After an 11 hour flight from Frankfurt to LAX, another 6 hours from LAX to Kauai, we finally landed on the other side of the world. Hawaii, the world’s most remote islands, all the way in the Pacific. I’ve been to Kauai once and remembered it impressed me, although growing up on the Big Island and have seen most of the Hawaii, there was something about this island that I knew one day I had to come back.
We visited the Waimea Canyon on the second day, it is situated on the West side of the island; also called the Grand Canyon of the Pacific. Driving into this place was like driving into a magic dome, the energy started to shift drastically and you can see it in the expression of the plantations, the trees, the flowers and the soil. It was magical, and almost mystical. I especially like this place because of its red dirt and the landscape, where you see canyon on one side and deep blue ocean on the other.
We met this man who was selling seed bracelest made from his garden. He told stories and was a really happy man. Haven’t seen someone with such sparkling eyes in a long time.
Kauai’s climate does change fast. It can start pouring out of no where and in just about five minutes in, you get a sunshine with clear sky. Or, one place can be pouring rain and you drive a few hundred of meters more, the roads are dry like the rain was all a dream. I quite like it, it goes quick — just the right humidity without too much rain and the temperature is perfect for August.
So I have discovered delicious, healthy and quick way to make root vegetables tasty. I think a common misunderstand of veggies is that they need lots of salt in order to make it yumm. Not all all! If you do it correctly with some fresh herbs and a bit of salt, you get taste the original flavor of the vegetable. How to make it is quite simple actually. A light meal like this can really leave you feeling light and rejuvenated.
First you would need some root veggies such as pumpkin, carrot, potato, corn or zucchini. Onion, cauliflower and aubergine (eggplant) are also suitable for this dish.
For servings of 8, ingredients you need are:
1. Potatoes……600g, rinse thoroughly, no need to peel, cut into 4x4cm
2. Pumpkin……600g, no need to peel, but into 3x3cm
3. Garlic…… 16 gloves, cut into half
4. Fresh rosemary…… 2 sticks
5. Olive oil……1/5 cup
6. Salt…… 1t
7. Black pepper…… 1/2t
The How To:
1. After cutting the potatoes into pieces, boil them in hot water for 1 minute.
2. Pre-heat the oven to 220C.
3. Mix cut pumpkins, potatoes, garlic, rosemary (make sure the stems are removed, otherwise it can taste quite bitter in the end) and put them evenly onto the oven tray. Drizzle the olive oil evenly as well and sprinkle salt and pepper.
4. Let it sit in the oven for 25-30mins till potatoes and pumpkins turn golden yellow. If you have time, it is best to mix up the veggies during half time so all sides get evenly roasted.
Of course your meal can be included with a side of meat, if you’d wish. This way the root veggies balance off the heaviness from the meat and you still feel like you got all the goodies from the carbohydrates!
On a gloomy day here in Switzerland, it can actually get quite chilly. This weather makes me crave for something that would warm the bodies, and something that is homey. I’ve made this carrot soup before and it was easy and so delicious. So I went by to the grocery down the street and grabbed a few things. What I love about the produce in Switzerland is that everything is so fresh. And as I have expected, it turned out to be just what I wanted.
With this carrot soup (servings for 4), you’ll need:
Olive oil 1/4 Spoon
Butter (without is OK) 2 spoon
Apple about 200g, diced
Carrots about 450g, diced
Brandy (this add spectacular flavor) 1 spoon
Ginger about thumbs side, sliced
Potato 175g, diced
Water about 1 1/4 cc or 1750ml
Salt and white pepper to taste
How to do it:
Use a normal pan that allows to stir fry. Medium heat with olive oil and butter, wait till the butter dissolve add the diced apples to stir fry. About 8 – 10 minutes in the apple will turn to a beautiful gold. Then add diced carrots to stir fry till it’s soft. White pepper and salt to your taste.
