gå rundt hos Piet Jonker. Alt er stort, originalt og ekstravagant. Bygget er gammelt, det er høyt under taket med bjelker, hver krok er stemningsfullt belyst, gulvplankene er gamle og brede, og de har på en utrolig kreativ og fantastifull måte skapt en helt unik utstilling. Jeg må si utstilling, for det er ikke lov til å røre noe. Det er helt unikt og verdt turen, men jeg må innrømme at jeg ble litt provosert av prisene. 20 000 Norske kroner for en gammel Fransk lykt er i overkant av som er akseptabelt synes jeg. For jeg har full oversikt over andre steder med de samme produktene til en tredel av prisene !

Gamle franske lykter, statuer, ornamenter og hagemøbler hos Piet Jonker. Men de har så mye mer ! Enorme franske speil, antikke peiser, kirkestaker, glass, bibliotek skap, lysekroner, fullt innredede landkjøkken...Men som sagt, jeg fikk ikke lov til å ta noen bilder inne..