Music

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Concert, PEI Symphony, piano, Von Eccher

We recently attended a concert of the PEI Symphony where Zueignung by Richard Strauss was on the program. The singer Tracy Cantin was accompanied on the piano by our friend Magdalena Von Eccher.

A beautiful piece here sung by Joyce DiDonato.

Condé

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Berlin, Frederick II, life, Travel

Today I saw this picture of Unter den Linden and looking Eastward towards the City Palace, we see the famous equestrian statue of Frederick II the Great riding his favourite horse Condé.

Named after a French Prince of the time Louis de Bourbon-Condé, this horse was purchased in 1777 at the age of 11 and quickly became the favourite of Frederick II. He would ride him in Potsdam every day and do so until a few weeks before he died. After the King’s death Condé would continue to live a quiet life for many more years dying at 38 in 1804. He was from the Wallach breed, a German breed of riding horse. His skeleton today is at the Veterinary college.

He was according to records, spoiled, Frederick would often put slice of melon and figs in his coat pocket and Condé would come and sniff them out, it amused the King, there was a close familiarity between Condé and Frederick II, that his visitors to Potsdam observed. The same with his dogs, all Whippets, he is buried in the garden of Sans Souci with his dogs, as he stipulated in his will.

To be in Berlin in the Spring, with its parks, lakes and rivers, beautiful restaurants and great museums, concert halls and Opera houses. Maybe one day after this pandemic, we can travel.

What’s next?

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life, PEI, Spring

Easter Holiday is over and now on to Spring tune-up for the car and change of tires.

Insurance home and car payment season. I am also 21 days away from my Pfizer vaccination, I am looking forward to that. Will is only 15 days away. Some 11% of our Island population has been vaccinated which is great. People here talk about getting the vaccine like if they had won the lottery.

We had a lovely lunch, Will made his Asparagus in puff pastry tarts and we had ham on the bone with Broccoli, leek and carrots, dessert was panna cotta with blueberry coulis. All good and every one had a good time despite the weather freezing rain and heavy grey skies.

Other than that it’s pretty quiet around here. The Crab fishing Season has started and next week it will be Lobster Spring Season. May 1 is the re-opening of many restaurants for the Summer Season but, I doubt we will see any tourists, none from the USA for the time being, as for other Canadian provinces well I am not so sure either, since most have now gone in third wave mode with record infection numbers never seen before.

So it will be another quiet Summer here, difficult for restaurants and some shops who only exist because of the tourists. What amazes me is how the authorities simply shrug.

This is a photo of the BlockHouse Light House which is located at the narrow entrance into the port of Charlottetown, on the one side it faces the broad Strait and on the other this little bay and a expansive view of Charlottetown. It was once until the late 1970’s manned and the Lighthouse keeper and his family lived there, quite a big place. Now all lighthouses are automated and maintained by the Federal Dept of Parks. It is somewhat of an isolated spot next to Port La-Joye which in the 17th century was guarding the entrance into the larger bay and the river system. Someone told me that the house attached to the lighthouse is for sale or rent, though romantic to live there I cannot imagine how it would be in Winter with the storms coming with howling 100Km winds off the Strait. Beautiful in Summer.

Continuing with this blog entry we are now Tuesday and was at the garage this morning for my annual car inspection to get my safety sticker. Then finished the income tax returns with the accountant. Our taxes are simple so I could probably do them myself but I am too lazy. I did get a return amount, I think the Government loves me for being such a good citizen doing my Civic Duty, so I get a bit back. Hey this is my story and I am sticking to it. Though next year might be different story with my revenue changing and getting other benefits, so I might want to ask that they take 23% off those new benefits in taxes to avoid paying at the end of the year.

Had my glasses adjusted, I am looking at new frames, saw a POLO frame I liked but do not know how much they ask for it. Now we have to pay for the insurance for the house and car. This is Spring, the season of payments. Next in May Nicky and Nora go for their annual shots.

Now according to the Ornithologists (bird lovers) it is going to be an early Spring because of the behaviour of birds in the Atlantic provinces, who are behaving as if it was already May. I really don’t mind, I am all for it.

Getting ready

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Easter, lunch, PEI

This is the long Easter Weekend, 4 days. Mind you I have been on a long weekend for the last 8 years, it must be some kind of record. So to avoid rush though crowds here are strictly controlled with going to the grocery store or any store, so there is no crowds. At the Farmer’s Market this morning which is always popular, when I arrived there was about 30 people in line, social distancing, + masks waiting to be let in, so that the numbers inside do not exceed the allowed number.

So we got a big ham with the bone in, all our vegetables and other necessities earlier this week. I got 3 big bunches of freshly cut tulips at the market from VANCO who is the producer here on PEI, it’s Tulip time now. Some rosemary bread and farm eggs.

I set the table at home for lunch tomorrow, had to polish the silver and decide which place setting to use, decide if it will be table cloth or place mats, we went for Polish cotton tablecloths. Make a flower arrangement for the centre from the tulips of various colours. Iron the napkins, each place setting has Easter Chocolates. Then we had to decide the serving order would it be buffet style or French service. We decided to plate everything in the kitchen and serve directly at the table. Wine service, etc. We have been doing this routine for years, so we are use to it.

Since lunch is at 2pm tomorrow, we will have to get up early, to cook the ham, Will is going to prepare the individual Asparagus tartelettes for each guest as an appetizer.

Dessert is panna cotta with a coulis of blueberries, that Will prepared today. The blueberries are from last Season and they are small and tasty.

Here is a photo of the table. Hope you all have an enjoyable day.

65th Easter Weekend

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Easter, Passover

How is that possible, so many Easters, if as a child in Montreal, Toronto or Quebec City, Easter was with Good Friday still very religious holidays though it was starting to change with consumerism at every corner. Back then it was the thing to do, to give children live rabbits or live chicks, small children had no idea how to treat these poor animals and many died within 72 hours. It was an Easter massacre but hey it was suppose to be fun for the kids. By the 1980’s the practice had disappeared instead replaced by an orgy of gifts and chocolates and treats for the kids.

In our home we never had live animals, my mother did not like that because it dirtied her house. At Easter we would go for Brunch at some big hotel and would get one chocolate bunny, usually milk chocolate, which I do not like.

So this is a 4 day long weekend. Good Friday is a Statutory Holiday, Saturday some shops will be open for last minute shopping and Sunday is a Holiday. Monday for everyone not working in the private sector it is a Holiday. So around noon time on Thursday lots of people were leaving work for this holiday.

I did all my shopping ahead of time to avoid the crowds on Saturday. The weather however is not good, lots of April Showers and cloudy skies for at least a week.

We are going to friends for dinner on Saturday night and Sunday afternoon for Lunch we are having a few friends. Ham is on the menu this year, panna cotta for dessert.

Hope everyone has a good Passover and a Happy Easter.