Max es un personaje de ficción que recorre diferentes centros escolares europeos en busca de información de cómo celebran los estudiantes festividades típicas de cada país y recoge, al menos, una receta que haya saboreado en dicho país.
Las historias que vive Max las cuenta en forma de carta, cartas que envía a su amigo Marc, que vive en Bruselas.
Nuestro personaje fue diseñado por alumnos/as polacos/as y fue en España, en nuestro Centro, donde le dimos vida en forma de muñeco de tela.
Máx viajó físicamente desde España a Polonia y de ahí a Finlandia, seguidamente se dirigió a Rumania y a continuación viajó hasta Irlanda. Su último destino fue Ucrania y de allí voló de nuevo a España donde fue recibido con grandes muestras de cariño.
En cada uno de sus destinos se hizo fotografías con los alumnos y alumnas celebrando la festividad de ese país.
Gracias a la colaboración de la Biblioteca de nuestro Centro conseguimos imprimir 25 ejemplares de nuestra historia. Aparte de enviarle un ejemplar a cada uno de nuestros centros socios, también compartimos ejemplare con diferentes personalidades del ámbito educativo extremeño así como del político. En las Bibliotecas públicas de Mérida también hay un ejemplar de La Odisea de Max, así como es lógico, en la biblioteca del Centro.
Os dejamos algunas fotografías del libro.
Llegados a este punto, nos gustaría agradecer a nuestro Presidente de la Junta de Extremadura: Guillermo Fernández Vara, que nos haya dirigido tan bellas palabras después de recibir y leer nuestro libro.
Os dejamos algunas fotografías del libro.
Llegados a este punto, nos gustaría agradecer a nuestro Presidente de la Junta de Extremadura: Guillermo Fernández Vara, que nos haya dirigido tan bellas palabras después de recibir y leer nuestro libro.
En primavera, seguramente, nos visitarán nuestros socios irlandeses a través del programa Move2Learn y podremos por fin conocer físicamente a los alumnos y alumnas, así como a sus profes.
Sólo nos queda compartir con vosotros la versión digital del libro.
Es una versión completa del libro, incluidas fotografías tomadas en cada uno de los países visitados por Max.
Chicos y chicas, como os prometí días atrás os transcribo la historia de Max. Si es demasiado complicada para algunos de vosotros podéis utilizar el traductor del blog.
Espero que sigamos disfrutando de la aventura de Max, tanto o más que cuando se fue creando.
- Introduction…………………………………………………………..page
3
-
Chapter I. “Chaquetía Day”…………………………..page
4
- Chapter II. St. Andrew’s Day –Andrzejki….page 11
- Chapter III.Max
and Santa……………………………..page17
- Chapter IV.Matisor Day…………………………………….page
20
Chapter V. St. Patrick’s Day…………………………..page
29
- Chapter VI Easter in Ukraine………………………..page 41
Epilogue…………………………………………………………………….page
46
“Cuando tuve de Nuevo a Max entre mis manos
cerré los ojos e intenté imaginar todo lo que aquellos hermosos ojos azules
habían visto y vivido en su odisea por diferentes colegios europeos”.(Teresa
Sánchez Marcos)
Introduction
The alarm went
off and although he had only slept a couple of hours he jumped out of bed,
leaving the pleasant warmth of it to embark on the adventure that awaited
him.
He had spent the day before packing. He was going to make the most
exciting journey of his life, he would tour Europe visiting some schools
and knowing firsthand how some parties were held in those countries.
What clothes had he to wear? The destinations were Spain and Poland
during the autumn, Finland and Romania in winter and finally Ireland and
Ukraine in spring. He chose not to carry much luggage and buy typical clothes
in every place.
He lived in the Rue de Treves at number 81 near the "Classroom
of the Future" in Brussels. Indeed, he was Belgian and his native
language was French but he could defend himself in all
countries because he had a good grasp of the English language and knew
that in all the places where he would go, English was studied as
a second language.
When he was ready, his friend Marc drove him to the airport and
stood there, watching as the plane in which his best friend was now seated
in took flight. They were going to be separated for many months but Max
had promised to send him many letters describing everything that he saw and
experienced in detail. He would also enclose photographs and drawings from the
students.
Chapter I. “Chaquetía Day”
In Merida, October 28th, 2016
Dear Marc!
How are you? I
hope you are well.
I am already in
Merida, at last. It's my first destination and it's been incredible.
Teresa Sanchez,
one of the English teachers of the school, came to meet me at the airport and
took me directly there because they were going to celebrate "La
Chaquetía" that same day. You are probably wondering what Chaquetía is? it
is the festivity that they celebrate in Merida coinciding with Halloween.
