2013 Christmas / 2013 的耶誕節

老何的耶誕節又到了, 今年老何很賣力, 親手做了低脂, 低糖什錦水果酥餅和Christmas pudding.
這是我們成家後的第三個耶誕節, 胸有成竹的我們, 在節日前兩週開始製作甜點, 佈置耶誕裝飾, 前一週擬好耶誕菜單, 前一天把所有未採買的食材購齊.

我們這兩隻驕傲的兔子, 耶誕節當天, 睡得飽飽才起床, 吃了個長長的早餐, 好整以暇地拆禮物後, 才緩緩進入廚房準備耶誕餐, 如此拖拉的結果便是下午四點才有耶誕大餐可吃.
慶幸的是今年第一次嘗試的烤火雞十分成功, 皮脆肉嫩, 我想事先將火雞以鹵水浸泡是成功重點之一 (食譜請見此文最下方).

這隻近四公斤的火雞, 我們當天只吃了半邊雞胸的三分之二, 其他的部份如何處理呢?
Andy 在隔天再度發揮大英帝國子民與生俱來的烘焙技能, 做了 Boxing Day Pie , 把部份火雞肉, 跟剩餘的烤馬鈴薯, 烤橄欖菜芽, 都丟進派裡烤了. (食譜請見此文最下方)
再來又吃了火雞肉沙拉, 火雞肉三明治, 大部份的火雞便差不多解決了, 僅剩一小部份, 放進冷凍庫當備菜.
火雞架子熬了兩公升的高湯, 也進了冷凍庫備用 - 家規第一條: 不浪費食物!

經過這密集的火雞料理後, 何家廚房再有火雞出現的機會應該是一年後了...

After practice from the past 2 Christmases this big event is no longer a task to Family H.
We worked on Christmas decorations 2 weeks before the holiday, fixed the Christmas menu a week ahead, and finished off all the shopping by 24Dec.

However, on Christmas Day, we had probably taken it too easy before heading to the kitchen to prepare meal. We had a late breakfast, took quite some time to unwrap the presents, read the cards, and played around with our Christmas present - coffee bean grinder - we ended up having our Christmas lunch at 4pm..., fortunately it was A successful meal!

The Christmas menu of 2013 was:

Tiger Prawn with peach salsa and crushed macadamia nuts
Roasted turkey with brown and white sauce
Potato gratin
Roasted Brussels sprouts and apple with walnuts
Home made Christmas pudding
Cheese selection
* please see recipt source at the bottom of this post *

The prawns were very fresh and went well with fragrant peach salsa, the turkey was tender and juicy. Andy made some white sauce to go with the turkey, which was a thumbs up.

The healthy Christmas pudding was made with almond meal and dates, which was much lighter than the traditional pudding, the accidity of chunky appricot balanced the sweetness of the dates.

We ate 2/3 of half a turkey breast, what did we do with the rest of the turkey?
Andy used part of the meat, left-over of potato gratin and Brussels sprouts to make a Boxing Day Pie, following the recipie of celebrity baker, Paul Hollywood.
We finished most of the left over with turkey salad, turkey sandwich in the following days.
With the turkey bones we had made 2 litres of stock for future use. House rule no.1 - Don't waste food!

After the turkey feast, we shall not see a turkey menu for quite a long time.

Merry Christmas and Happy 2014 to everyone!

 

送火雞進烤箱前必須好　善待牠.

Massaging the turkey before roasting

 

近 3 個小時的烘烤期間, 定時淋高湯保溼

Basting turkey every 30mins

 

 

兩人耶誕餐完成, 雖然已經很晚了...

Our 3rd Christmas meal was again successfully done, although it's late...

 

 

 

隔天很認真的做了火雞派

Making Boxing Day Pie

 

 

老何的第一個火雞派就這麼輕鬆地完成了...

Voila! there is the first Boxing Day Pie from pastry chef of Family H.