Then when the carrots has turned soft, add brandy, sliced ginger and diced potato in. Make sure it is cooked thoroughly so all the flavor and fragrance are mixed together in the pan. You may switch to a pot that is for soup. Add water, when the water starts to boil turn to the lowest heat. Let it sit for another 30mins to an hour depending on your time. Then till everything becomes soft, add pepper or salt to taste.
Lastly, use a instant mixer to juice up everything. It becomes a thicker soup. You’ll get a golden orange color, add some cream on top if you’d like.
The ginger gives a spice kick and warms the body, real good for a chilly weather.
First, the diced carrots. Ladies! If you are in the kitchen and someone is around, do not be afraid to ask for assistant! It’s important that you ask for help (if you need) and not try to be a super woman. I am quite a tiny person and to dice much carrots would be a much easier job for my husband. So do not be afraid to ask for help, people around you are more than happy to be involve with what you are doing and be part of the cooking process and it just makes the process a lot easier.
Golden apple in the pan.
Add the carrots.
Then I switched everything to a bigger pot to add water. Note: I also add a bit of broccoli.
The instant mixer I use is from Migros called Durabase. It’s got turbo or regular button, but any instant mixer will do. A juicer will even be better if you prefer to savor the essence of the soup. Make sure the base is entirely in the liquid when in use otherwise you will get splashed!
So I have finished savoring this novel by Paulo Coelho in less a week. I couldn’t wait to find out what where the story was going to take me. The booked spoke about a path of desire and a path of pain, which both enable one to feel closer to the higher consciousness — however you called it, God, Jesus, Mother Mary, Buddha, or… Bob, if you’d like. It seemed to me that the story had more than one message and interested topic of course, but ultimately the central ideas of this book make me rethink about the “norm,” this standardized society that we live in. Is this standardized beauty, intelligence and efficiency some kind of lies? If so what’s left after this? A string of unhappiness, guilt and frustration? It could be. Look at what is happening in the world right now, we can’t help but to admit that we do live in a crucial moment of the history. This led me ties back to the book, is this how we relate to each other sexually? Because when it comes down to it, sex is an expression of love, of how we relate to one another. Sex can be practiced as free love, conservative, contradictory, or a way of two bodies coming together as a manifestation.
Another interesting topic what Paulo was trying to convey is pain that is imposed by man can be addictive, it leads to pleasure and one may experience feeling more intimate to one another. Yet is it a path we want to go down with? What I am naming is very vague, I know, simply because I want it to be objective. We all know life is not easy and sometimes can be painful, with things that are out of our control. However, it is important that we ponder if we are using pain the right way. There must be some truth and beauty in the pain that life is trying to teach us, otherwise, what is the point of these pains we experience? What is life trying to teach us? We all know in some sort of way enjoyed the pain — the extremes, drunken nights, emotional enslavements, or being confronted by our dark sides.
Ralf, one of the main protagonists in the story said to Maria, “‘ You experienced pain yesterday and you discovered that it led to pleasure. You experienced it today and found peace. That’s why I am telling you: don’t get use to it, because it’s very easy to become habituated; it’s a very powerful drug. It’s in our daily lives, in our hidden suffering, in the sacrifices we make, blaming love for the destruction of our dreams. Pain is frightening when it shows its real face, but it’s seductive when it come disguised as sacrifice or self-denial. Or cowardice… True, no one wants to suffer, and yet nearly everyone seek out pain and sacrifice, and then they feel justified, pure, deserving of the respect of their children, husbands and neighbors… pain and suffering are used to justify the one thing that should bring only joy: love.'” (p. 201, 2004).
What Paulo was trying to convey is that, pain is only natural and good when it is imposed by nature and not by man. Us, human beings, however, over the century have created stories that we want people to hear, about how salvation is for the better of humanity, and a belief that clearly draw us separate. All we need to know is that “what makes the world round is not the search for pleasure, but the renunciation of all that is important.” It is easy to go down to the path because it is convenient, so don’t, exploit the choice you’ve got.