It's amazing to arrive in the city Marc and
see its imposing Roman buildings. We will both have to take a leisurely trip
when I finish my travels across Europe and enjoy the architectural wonders of
the place. Antigua's school is tiny, no more than 200 students and about 20
teachers, but it's a place where you feel good because it's like a big family
where everyone knows each other and cares for each other. And now it's time to
go and celebrate "La Chaquetía". The entire
educational
community and I head towards an esplanade where there is a medieval
hermitage called
"Ntra. Sra. de la Antigua ", yes, yes, like the school and something
curious has happened, the students have adopted it and take care of it with
much affection. For example, they share some festivities with her, like this
one today.
- I'll tell you how I celebrated the event.
La Chaquetía was very funny, Flor, the director had made quince candy and we
mixed it in a piece of bread with cheese. She gave me the recipe, I am also
sending it to you because it does not seem difficult to make and it tastes
delicious. The students sat in groups forming circles, in the shade of the
hermitage and shared their "Chaquetía", that is to say, they all ate
everything, because it encourages sharing. La Chaquetía is composed of
ingredients such as walnuts, almonds, chestnuts, hazelnuts ... and also
grenades, figs, mandarins, grapes and quinces.
But they did not
just share with each other. A few meters from the hermitage there is a center
where the elders of the city meet during the day, and can you guess what is
called? Exactly, La Antigua. Many of these elders are the grandparents of the
students and it was very emotional. The
grandparents had
a fire where they were roasting the chestnuts that the children brought but
first the professors split them because if they did not do they said that the
chestnuts may explode. Then
they made small,
little packets with paper and put several chestnuts inside them, they were
delicious!
I made an incredible discovery Marc. One of
the elders told me that The Procession of the Souls was a widespread tradition
in Extremadura in the XIX during the night of the dead, on October 31. The
souls, who were people dressed in black or white, walked the streets of the
village asking for money while going from house to house. And it used to end up
in the cemetery. I deduce that Halloween was already celebrated here before the
Europeans arrived in America and took with them the Celtic Halloween celebrations.
It really shows that in this area there must have been Celtic settlements and
its culture still survives.
There is more to tell you. When they
finished sharing their "chaquetías" and roasting the chestnuts, they
began to play. They were traditional games, from those of yesteryear. Even some
grandpas and grandmas participated as well. It was hot, very hot. I have been
told that it has been a very hard summer and that there have even been days of
45º C. and it was apparent that autumn had not yet arrived. Luckily there was a
very large fountain where we were and we were able to quench our thirst.
After two hours the professors gathered their
groups of students and we returned to the school. Some children had kept their
packet of roasted chestnuts to share at home with their families. Marc, this
celebration has been a real lesson of sharing.
Before leaving I
had been given drawings, photos, videos and letters ... For the moment I am
sending you this letter, some photos and also some drawings where I will
explain to you what they are doing.
When the time for
the farewell came, there were hugs and tears. It's funny, the Spaniards love to
hug and kiss, I really felt at home.
I am writing to
you from the plane that is taking me to Poland. I am loaded with very good
memories and with the hope of continuing to enjoy myself while I go through the
different European centers that I have been commissioned to visit.
Your friend Max
(By Teresa Sánchez
Marcos from Spain)
“Dulce
de Membrillo" Recipe
Ingredients:
-
Quinces
-
sugar
Elaboration
The quinces are
washed and covered with water in a pot. They put on the fire the necessary time
for the punctures with a fork to be soft.
They are allowed
to cool, peel and remove the seeds.
We added the same
amount of sugar that we have of fifteen.
Example: For 1 kg
of quince 1 kg of sugar.
From here there
are two ways to do it.
The traditional
one:
You pass through the mixer the fifteen and the
sugar and put the pot to the fire, it is spinning (with a wooden spoon) until
it acquires the desired texture. We must be careful because it splashes and we
can burn.
The modern one:
It is passed through the mixer and placed in a
microwave-safe container. At maximum power is put in periods of 5 minutes and
meet until it acquires the desired texture.
Chapter II. St. Andrew‟s Day –Andrzejki
In Bialystok, November 29th, 2016
Dear
Marc!
We
haven‟t seen each other for over a month. How are you? I
hope everything is fine.
I
am already in Poland which is my second destination. I have never been here
before and I haven‟t expected that it is such an amazing
country. It‟s not only because of its outstanding beauty but most
of all because of exceptionally friendly and hospitable people I‟ve
had a chance to meet.