 

 

雖然都是剩菜, 但烤肉跟奶油馬鈴薯, 烤蔬菜一起在派皮裡悶烤,

又是一種不同的滋味.

The pie didn't last long as it was full of flavour with

a bit of left over from each dish.

Menu receipts:

Tiger Prawn with peach salsa and crushed macadamia nuts
(recipe: www.goodfood.com.au/good-food/christmas-feasts/macadamia-recipes-grilled-prawns-with-lime-and-queensland-cake-20131216-2zfs5.html)

Roasted turkey
(recipe: http://thebigoldsmoke.blogspot.com.au/2010/12/blog-post_26.html)

Potato gratin
(recipe: www.goodfood.com.au/good-food/cook/recipe/gratin-dauphionois-20131223-2zu89.html)

Roasted Brussels sprouts and apple with walnuts
(recipe: http://ohmyveggies.com/recipe-roasted-brussels-sprouts-apples)

Home made Christmas pudding
(recipe: www.thehealthychef.com/2013/12/gluten-free-healthy-christmas-pudding)

Boxing Day Pie
(recipe: www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/hand-raised_boxing_day_84945)

- the end -

Merry Christmas!

耶誕快樂!

Merry Christmas!

  這是在雪梨渡過的第三個耶誕節了..., 受到 Pinterest 網站上 DIY 高手們的感召, 我也東施效顰, 在馬路上撿枯枝, 漆上銀漆, 腦中想像著"極簡風" 耶誕樹, 可惜眼高手低, 最後的成果是淒涼風耶誕樹..., 還好 Andy友人及時送上聖誕紅, 加上我們彼此為對方準備的禮物, 稍稍撐起過節氣氛.

  今年何家耶誕餐很省事, 雖然還是三道式的菜色, 但老何今年不當甜點師傅了, 今年何大爺買了澳洲時尚甜點大師 Adriano Zumbo 的耶誕布丁, 加上住家附近貴氣麵包店 Victoire Bakery的酒漬乾果派 (minced pie), 我們當天只需下廚處理火腿跟烤馬鈴薯罷了. 於是乎, 耶誕節當天一早起來, 騎腳踏車的牽著車出門, 練Pilates的展開墊子各自健身, 在拖拉地用完早餐, 看完網路新聞, 抄完食譜後 (何大爺堅持要做 Jamie Oliver 版烤馬鈴薯), 好整以暇的踏進廚房準備主菜.

  今年的菜單是: 夏日耶誕香料酒 / 龍蝦配包心菜沙拉, 佐檸檬芥末醬 / 蜂蜜芥末烤火腿配脆皮馬鈴薯 / 耶誕布丁和酒漬乾果派

   Andy在前一天已用薑, 香茅, 丁香, all spice, 加紅糖熬了糖漿, 耶誕節這天, 他將糖漿跟氣泡水, Vodka, 薄荷葉, 薑片, 香茅混合, 便成夏季版 Christmas Mulled wine.

   沙拉部份, 本應用耶誕應景蔬菜 – 迷你包心橄欖菜來製作, 但兩位慢牛為過節採購當然是慢半拍, 迷你包心橄欖菜早被人搶購一空, 所以用高麗菜切細絲來代替, 切完冰鎮後,  配上酪梨, 伴入檸檬芥末沙拉醬, 非常爽口. 龍蝦部份直接切半, 用熱鍋兩面各煎 3 分鐘即可擺盤. 在等龍蝦熟的時間已經喝掉半杯的香料酒了…

   Andy在廚房依Oliver大師的食譜按部就班烹煮馬鈴薯時, 我可沒閒著, 在旁殺了8顆柳橙, 擠出600ml的柳橙汁, 跟八角, 法式芥末, 蜂蜜攪拌成火腿淋醬, 待Andy將火腿劃完方格, 插上丁香, 我也照表操課, 每15分鐘為火腿淋上一次醬汁, 90分鐘後沾了香濃醬汁的蜜汁火腿即可上桌!