I believe a good story has a life of its own and that’s what makes it interesting. I am sure everyone has a way of relating to the story and perhaps, a different contemplation. Nonetheless, this is mine and I hope we can all grow stronger from the mistakes and not fall down into the spiral stairways.
Cheers.
https://payetina.yoga/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/eleven-minutes-part2-img.jpg7681024paye_adminhttps://payetina.yoga/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/logov2.0.jpgpaye_admin2014-08-10 10:45:492024-08-01 09:13:27ELEVEN MINUTES PART 2
On Marc and I’s one year anniversary lunch, I wanted to have something light in order to leave room for our romantic dinner in France. I ran to the Asian shop here in Basel and purchased a few things that I learned from the cooking course from the Legacy Program in Singapore — the Vietnamese Summer Roll. Since time was limited, I had to work with my creativity which worked out quite perfectly. Without the shrimp inside, it tasted so fresh still and both of us were content and happy.
Here’s are the ingredients you need for the wraps:
Carrots (use a slicer)
Lettuce
Rice Vermicelli (Boil 10-12mins then rinse with cold water)
Thai Basel
Parsley
Coriander
or
Mint Leaves
Vietnamese Rice Paper
Shrimp (If you are not vegetarian)
For the Sauce (I excluded the traditional ingredients of peanut butter since it is not really an option in our kitchen drawer):
Hoisin Sauce
Fish Sauce
Fresh peanuts (crushed them)
Lime Juice
Soy Sauce
Sesame Oil
Instructions are quick easy, you can find them online. I believe that when cooking you gotta go with what you feel in the moment when you add the ingredients. That being said, it doesn’t have to be 1:1 ratio to the recipe you found. I suggest going with the ideal and just add more or less of what you like. You can’t never go wrong with the food you make that way.
Upon my recent arrival in Switzerland, I have picked up a book by Paulo Coelho, who has been one of my greatest inspiration through story telling, is the author of The Alchemist.
The title of this book is called Eleven Minutes. For those who have not read it, it is a story of a young Brazilian girl who was convinced since young that she will never find true love. Then a chance to Geneva, she discovered fortune and fame. She has risk of pursuing the path of darkness through sexual pleasure and risking everything to find her “inner light” and the possibility of sacred sex, of true love. I have to say I am quite emerged in the story, not that I am only interested in what will happen (of course I do), somehow Paulo Coelho is able to draw the readers in with their own ability to relate to the story, but with dignity and honesty, although this is the first book I have read from him that appealed to be quite shocking, dark and difficult.
Since this book speaks about the quest of finding true love, it reminds a section of my Masters thesis, where I wrote about love being essential ingredients of life. We are controlled by love, motivated and pull by it. Yet in my research, the confrontation of the true meaning of “love” is vast. I was bombarded with different philosophers’ perspectives, theories, as well as my own research. It seems like there will be no definite answer and it is forever changing. Even now I question, does love should simply appear simply because we are alive? Without ulterior motives? Or do we long for the opposite and the connectedness that we seek? Do we “associate love more with the person’s absence than with their presence?” (Coelho, 2004, p. 7)… in which I found profoundly interesting. Have we forgotten how to love? At which point do we re-learn how to love? Is love to be found in someone else? Or we awaken it?
I don’t think even finishing this novel will provide me a satisfactory answer. What I do know a little about love from my research as well as this book is that there is something transformative about love. An energy that free us from forms of enslavements such as labels, attachments (such as what we identify ourselves with how much wealth, status or career) and expectation. Like we simply love for the sake of it, without expecting anything in return. As Paulo Coelho quoted, “The person who gives him or her wholly, the person who feels freest, is the person who loves most wholeheartedly.” (p. 90). Is it possible to sustain this kind of love? Is it a revolutionary? I think absolutely, and we have to fight for it. It is necessary. The question is how to we sustain it…
So… let there be some thinking and chewing on these thoughts and words. I shall be having a cup of tea and this book by 8pm due to jetlag…