As
I managed to find out, Bialystok is the largest city in north-eastern Poland
serving the function of the capital of Podlaskie province. It is the
administrative, economic, and academic centre of the region which, due to its
exceptional environmental assets, has been termed the Green Lungs of Poland. As
an interesting side note, I can add that Bialystok is also the place of birth
of LudwikZamenhoff, the inventor of the artificial language Esperanto.
On
the day of my arrival, late in the evening, I was also invited to a traditional
Polish dinner. I will never forget the taste of Polish “pierogi‟,
“bigos‟ and “babkaziemniaczana‟.
Everything was so delicious! I took some recipes.
Now
let‟s
come back to the celebration of “Andrzejki”. I learnt that the tradition of
“Andrzejki” fortune telling was noted in the 16th century and it is still known
and practiced in all regions of Poland. However, nowadays the ceremony has lost
a lot of its magical and serious character and has been transformed into fun
and games during St. Andrew parties arranged by young people.
The
next day, early in the morning, Dorota took me directly to her school where I
was going to see the Polish celebration of St. Andrew’s Day called “Adrzejki”.
Soon after we arrived at a place I was shown around the school and got to know
some
interesting
facts. The school is quite big, about 500 primary students and 45 teachers. It
was named after Kazimierz Górski who was an outstanding coach of Poland
National Football Team. What is special about this school is that it is
sport-oriented and well equipped with sporting facilities. I could see many
students playing football and volleyball both indoors and outdoors. They were
enjoying themselves a lot.
I tell you how I celebrate this event with
Polish students and their teacher from SzkolaPodstawowa nr37. It was a very
special afternoon which brought me loads of fun! The students showed me a lot
of ideas of how to find out about the future, namely the marriage, lucky or
unlucky love and prosperous or poor perspectives. The most spectacular was
pouring hot liquid wax through a keyhole into cold water. The shape of the
solidified wax was supposed to represent something that would happen to us in
the upcoming year. After unlimited interpretations of wax shapes, we took part
in the shoes race. Everyone took off their shoes and put them in a line one
after the other. Then, we moved them gradually one after the other in the
direction of the door. The owner of the shoe which reached the doorstep first
would obviously be the first one to marry. After knowing the result of the
shoes competition, it was the time for other fortune telling practices such a
palm reading, horoscopes, astrology, magic box or crystal ball. There were lots
of laughing while students were piercing the heart with either females or male
names on the back. Girls and boys stuck the needle into the heart from the
other side, so that they couldn´t see what was written there. The little hole
in the paper heart showed them the name of their future spouse. I must say that
I also really liked the idea of the cups flipped upside down. Under three cups
were placed in sequence: a ring, a coin and a leaf. Then the cups were mixed
and students were supposed to choose one of them. Choosing the ring symbolized
a happy love, the coin would bring us money, whereas the leaf was the
announcement of the wedding. The last idea were fortune cookies. You will never
guess what prediction I found inside my fortune cookie! I will keep it a secret
till we meet!
Our
St. Andrew´s celebration lasted only two hours but I will always remember this
special party and I´m very grateful for the invitation to participate in it.
I´m sending you photos from my greatest
memories and I also enclosed a recipe for these amazing fortune cookies!
Tomorrow
I’m leaving for Finland. I know that it will be difficult to say goodbye to
Polish friends but I believe I will come back there one day.
I
will write to you soon.
Your
friend Max
Fortune cookies recipe
Ingredients
2 egg whites
75 g (⅓ cup) caster sugar
50 g (⅓ cup) plain flour,
sifted
30 g butter, melted
14 paper messages
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 180C. Use a
pencil to mark two 8 cm circles on a sheet of baking paper, flip paper over and
place onto a baking tray.
Beat egg whites in a small bowl with
an electric mixer until soft peaks form. Gradually add sugar, mix until sugar dissolves.
Add flour and butter and beat on a
slow speed until smooth.
Working in batches of two, place a
teaspoonful of mixture onto each circle on the baking tray. Use the back of the
spoon to spread evenly to cover circle completely.
Bake for about 5 minutes or until
golden around edges.
Working quickly loosen cookies from
tray using a spatula.
Place a paper message in the centre
of each.
Fold hot cookies in half, pressing
edges together.
Gently bend each cookie over the side
of a glass to form a crescent shape. Place onto a wire rack to cool.
Repeat with remaining cookie mixture.
Chapter III.Max
and Santa.
In Rovaniemi, December 26th 2016
Dear Marc,
How are you? I wish you Happy New Year 2017!
I decided to spend Christmas time in Rovaniemi in Lapland, Finland. The
Finnair Santa flight from the capital of Finland Helsinki to Rovaniemi arrived
on time. Rovaniemi is Santa’s official home town in Lapland.