  說到這主菜, 並不是何大爺愛吃火腿, 東方俗人, 我, 建議今年換口味準備烤雞, 但何大爺堅持耶誕節從烤箱出來的雞非火雞不可, 想到我們光吃一隻火雞腿可能就飽肚了, 後續要處理其他部份的火雞壓力實在太大, 所以還是回到原點, 準備火腿較實際…

   今年耶誕節天公不做美, 前一天還是個可以曬人乾的大熱天, 入夜卻下起了豪雨, 老天還很堅持地下了一整個耶誕節的雨, 很多澳洲家庭的海灘耶誕烤肉大計都泡湯了, 我們餐後出門逛逛, 好奇地繞到Balmoral Beach看看, 這個夏季週末人人用海灘巾, 烤肉架佔地盤的海灘, 今天冷冷清清, 只剩海鳥群聚覓食.

  說到過耶誕節, 英國人過節實在跟我的耶誕節印象差很大, 已經搞不清楚是我的印象錯了, 還是英國人totally過錯了…, 在此列出差異處如下, 支持我的請舉手.

1.     A: 耶誕大餐是中午吃的, 不是晚上

K: 明明就是晚上吃大餐不是嗎!?

2.     A: 耶誕禮物是父母準備的, 不是聖誕老公公

K: 明明就是聖誕老公公給的!

3.     A: 聖誕老公公給的是小禮物, 放在耶誕大襪子裡

K: 不是看聖誕老公公高興放襪子, 或耶誕樹下嗎?!

4.     A: 耶誕禮物是耶誕節當天吃完早餐拆開

K: 這個我無所謂…, 但吃完耶誕大餐後才開不是可以讓過節氣氛在睡前畫下完美句點嗎? 就像春節, 吃完年夜飯領紅包, 大家肚子跟荷包都開心了.

   最後讓我最納悶的是耶誕節大部份的家庭會準備 Christmas pudding (耶誕餐後甜點), mince pie (過節糕點), Christmas cake (耶誕節下午茶配的茶點), 這三樣甜點的餡料基本上都是糖漬乾果加白蘭地, 再和麵粉製成, 到底是英國人對吃真的很沒創意還是實在太愛酒漬水果了..., 這個問題可能跟歪國人不瞭平淡無味的豆腐, 為何可以做成各種菜式, 還百吃不膩一樣讓人費疑猜吧….

  This is the third Christmas I had in Australia. Inspired and encouraged by the DIY projects posted by experts on Pinterest, I was thinking to make a minimal style Christmas tree, so we painted silver a few twigs which I had picked up in the street over the winter. After few hours of work and preparation, just like most of DIY works, the tree didn’t turn out to be anything near my imagination….lucky Andy brought back a Poinsettia from work, I put it next to our DIY tree to add a bit more Christmas atmosphere.

  In preparation for the Christmas meal Andy resigned as pastry chef this year, instead buying  mince pies from 2 pastry shops nearby our place, and a small Christmas pudding from celebrity pastry chef shop, Adriano Zumbo. Therefore, he could put most of his effort in making roasted potato in Jamie Oliver’s way and a summer style mulled wine.

  Here is this year’s Christmas menu: summer mulled wine / lobster with avocado, cabbage salad in Dijon mustard, honey and lemon zest sauce / orange and vanilla glazed ham with crispy potatoes roasted with garlic and rosemary / Christmas pudding.

