Two months since we moved down for season 2015! Lovely, sunny (yay!) two months. What happened at Pruga during that time? Food was prepared, including a new thing – sage flower cordial (beggining of the preparation above right). Very nice and already drank. Kinda like elderflower cordial (similar procedure for making), with a lovely hint of, well, sage. Must make lots more next year.

Strawberries are there because they are from our garden (for some unidentified reason, they have been amazing this year and have spread to a third of a garden). I’m thinking of keeping them as they were perfect. Unlike peas. The above was the only crop (not even ours, from the neighbour) and there was none to get in the village to freeze for later (I normally stock up for the rest of the year). Just wasn’t their year, so no local peas this year 🙁 And some zucchini flowers filled with ricotta and “tempuraed”. Yum.

I should really do a post about gardening as I am forming an informed opinion after the last four years of doing it. Next time maybe as there are too many pictures to go through now.

As part of our (slowly) ongoing quest to learn something new about Istria, we stopped in Kršan once on our way to visit amazing Hela from farm Drijade. And again, were surprised by another one of myriad tiny Istrian villages that once were occupied by rich landlords and only walls now remain….

We also made it up a mountain. Beautiful Korita on Ćićarija mountain. As you can see, very pretty and totally worth quite steep 45 minute climb. So not long, but just enough for us unseasoned hikers.

Before the summer arrives, we have a little ritual of having coffee in the garden, taking in the first warm sun rays (now it is way too hot even at 9am, so we are safely having the coffee in the shade of our terrace), waiting for guests to finish their breakfast. This was taken by me sitting with a coffee mug in one hand and just shooting to my right.

Also, before the “real” summer, I finished one (1!) diy project. The picture is here to brag. So it looks I am doing sooo much. In fact, since then (probably early June) another project (old cabinet in need of new colour) is sitting in the middle of the terrace, waiting for inspiration to struck. It looks really ugly there, but I am refusing to move it – I will finish it soon! Sure.

This is just a pretty, magazine style, picture, enhanced by Instagram.

We had two (very successful I’d say) pizza parties since the start of the season! Little pizzaiolas and pizzaiolos were busy. Kids are amazing.

Just another day of joy at Pruga…

And while humans enjoy, Mjumju is having adventures. First being chased by dogs to the top of the tree, what can one do but jump on a hot tin roof (not really tin of course, tile, but you get the gist). Then another time, V and I decide to go for a walk. Another one of those “we should go for a walk each evening, it is so pretty here” types of decisions. Then we go about three times in a season. And this time, Mjumju decided not to stop at her usual territory border. No, she decided to pretend she is a dog and come along. I hope you can see her completely distraught face in the bottom right above after less than a mile. We had to come back as it looked that she might have a heart attack. Of course, she refused any water or anything. Too excited to get that far.

Another day, she got so annoyed she couldn’t sleep in my lap as I kept getting up from the computer to stir lunch, that she found a much better lap.

We have a drip system in the garden! Looks a bit less romantic, but it may help with the yield. Sadly, just now, I picked some young green tomatoes attacked by some disease (most likely blossom end rot), in hope to save the others… we’ll see.

I was so excited to discover mulberry tree on the edge of our property, in the front yard. How did I not see it for four years is a mystery. One of my favourite fruit (childhood memories etc). It is a bit hidden behind an old cherry tree whose fruit is too high to pick and enjoy. I was very tempted to take it down and give mulberry tree a better chance, but we decided that cherry’s shade currently contributes more… we’ll see…

So, this is how it is these days.

Time to go to the beach (secret of course).

And this is how some of us spend their days. Using the opportunity before I finally paint that cabinet!