The city of Rovaniemi was decorated for Christmas time. There were
beautiful Christmas trees with lights all around the city. The weather was
freezing cold. So I had to do some shopping. I bought warm winter clothes, e.g.
woollen
mittens. I also bought soft reindeers as souvenirs.
In Rovaniemi I visited Santa Claus Village on the Arctic Circle. In
Santa Claus Village there were Christmas trees, snowmen, beautiful lights and
ice
sculptures. In Santa Claus Village I crossed the magical Arctic Circle
and had a chance to meet Santa Claus. It was great to meet Santa Claus himself.
I have always wanted to ask Santa how old he is. Santa told me that’s something
not even he can remember exactly.
One of the most interesting places was Santa’s post office. Santa’s
Elves were sorting out letters from all over the world. I got a very special
chance to see Santa’s workshop. There were big and small presents waiting for
delivery on Christmas Eve.
In Santa Claus Village, there were reindeers with a wooden sleigh. I
jumped on the sleigh and rode like Santa through a snowy forest. For the first
time in my life, I saw The Northern Lights. In the evening it was fun to go to
the sauna and swimin the snow.
On Christmas Eve I was invited to a Finnish Christmas dinner. As a dessert I tasted gingerbread cookies. I
liked them a lot. I sent you a gingerbread mould with a recipe for gingerbread
cookies. So you can bake them, too.
I took videos about Rovaniemi city and Santa Claus Village. I hope you
enjoy them.
Best wishes
Max
(By Tuire Kokko from Finland)
Gingerbread cookies recipe
(makes about 45)
Preparation time: 30 minutes
Cooking time: 10 minutes per batch
Oven temperature: 400°F (200 °C)
125 g margarine
3/4 dl dark syrup
1 dl granulated sugar
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp ginger
1 tsp ground gloves
1 tsp grated orange rind
1 tsp cardamom
1 tsp baking soda
4 dl white flour
1 egg
Chapter IV.Matisor Day
In
Oradea, February 1st, 2017
Dear
Marc!
Finally, after a long way, I arrived
in Romania. I will stay with them a few days and then I will continue my way to
Ireland
After arriving in Romania, I
discovered that here they have another "Valentine's Day", which is
called "Dragobete". Then I learned about "Mărţişor",
another Romanian celebration. I like
holidays, so I was very happy.
Today, March 1st, in Romania is
celebrating "Mărţişor Day" symbol of the spring arrival. This
morning, when I came to school, I saw that the streets were filled with vendors of trinkets (mărţişoare).
In the classroom I was expected from the fourth grade students who gave each
other trinkets (mărţişoare). They gave me one, too. I'll take it with me in
Ireland.
I will add some information with my letter about Dragobete and Martisor.
After some beautiful days spent in Romania I
am ready to go. Tomorrow morning I will say goodbye to my Romanian friends and
I will fly to Ireland. I hope to go faster than ever in Romania.
I will tell you soon what I've done here.
Love
Your friend Max
Dragobete: Lovers’ Day, in Romania.
Dragobete, the
traditional lovers’ day in Romania, is celebrated on February 24th ,
ten days after the Western European and American counterpart Valentine’s Day.
The Dragobete traditional story goes that, clothed with holiday suits, young
men and women in front of the church and go searching the woods and meadows for
spring flowers. They sit around fire on the hills of the village and talk. At
noon, the girls run to the village, each followed by one boy who had fallen for
them. If the boy is fast and reaches the girl o his choice and if she likes
him, she kisses him in front of everyone. This tradition triggered the
expression “Dragobete kisses the girls” (Dragobetesaturafetele). The kiss show
the two lovers’ engagement. Dragobete being an opportunity to show the love in
front of the community.
There are a number of
Dragobete customs in rural areas, many of which are not kept by modern
Romanians anymore. On this day, no animals are sacrificed because it would ruin
the point of mating. In the old days, single women used to gather the last
remnants of snow, called “the fairies’ snow”, and the water resulted from the
melted snow was used throughout the year for various beauty treatments and love
spells.
The tradition goes that men should not hurt
women, nor argue with them, otherwise they will not do well the whole year.
Youngsters believe that on this day they should be joyous and respect the
holiday, so that they can be in love the whole year.
Modern Romanians embraced Valentine’s Day
in the early 90s. More recently, a new movement has emerged in Romania -that of
celebrating the traditional holiday instead of what is seen as the commercial,
Western European-imported celebration. Bar and clubs organize Dragobete-themed
nights, media outlets put up campaigns to remind Romanians of their traditional
holiday.
