A Greene Christmas

Ho Ho Ho! Tis that time of the year again. Forget the diets; let's eat, drink and be merry!
The Greenies are staying home this Christmas and won't be home alone. Looking forward to all our traditional Christmas cheer, complete with  the Christmas eve  fondue fork fight, bon bon pulling, 'The Night before Christmas'  reading under the tree and nasty Santa. A very relaxed atmosphere is on offer for the big day with a buffet lunch. As it is our hot season, a lot of time will be spent in our togs; drinking and splashing around in the spa.

Naughty or Nice?

In memory of Christmas past,
in celebration of Christmas present
and in high hopes for Christmas future.
Happy Christmas to all & to all a good night!

In the world kitchen! Very Merry Christmas Cheese Cake!

                                              

                                             Deck the halls with boughs of holly,
                                                         Fa la la la la, la la la la.
                                                       Tis' the season to be jolly,
                                                         Fa la la la la, la la la la.

Very Merry Christmas Cheese Cake!   (aka: Bloody ripper of a cake)

Ingredients:

• 500g cream cheese, softened
• 250g ricotta
• 1⅓ cups (295g) caster (superfine) sugar
• 1 tablespoon finely grated lime rind
• 2 tablespoons lime juice
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 4 eggs
• 1 tablespoon cornflour (cornstarch)
• 1 tablespoon water
• 180g white chocolate, melted
• 250g frozen mixed berries

   Biscuit base

• 650g store-bought shortbread biscuits
• 1 cup (120g) almond meal (ground almonds)
• 180g unsalted butter, melted

Method:

To make the biscuit base, place the biscuits and almond meal in a food processor and process until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. Add the butter and process to combine. Using the back of a spoon, press the mixture into the base and sides of a lightly greased 24cm x 34cm rectangular tin lined with non-stick baking paper, ensuring the paper extends 3cm up the sides of the tin. Refrigerate for 1 hour or until firm. Preheat oven to 150°C (300°F). Place the cream cheese, ricotta, sugar, lime rind and juice, vanilla and eggs in a food processor and process until smooth. Place the cornflour and water in a bowl and mix until smooth. Scrape down the sides of the food processor bowl, add the cornflour mixture and the chocolate and process to combine. Pour the mixture over the biscuit base and sprinkle with berries. Bake for 55 minutes – 60 minutes or until set. Allow to cool at room temperature for 1 hour before refrigerating for 3–4 hours or until firm. Using the extended baking paper to help you, lift the cheesecake from the tin and transfer it to a serving dish to serve. Serves 12. 

Tip: The cheesecake can be made one day ahead and kept in an airtight container in the fridge until ready to serve.

Guest blogger! Moody shoes!

A big part of traveling is the treasured pics. Wonderful mementos to ponder for years to come! We have discovered that people not only snap the scenery but tend to follow some quirky themes in their photography. Ghost signs, bicycles, landmarks, funny signs, broom sticks and door knobs just to name a few.

Our dear travel mate Liza Zdravkovic is a superb photographer. Her unique snaps feature in exhibitions around Birmingham. Here are a few of her favourites from her 'Moody Shoes' collection.


                                


                               


                                

                                

                                





You can follow Lisa on tumblr or twitter.

Travel Tip 25!

A nice little memento whilst travelling is to send yourself postcards to read on your return home. Writing how you feel along the way can bring great joy when you are back to the nitty gritty of routine life!

Thanks to the lovely Lisa Zdravkovic for this fabulous idea.

Our backyard! Whitfield ranges!

We are lucky enough to live just up the road from some beautiful walking tracks. The Red, Blue and Green arrow trails wind through the Mt Whitfield Conservation Park; which is located centrally behind the Cairns Botanic Gardens. Mt Whitfield Conservation Park is a 300 ha forested mountain range covered in rain forest, eucalyptus and grasslands.  There are stunning views along the trails and if you are observant, you can see local marsupials such as red-legged pademelons and echidnas.

The Red Arrow Circuit is 1.3 km and takes less than an 1 hour return. It is forested, has some steep sections with two open viewing areas overlooking the city and north towards the airport.

The Blue Arrow Circuit is 5.4 km and takes 4 hours return. It is a rugged bush track with steep climbs. 

The Green Arrow is another steep 3 km track which starts towards the top of the Blue Arrow loop and branches off toward Brinsmead ending in Whitfield.

Inspiration to train for our next challenge!

In the world kitchen! NZ!

GINGER SLICE.

