FIRST DAY OF SPRING - VINTAGE TULIPS ILLUMINATIONS

 

Pink tulip, imaginary insect and worm Mira Calligraphiæ Monumenta, inscribed by Georg Bocskay and Illuminated by Joris Hoefnagel ~via Giornale 

Found on Google Images under Public Domain Vintage

RED HUNGARIAN EASTER EGGS - TRADITIONAL PATTERNS - and HOW TO BY AN EXPERT

Image Vintage from Google Images

 

IBOLYA-LORINCZ'S EASTER EGG HOW TO HUB PAGE

 

The first remains of decorated egg were found in the Carpathian basin, in Hungary in an Avar grave, which is about 1500 years old. The pattern was etched on the coloured egg. This is the oldest form of decorating eggs. When you have dyed the eggs, take a tapering knife and etch the pattern on the surface of the eggshell.

 

The other widespread technique of decorating eggs is batik. In this case you paint the pattern on the eggs in hot wax then dip the eggs in the dye. This egg decorating technique is well-known from the Carpathian basin as far as the Urals. The Scythian people, who lived in these territories, were famous for keeping bees for their honey. The spin-off of it was wax, which was also used for many purposes. One of them was preserving eggs for a longer time. If you cover eggs with wax, you fill in the pores of the eggshell and it won’t get oxygen, so it prevents the egg from decomposition.

image from Ibolya's Hub Page.

 

Sun: it is the symbol of Jesus: Sol Invictus. It is the Sun after the spring equinox, when it defeats the darkness.

Star: When it is alone, it always refers to Venus, which is related to Jesus and his mother Mary.

Rose: Flowers usually symbolize love but a rose may also refer to Mary if it is white.

Lily of the valley: it symbolizes goodness and virginity. It is also the symbolic flower of Mary.
Pine tree: it is the tree of life since it is always green.

Heart: it is the symbol of love.

Oak tree: it has been respected as a saint tree since the ancient times. Later on it became the symbol of Jesus and his mother Mary.

GOULASH IS WHAT THEY THINK THEY KNOW ABOUT US : HUNGARIAN HUNGARIAN-AMERICAN STEREOTYPES

What is GOULASH?

Besides having a memorable sound to the word, goulash seems to be what many people know about Hungarians, or think they do.

It's as if there is one recipe for the dish that all Hungarians know, and given a little variation, based on how much a "pinch" is to one cook rather than another, it tastes a certain same way. 

It's as if it's all we eat.

WRONG!

GOULASH is a term used for a meat stew or soup, thus a variety of textures and thicknesses, and flavors, which tends to have a brown -orange color from paprika (red orange) and tomatoes though there are recipes that do not include these stereotypical ingredients. 

Possibly back in the 9th century (most likely before then) when the Hungarian- Magyars were yet settled, and lived as cattle herders, sheepherders, and marauders,  they dried meat and stuffed it in sheep stomach carriers for preservation.  Add water, put it over heat, stir a little, and you had the closest thing to today's foods that are sold dried and turned back into soft food with liquid and the heat of a camp fire. You Know - like we do Raman noodle soup in the microwave.

GOULASH was food you could TRAVEL WITH, a premade quick and nutritious meal.

Just about ANY ingredient can be included in a GOULASH including potatoes (which thicken the soup or stew), peppers, onions, dumplings, sour kraut, kidney beans, sour cream, beef, pork, or mutton, sausages, wine and beer, seeds and herbs.

While GOULASH may have a Magyar origin, many other countries in the region have variations of the term that sound and look to be and taste a whole lot like the Hungarian, meaning that this is a dish that has many ethnic and regional variations.

MOSTLY GOULASH IS COMFORT FOOD. 

Are you hungry yet?

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