Martisor: one of
the most representative of Romania’s traditions.
The Martisor, a spring token, a tiny
adornment tied with a red and white entwined cord, is one of the most
representative Romanian traditions that is 8,000 years old when people used to
give each other red and white pebbles in a string as a gift.
Martisor a
genuine Romanian holiday celebrates the arrival of spring. Young ladies and
women dear to us receive these spring tokens on March 1st, the
Martisor day. It is believe to bring joy and good luck. In Bukovina
(North-Eastern Romanian province) men
who receive Martisor.
It is a red and white entwined cord, the
red symbolizes the winter and the white one the spring. The little jewel
(thing) may be a symbol of good luck such as a three-leafed dove, chimney sweeper or a heart.
The spring token is worn for a week or two,
on outer garments as a brochre. Archaeological discoveries revealed that the
firs spring day was celebrated even 8000 years ago. Roman time’s Martisor were white and red pebbles in a string.
Like in ancient times, they were coins tied
by black and white wool threads. Gold, silver or bronze coins were chosen
depending on the social status. They were worn round the neck or the wrist and
were later named marts or martigus (diminutives for March).
The Dacians
(Romanians’ ancestors) believed these amulets brought fertility, beauty and
prevented sunburns and they wore them when the trees started blooming and they
were laer hung on the tree twigs.
Folklore scientists found Martisor variants
in the ancients civilization as well and they think they are directly related
to God Mars’ heralds, because it was on Mars ides when snow was not melted yet
throughout the Roman Empire, When military campaigns could start. Therefore,
red and white means exactly that day, as well as vitality and victory, on one
hand and purification and inauguration on the other.
It was also said that white and red were
strong amulets against evil eye and a token of purity and innocence.
The Romania folkloric tradition also
relates Martisor to the legend of Baba Dochia. Martisor custom is part of the
ritual scenario of the time’s renewal, Dochia’s symbolic death and birth.
According to the traditions it was even Dochia who was spinning the threads
while she was driving the sheep back up to the mountains. Thus, because
Martisor is inseparable from Dochia tradition in the Carpathians we can
certainly say it is a very old Romanian custom found in all the areas where
Romanians and Aromanians live, later taken over by other south-eastemEuropean
peoples.
Source: Romanian
National News Agency
Mince Pie
Ingredients
1 large jar mincemeat (about 600g)
2 satsumas, segmented
1
apple (finely chopped)
. zest 1 lemon
. little icing sugar, for dusting
For the pastry
375g plain flour
260g unsalted butter, softened
125g caster sugar, plus extra for
sprinkling
1
large egg. plus 1 beaten egg for glazing
Method
1.
Place the flour and butter in a bowl and rub together
to a crumb consistency. Add the sugar and the egg, and mix together. Tip out
onto a lightly floured surface and fold until the pastry comes together, be
careful not to over mix. Wrap the pastry in cling film and chill for 10 mins.
2.
Scoop the
mincemeat into a bowl and add the satsumas, apple and zest.
3.
Heat oven to
220C/200C fan/gas 7. Roll out the pastry to 3mm thick. Using a round cutter
(about 10cm), cut out 16 bases and place them into muffin trays. Put 11⁄2 tbsp
mincemeat mixture into each. Brush the edge of each pie with a little beaten
egg. Re-roll out the pastry to cut 7cm lids and press them on top to seal.
Glaze with the rest of the egg, sprinkle with caster sugar, then make a small
cut in the tops.
4.
Bake mince pies
for 15-20 mins until golden brown. Leave to cool before releasing
5.
them from the muffin trays and dusting with icing
sugar. Serve.
Chapter
V. St. Patrick’s Day
In
Wexford, March 17th, 2017
Dear Marc,
I left Romania last night and you’ll never believe what happened when I
looked out the aeroplane window, I saw an amazing rainbow over Ireland and the
land was so green I was hoping there was a pot of gold at the end of the
rainbow!! After I left Dublin I travelled to Wexford to Our Lady of
Fatima School.
On the Monday morning I met with the students in Middle 3 along with
their teacher Glenda and classroom assistant Patricia. I went to an
assembly and met all the students and teachers of the school along with the
Principal MrsWaters, at the assembly it was explained all about the activities that
would happen that week and that I was special visitor for the week.
I attended a craft workshop and the younger students were making St.
Patrick Day badges to wear on their Jumpers for their parade, I helped
out during the work shop. Later on that day I met two training assist
dogs who would go on to help children with autism they were very friendly and
their training takes 18 months.