150g butter
3/4 cup brown sugar
2 tbsp golden syrup
3/4 cup plain flour
1.5 tsp baking powder
1.5 tsp ground ginger
1.5 cups whole oats
¾ cup desiccated coconut

Icing150g butter
2 – 3 cups icing sugar, sifted
3 tbsp golden syrup
4 tsp ground ginger

Method

Preheat the oven to 180c. Line a 32cm x 22cm slice tin with baking paper.

Melt the butter, sugar and golden syrup in a large saucepan over a medium heat, stirring gently to combine. Remove from the heat.

Sift the flour, baking powder and ginger into the pan with the buttery mixture. Add the oats and coconut, and fold to combine. Press the mixture into the prepared tin and smooth out with the back of a spoon. Bake in the oven for 15 minutes. Remove and leave in the tin.

Heat the icing ingredients (2 cups of the icing sugar) in a saucepan (just rinse the one you used for the base), stirring over a medium heat until melted. If the butter isn’t all mixing in nicely, add more icing sugar until you have a nice smooth icing – up to a cup more icing sugar. Pour over the warm slice. Leave in the tin to cool then cut into slices. Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a week

                             
Sweet as!

Gypsy NZ! Grog Blog!

Goes without saying!

Gypsy NZ! Road trip travel tips!

 A camping, road trip can give you the freedom to come and go as you please. We have compiled some tips to  help make the gypsy life easier.



*Go to tourist information center when you arrive in a town. They will tell you a suitable place to stay as well as what to do in the area.

*DOC (department of conservation) camp sites are truly beautiful. At $6 per person per night, it is a fantastic to get away into nature. These are very basic camp spots in picturesque surroundings. There are toilets and camp fires and that is about it folks!

*Shop around for tours or cruises. Jucy offers the same deal at a cheaper price. You even get a further discount if you show your Jucy key tag.

*Travel clothes line is great for drying underwear whilst on the move.

*Ensure your fuel tank is full  before you leave each town.

*Make sure you have a couple of basic meals stocked up in case you stop for the night away from a town.

*Golden rule of road trip travel is to be settled in camp site by 4 pm each day.

*Purchase a bucket, so you don't have to leave the van for that midnight wee.

*Read van manual. Then you will realise that ! red light means that the hand brake is still on and not that the engine is going to explode. Knowing your van also helps when it comes to emptying gray water and filling up fresh tank.

*Just because the title has beach in it, don't assume it is anywhere near the beach.


What are you waiting for? Hit the road, Jack!

Gypsy NZ! The Greene road traveled!

We flew into Christchurch to 6 degrees, rain and gale force winds. Beanies, scarfs and extra socks were quickly retrieved from our luggage as we questioned our sanity. As luck would have it; we actually only had 2 days of rain and we acclimatized quite well.

After picking up Jucy, we headed north toward the old whaling town of Kaikoura. Set up camp at the sea side and  then set off to explore the area. Tramping along the coast was an orgy of delight from the colony of seals at Otumatu Rock to the spectacular coastal walk.

Onward bound past Nelson to Able Tasman National Park. Here we booked a short cruise into the national park, where we were dropped off to tramp out. Again , mesmerizing scenery confronted us at every turn.

Down the west coast to Fran Josef Glacier. Our camp  was a surrounded by snow capped mountains and over looked Lake Mapourika . The township of Frans Josef Glacier is very picturesque but the tramp to the glacier itself was not lush. Granite mountains tower above the glacial rivers and waterfalls trickled from the cavernous alps. Having been to the Grandaddy of all glaciers (Perito Moreno glacier in Argentina),  we found it  very enjoyable but not thrilling.

Gateway for the ski bunnies; Queenstown is such a delightful place. We did however have an unfortunate encounter with a hobbit of a man demanding that we move Jucy 2 steps over as we were taking too much space. Brad inquired if he was using metric or imperial as his little hairy feet stepped out the alleged overhang.

Marvelous Milford was a highlight. The scenery; sensational. We camped for 2 nights in the DOC camping sites and much to Brad's delight; campfires were allowed. Time here was spent exploring and tramping through this garden of eden. The Gods must have been with us as the sun shone for our cruise on Milford sound.

Cross country to the east coast, Oamaru was the surprise package. We meandered through its Victorian precinct; sampled scotch, ale and fudge. Once again the camp site was beautiful over looking the inlet. This region is also home to the amazing Moeraki boulders. These unusually large and spherical shaped boulders lie on a stretch of Koekohe Beach . reminiscent of dinosaur eggs.