The following day we had two more workshops with the middle
school students making paper Leprechauns this was the best fun as I got to
dance with the leprechauns to some Irish music the whole class loved it.
The older students went on to make St. Patrick’s Day Cards for their families
so I was certainly kept busy that day and so tired after my dancing!!
Wednesday we had another assembly where students talked about their
Erasmus trip and showed photos and how they met other students from Italy,
France and Germany. This was a great experience for all the students
involved, they got to know new cultures just like me on my trip.
That afternoon I did some Irish games and had to learn some more Irish
Dancing for the following days Ceili which is when we will all get to do some
Irish set dancing called the Walls of Limerick
Thursday was a very exciting day we had the school St. Patrick’s Day
parade when all the students dressed up in something that represented Ireland,
they wore Irish Jerseys, dressed as St Patrick and leprechauns and wore silly
beards and hats and coloured the Irish flag on their faces. We marched
around the school to some Irish music and then Middle 3 class judged for the
best costume for 1st, 2nd and 3rd prize, it
was hard to pick because everyone looked great and of course I had a few photos
taken with the winners.
That afternoon we had the Ceili and got to taste some Irish food, I had
some famous Colcannon which is Potatoes, Kale, Cabbage, onions and ham all
mashed together it was delicious. I also tried Soda Bread with cheese it
was amazing so light but filling, the best of all was famous Irish Crisps called
Tayto and the refreshing Club orange drink which I needed after all of my
dancing.
I had a great experience where I went home to a student’s house for the
weekend so I could get to see the big St Patrick’s Day parade in Wexford Town
the excitement was electric. I was on the local radio talking about my trip and
eTwinning explaining why I was there. The parade itself was full of
colour and characters, it had bands playing from different parts of the world,
there were all sorts of clubs marching (Karate, kickboxing, hurling, football,
Irish dancing schools, Wexford Scouts and Girl Guides the best thing of all was
a massive inflatable Snake it was huge this was to represent St. Patrick
driving the snakes out of Ireland, the parade went on for 2hrs and I enjoyed every
minute with my new family.
On my last day Middle 3 students travelled to Tramore a town about
an hour away from Wexford to hear the story of ST. Patrick told by the author
John Willmott. We met John for a walk first on the lovely beach, the
weather was a bit on the cold side but we all still enjoyed the walk and
watching some surfers on the Atlantic Ocean. John was so funny
telling us the story of St. Patrick he liked to add little antidotes, he told
us the story while having lunch in a Typical Irish Pub but as I’m underage I
didn’t get to sample the famous Irish Drink GUINNESS.
Well Marc I will be so sad to say good bye to my Irish Friends as they
were so welcoming and some day I will be back to visit this Lovely Emerald
Isle, Slainte which means goodbye in the Irish language and I hope you enjoy my
video and photos.
Looking forward
to my next adventure in The Ukraine..
Bye for now
Your Friend Max
(By Glenda
McKeown from Ireland)
ST. PATRICK´S STORY
|
Many, years ago in the day of old, in a
land far, the story begins which tells of the boy who becomes St Patrick.
He was not born in Ireland, which many people
believe, including many Irish people. No, he was born in a country across the
sea from Ireland called Wales. Wales is not far from Ireland which turned out
to be rather unfortunate for young MaewynSuccat. Who is that? I hear you ask.
You see that was his name before he became Patrick, I am glad he changed it as
St MaewynSuccat’s day is much harder to pronounce. I am sure that young Maewyn
had a normal childhood; perhaps he played football with his friends who also
had silly names. Perhaps he used the Internet. Could he have had a Facebook
page? Or, how about a mobile phone to text his friends? I wonder which TV
programmes he preferred? Well you see, electricity had not been invented in
Maewyn’s time so he would not have had any of the things that young people
today could not imagine living without. What kind of games do you think young
Maewyn and his friends played so long ago? Anyway, back to the story. When
Maewyn was sixteen years old a group of mad Irishmen raided his little Welsh
village and captured him. Without even asking for permission, they bundled him
on a boat back to Ireland to sell as a slave. He always wanted to go on a boat
journey but not like this. No more normal childhood for young Maewyn.
He was sold to a Druid chief who had a large herd of
pigs. Guess what his new job was to be? Yes, you guessed correctly; a pig
farmer. Now life as a pig farmer was no picnic for the young man from wales. It
was a very difficult and smelly job to do, perhaps at that time his name was
changed to Smelly, we just don’t know.
He ate, slept with and generally lived among the pigs
and each night he would tell them the story of “The three little pigs”, how
they loved that story.