Akaroa; our final stop before bidding our dear Jucy adieu is a little yuppie, seaside town with boutique restaurants and bars. reminiscent of Sorrento in Vic.

In summation. NZ is breath taking. The panoramic views as we motored around the South were recurrently wonderful. The land of the Hobbits is truly a must do!

 

Gypsy NZ : Road Trip!

Two weeks as nomads (without the grey hair) has been a sojourn of many facets.  We quickly got use to the minky & fuggy cramped lifestyle of living out of a Jucy van as well as an itinerary written on a postage stamp. (Not sure how well the Jucy people clean their vans as a sealed condom made an unexpected guest appearance amongst the dinner plates and postcards suddenly appeared in the most unusual of places).  Apart from these quirky findings, the van gave us freedom to do what we wanted, whenever we wanted. 

Our journey took us through an artist's palette of landscape spectacular. Aquamarine churned through the ocean currents whilst glacier purity suckled from the mountain tops. The hills meandered across the coastline and rivers screamed through the ancient gorges. We headed off on our visit across the land of the 'Concords' with the GPS singing along in the background.

                                           
                                                               Our Beloved Jucy!

                            A hobbit demanded that we move Jucy over 2 steps to the right.
                                                    Let's do the time warp again!

                             DOC campsite. Brad stoked with the elements (fire and beer)

Grog Blog! Texan Style!

As stated in a previous blog; Texan beer is lower in alcohol content than Aussie beer is a myth!

LONE STAR

Brewed from the finest hops in the Pacific Northwest and hearty grains from Central and Northern Plains, this drop boasted a light, natural flavour. Interesting to note that Brad quite enjoyed his slab of Lone star until we reached LX ranch. Cowboy Greg immediately put Brad straight " Do you drink fosters?"

COORS

The secret to a good beer is all in the water. Coors uses only the best; fresh from high in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado. This simple ingredient ensures a refreshing, easy to the palate brew.

Coors seemed to be a better choice. Whilst in Texas, follow the lead of the nearest Cowboy.

ZIEGENBOCK AMBER

Only available in Texas; this lager is a firm favourite. A sweet, smooth taste with notes of roasted grains and a hops finish.

Boutique beer at its finest!

Our Backyard! Chillagoe!

Chillagoe, a sleepy, outback town about 200 kms west of Cairns is a great place to get away from the hustle of city life. After the gold rush era, the population grew to thousands with the mining of copper, zinc and marble being the main industries. Today, however this quaint village is a shadow of its former self with a population of a mere 227 people at last count.

 Chillagoe is known for its magnificent, lime stone caves and as well as the annual wheelburrow race; which sees teams pushing burrows from Mareeba along the historic wheelburrow way to Chillagoe.. There are several hikes you can tramp around the area and you can swim or fish in the Walsh River (if it is not dry). Camping seems the natural accommodation in this setting although there is a motel, guest house and camping huts if you prefer. Like any good outback town, you can choose from the Post Office Hotel or the Chillagoe Hotel/Motel for a counter meal or a drink and a yarn with the locals.

The landmark chimney from the historical smelter site can be seen towering above the sky line. Brilliant blues, reds and greens of nature are in great contrast in this vast country side. The surrounding silence is deafening and the stars scintillate the sky as day turns to night.

A unique experience!

In the world kitchen! Banana bread.

Well, our banana trees have produced again! So we thought we would share an ever faithful banana bread recipe.

Banana Bread

Ingredients:

1 tab butter

1 egg

1 cup sugar

3 mashed bananas

1 1/2 cups SR flour

1 tab milk

1 tab cinnamon

Method:

Mix ingredients together and bake for 35 minutes 200 degrees c.

Easy peasy!

Mooloolabar!

Mooloolabar on the Sunshine Coast in Queensland is a picturesque, seaside "Sloanville".  Along the shoreline the gentle waves dallies with the clean, off white sand.  One end of the beach boasts interesting rock pools to fossick.  An area on the cliff above is delegated to the grey nomads who have their campers and RVs set up on the prime real estate. These little gems of land for the common folk are few and far between. Great to see as most of these water front dinosaurs known as a "caravan Park" have been bought up and made into 5 star resorts.

 The pandanas lined Boulevard is alive with trendy restaurants, cafes and designer label boutiques. Lazy brunches are devoured whilst soaking in the marvelous view. Long leisurely beach walks are compulsory here.

Great place for a few days of R & R.