It was during his time in Ireland that Smelly, sorry,
Maewyn became a Christian. One night he heard a voice in his dreams telling him
to get an airplane back to his own country, but as airplanes were not yet
invented he had to go by ship. He fled the coast of Ireland and found his way
back home. After having the world’s longest shower he joined a monastery where
he stayed for the next twelve years. It became his goal in life to convert the
pagans of Ireland to Christianity. Perhaps he thought that this would put a
stop to their pastime of kidnapping and selling young boys into slavery. It was
at this time that he took the name Patrick. He became a bishop and went back to
Ireland to pursue his destiny.
He was very good at his job as he helped many
people to find God and leave their old pagan ways behind. He even went to visit
his old slave master to show that he had no bad feelings towards him. Perhaps
he also wanted to visit his old roommates the pigs, but alas, they had all been
eaten. This upset Patrick because he was looking forward to a nice piece of
ham. The story goes that his old master took all his valuables to his house and
burned it down with himself still inside. Apparently, he did not want to face
his former slave who had become
famous.
Many stories have been written about
Patrick. He was not yet called St. Patrick, which would come much later. It is
said that he drove all the snakes out of Ireland, not in a car mind you because
cars had not been invented yet either. This is not exactly true, at that time
there were no snakes in Ireland. As the devil is often referred to as a snake,
it is said that it was the devil he banished from Ireland.
It is said also that he used the shamrock
as a symbol of the Holy Trinity. That is why the shamrock is very famous in
Ireland and people around the world associate it with Ireland. But we do know
that he built many churches and schools all over Ireland. He spent almost
thirty years in Ireland teaching the pagans of that green land about the
wonders of the Catholic religion. The Irish people never forgot about the boy
who, in the twelfth century became a saint, taking the name St Patrick.
St Patrick day was originally a religious holiday but these days it is a secular holiday. It is celebrated each year on March 17th, which is the date on which he died. Ireland is not the only country to celebrate. Over the centuries many Irish people went to distant lands to find fame and fortune. With them they brought their culture and traditions. Today St. Patrick’s day is also enjoyed by both Catholics and non-Catholics. In my own little town, on the south coast of Ireland, we have a beautiful parade through our city streets. Lots of children dress up as leprechauns and mini St Patricks. It is a day to remember all the good things about being Irish, a time to be proud of our history.
(By John Wilmott from Tramore-Ireland)
Soda Bread Recipe
What
you need:
- 450g/1lb
Cream Plain Flour.
- 1
level teaspoon Bread Soda.
- 1
level teaspoon Cream of tartar.
- Good
pinch of Salt.
- 1 tablespoon
Shamrock Golden Caster Sugar (optional)
- 25g/1oz
Butter or Margarine.
- 300ml/1/2pt Buttermilk
or Sour Milk.
How
to:
1. Sleve
flour, bread soda, cream of tartar and salt into a bowl. Add sugar if used.
2. Rub
in the butter/margarine to resemble breadcrumbs, lifting mixture with
fingertips to introduce air to the dough.
3. Add
milk and mix to make a soft dough.
4. Turn
onto a lightly floured board and knead a little.
5. Turn
the smooth side up and shape into a round. Place the dough on a floured tin.
6. Cut a
cross over the top.
7. Bake
in preheated oven at 200ºC/400ºF/Gas 5-6 for 40-45 minutes.
8. When
baked the underneath should have a hollow sound when tapped.
9. Cool
on a wire tray. Cover with a dry tea towel to give a soft crust.
Colcannon
Ingredients:
3 pound potatoes,
scrubbed.
2 sticks butter.
1l/4 cups hot
milk.
Freshly ground
black pepper.
1 head cabbage,
cored and finely shredded.
1 (1-pound) piece
ham or bacon, cooked the day before.
4 scallions,
finely chopped parsley leaves, for garnish.
Directions:
Steam the
potatoes in their skins for 30 minutes.
Peel them using a
knife and a fork. Chop with knife before mashing. Mash thoroughly to remove all
the lumps. Add 1 stick of butter in pieces. Gradually add hot milk, stirring
all the time. Season with a sew grinds of black pepper.
Boil the cabbage
in unsalted water until it turns a darker colour. Add 2 tablespoons butter to
tenderize it. Cover with lid for 2 minutes. Drain thoroughly before returning
it to the pan. Chop into small pieces.
Put ham in large
saucepan and cover with water. Bring to the boil and simmer for 45 minutes
until tender. Remove any fat and chop into pieces.
Add cabbage,
scallions and ham to mashed potatoes, stirring them in gently.
Serve in
individual soup plates. Make an indentation on the top by swirling a wooden
spoon. Put 1 tablespoon of butter into each indentation. Sprinkle with parsley.
Chapter VI
Easter in Ukraine
In Ukraine, Easter 2017
Dear
Marc!
I am already in Ukraine, which is my
last destination point. I have never visited Ukraine before and I am very
pleased to open its beauty and unicity. The first thing I saw was the long,
wide and mighty river which is сalled Dnieper. I arrived to Cherkasy it is a
town not far from the capital of Ukraine(Kyiv). The town stands on the river
bank and there are many forests, parks and gardens in it. According to the
Ukrainian tradition I was met with bread-and-salt on embroidered towel. The
railway station I arrived at was almost at the city center but far from the
place I played to stay in thus I had a brilliant opportunity to get acquainted
with Cherkasy. There are many interesting old buildings in Cherkasy some of
them were created by famous architect VladyslavHorodetskyi. Cherkasy region is a cradle of cosaks – warriors who
defended the freedom of Ukraine in ancient times. There is a beautiful monument
to their famous leader – Hetman Bohdan Khmelnytskyi in Cherkasy. Ukraininans
are talented people I visited the Art museum, The Museum of
EmroideredTowel and
One-Book-Museum(Kobzar by Taras Shevchenko). The last one was the most
interesting for me. I was a bit tired after my long journey that’s why I made
my way to Cherkasy School 7.
My new friends invited me to family dinner.
It was the time before Easter and the dinner was lean but very tasty I tried
famous Ukrainian varenyky(dumplings with different filling), holubtsy with
mushrooms and uzvar(stewed fruit with dry fruit)
The
next day we started to get ready for the Great Holiday. It was Pure Thursday
and Ukrainians usually clean their houses and yards and it is obligatory to
wash with Blessed Willow before the sunrise on this day. As you know I don`t
like to get up early but I decided to follow the traditions, “When in Ukraine
do as Ukrainians do.” you know!
They said I was lucky not to come the week
before Easter: on Willow Sunday Ukrainians have a tradition to beat each other
with blessed Willow saying “ It’s not me, it’s willow”! I am not sure now I
would be able to follow it.
The next day on Passion Friday we painted
Easter eggs(made Pysankas) It was such
an interesting activity! The eggs can be decorated in different way! The most
amazing was the wax drawing decoration.
One of my new friends invited me to his granny to watch her baking
Easter Bread. She wore embroidered blouse and prayed before baking and asked us
not to laugh and not to make noise.
On Easter Sunday I woke up very early and
went to the church to bless Easter Bread. I went there with my new friends. We
had very nice Easter Basket decorated with ribbons and flowers. Actually many
people in Ukraine go on The Whole Night Mass at Easter. After Blessing we congratulated each other
with the words “Christ is Risen” – “He has risen indeed” and went home to have
family dinner. It was so delicious! I tried smoked meat, sausages, pies and
cakes. Don’t worry I have written down some recipes for you!
The Monday after Easter is called
Polyvianyi in Ukraine because of old tradition to pour water on each other on
this day(of course this tradition is followed only by young people). We went to
the beautiful park with plenty of tulips on that day as I didn’t want to be wet
but wanted to visit more places of interest in Ukraine!
Your friend
Max
Special Cake
“SmerekovaKhala”
Ingredients:
-
Flour 350-450 grams
-
Butter 250 g
-
Sugar 220 g
-
Sour Cream 200 g
-
Baking powder 1
teaspoon
-
A pinch of salt
-
Pitted cherries
1 kg
-
Sugar 100-150 g.
·
Mix sour-cream, butter, salt and baking powder
·
Add flour.
·
Add sugar.
·
Mix with your hands until you can make a ball.
·
Divide into 15 pieces.
·
Roll out thinly each piece.
·
Put 10-13 pitted cherries with sugar in the middle of
each cake.
·
Close up edges.
·
Put some baking paper on the tray, place your cakes
and bake them for 15-20 min at 100ºC
·
Mix sour-cream with sugar.
·
Spread cream over your cakes and put them n the form
of a hut. 5-4-3-2-1.
·
You may decorate it with nuts and chocolate if you
like.
·
Enjoy your cake!
Epilogue
At the end of May
Max began his trip home, but first he wanted to say goodbye to the Spanish
students.
When the children
saw him, they hugged him and kissed him as well.
Max looked very
good, he had many souvenirs with him
although he had lost his suitcases.
Max told the
children a lot of stories about the beautiful places he had visited.
In a few days,
Max will return home when school closes. It will be a pity, but he has to continue its way, but he will visit
us one more day in the future, we are sure.
Good
luck Max!
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