Death in Dallas

Two painted crosses lie etched on the black asphalt as symbolic representation of the day America lost its innocence.  It is here in Dallas, where three shots reverberated across the world.  As we sit on the Grassy Knoll, and conspiratorial theorists whisper in our ear, we reflect on the images that we saw on 'The Sixth Floor Museum' at Dealey Plaza.  This museum chronicles the assassination and legacy of President John F. Kennedy.  

The museum transports you back to a time where America was embroiled in the McCarthy witch hunts, the 'Bay of Pigs' shambles and an escalation of the Cold War.  An atmosphere builds of impending doom as you walk the same steps that Lee Harvey Oswald, and as you pass exhibit after exhibit a great sadness descends.  You watch, frame by frame the events of that day unravel and you witness a man's life taken from him and a wife trying to hold her beloved's head together.  In the far corner is the assassins advantage point hidden behind boxes piled so high that the afternoon sun casts an eerie silhouette across the room.  As you stare out the window down on to the street below, you see a throng of tourists playing chicken with the on-coming traffic to stand on a cross where the great man was gunned down; they steal the moment, selfie sticks raised sending their images across cyberspace to generate a morbid status updates.

Of all the many Museums that we have explored on our travels, the Sixth Floor Museum at Dealey Plaza has been one of the most moving and unique experience we have undertaken, if ever in Dallas it is a must!

LX Ranch!

One of the main reasons for our visit to the Lone Star State was to have an authentic ranch experience. As we have mentioned before, we first met cowboy Greg and his wife Rhonda on our 2013 adventure around the world. Whilst hiking in the Grand Canyon's Havasu Falls, we were entertained with great stories about ranch life. "Travel is like knowledge, the more you see, the more you know you haven't seen"! So like Jed, the millionaire without the millions, we packed our bags and headed to Amarillo! Greg and Rhonda manage LX Ranch and that is where we enjoyed our unique cowboy experience!



LX RANCH HISTORY!


Family patriarch Lee Bivins acquired the LX Ranch in a legendary coin toss with R.B. Masterson in October 1910. Masterson won the toss and chose land North of the Canadian River leaving the South side with over 30,000 acres to Bivins. LX has been handed down through the generations to its present owner Miles Childers, who started working the ranch in 1965. Over the years, the ranch has increased in size to an impressive 64,000 acres (more than double original size) with over 1600 head of cattle. We had the pleasure of meeting Miles and found him to be an interesting, well traveled and generous man. It was an honour to meet you, Miles.


The history and the buildings on the ranch have been lovingly maintained. The beautiful old, white ranch house with its wrap round verandas is in immaculate condition and full of old time treasures. (Including resident ghost ). One of the store rooms on the property was even once the hide out for Billy the kid!

The ranch is surrounded by a picturesque canyon and land as far as the eye can see. The wild flowers line the dirt roads that lead to the head quarters, two Lakes and surrounding property. Wild plums and berries grow and are harvested to make wine and jam. At dusk the deer frolic a short distance for the homestead veranda and as night falls the fireflies perform a gala dance....... Ahh, a country life!

Bang! Bang! Cool hand Greenies!

A finger trembles, heartbeats crash like massive surf breaks making landfall, a sheen glistens across skin and Serotonin seeps into the blood stream causing breathing to become rapid and muscles to dance involuntarily. Pupils expand as they focus and the metal of  the scope cools overheating skin. Suddenly, a clarity of vision occurs as the target erupts from the darkness. The surrounds seem to dissolve as all attention is directed towards the target; the finger caresses the trigger and as it eases back a concussion of sound swarms and a thump rotates the shoulder, whilst spent shells somersault and fall among the prickly pear. 

Firing a gun, even holding a gun is so foreign to us that it causes a flight or fight reaction to occur. Our body tells us that this is not right, whilst the mind tells us that we can handle this and in fact once that gun gets into your hands fully loaded it becomes intoxicating. The sexiness of the 14 gauge 410 rifle with its carved stock makes it look like a piece of art rather than a potential killing machine, the muscle punching 22 250 rifle that screams when fired and sucks the air from the lungs is a brute of a gun, the 30:30 slams into your shoulder like one of Mick Fanning's Great White Pointer punches, the 12 gauge shotgun spews forth pellets of pain and the baby glock pistol slips nicely into a two handed grip, all provide us with an unique experience that is so alien to us in Australia, but the norm in Texas. Would we do it again? Brad certainly would, Lea on the other hand, probably not!