  This Christmas was rather unusual as it was pouring with rain, I could imagine that lots of family must be in trouble in finding alternative sites from the beachfront BBQ…we went for a drive after the big meal and had a short walk at Balmoral Beach. It was nothing like Christmas Day in the past years, the only family having a big meal at the beach were seaguals…

  After having few Christmas celebration over these years, I do have a big question regarding Christmas pudding, mince pies and Christmas cake. In my point of view, they are the same sort of thing made with flour, dried fruit and brandy, why would people like to have similar desserts, though in different forms, over the entire Christmas holidays? Well, when I had this question in mind, another voice came out from nowhere, questioning why white squared stuff without any flavor is so widely used in countless Chinese dishes…
 

酪梨高麗菜沙拉佐蜂蜜法式芥末醬

avocado, cabbage salad with Dijon mustard, honey, lemon zest dressing

前菜: 龍蝦配沙拉

starter: lobster with salad

製作蜜汁火腿中

basting ham

主菜: 蜜汁火腿搭脆皮馬鈴薯

main: orange vanilla glazed ham

with garlic, rosemary roasted potatoes

甜點: 耶誕布丁

Dessert: Christmas pudding from Adriano Zumbo

下雨中的Balmoral 海灘

Balmoral beach in rain

耶誕節空無一人的沙灘

no one on the beach on Christmas Day

 

- the end -

三月的小喜悅 / The joyful March

驚喜其一

沒想到我竟然有在南半球吃到厥餅的一天!

感謝日本超市的厥餅粉和熟黃豆粉, 開個火, 厥餅粉加點水, 跟黑糖煮一煮, 攪一攪, 10 分鐘就完成了我的家庭版厥餅! 簡單得不可思議 (是說在台北的話更簡單, 就直接走去賣場美食街買一盒就可解饞了...), 話說回來, ...這等厥餅涼的時間真難熬ㄚ.....

早上寫的文, 時值傍晚..., 一整盤的厥餅只剩 4, 5 塊了..., 但還好我還有半包的粉...

驚喜其二

沒想到我們結婚周年就這麼靜悄悄的來臨了..., 這一年裡, 沒有冰風暴, 沒有因了解而分開的高潮, 也沒有異鄉難熬而摔鍋回鄉的劇情, 真是平順的讓人驚訝!

不敢相信彼此這麼和平地在同一屋簷下過了一年, 我們回到事發地點 Balmoral, 在原餐廳再度豪邁的大吃大喝了一頓. 這天天氣舒適, 不像一年前妖風邪雨大作的怪天氣.
Bather's Pavillion 夜晚的用餐氣氛與白天迥異, 碧海藍天被黑絲絨的夜覆蓋, Pavillion 如海上行宮, 停靠柔軟沙灘, 隨著溫柔潮浪的節奏, 精緻佳餚由訓練有素的服務生一道道呈現食客桌前, 遺憾的是當晚餐廳安排座位稍擠, 臉皮薄的歪國人求我不要拍照, 所有的美食印象只能私存在我腦子裡了...

總的來說, 我們這一年的生活就如下面這幾張照片一樣, 在笑鬧中過了...

Joy I

What a pleasant surprise that I could have Warabi Mochi right in Sydney (Warabi Mochi is a kind of sweet jelly texture of dessert in Japan, it is also popular in Taiwan)! Thanks to Tokyo-Mart (a Japanese supermarket in north of Sydney), where sells the dessert ingredients. I bought a pack of Warabi Mochi mixture and finely grinded soy bean, and spared myself 10mins in kitchen to prepare it, . It's awfully easy to make this dessert, which was a surprise to me, but if I was in Taipei, I would never bother myself to make it...


Joy II

We had our anniversary in March, can't believe that our first year had past... peacefully..., that's something to celebrate, therefore, we went to Balmoral, Bather's Pavillion Restaurant for a re-visit.

The dinner dining atmosphere is totally different from day time, the velvet-like darkness wrapped around restaurant, diners enjoyed more in food and chat, with steady rythem of waves in the back ground.

Generally speaking, the story of our first year is more or less alike following images,


- the end -

老何過耶誕 / merry Christmas!

耶誕快樂! 這是老何 (Andy)成家後的第一個聖誕節, 老何很慎重地準備了一個有濃濃家鄉味的耶誕大餐.

耶誕節前夕, 老何堅持要準備傳統耶誕應景甜點 - 酒漬什錦派, 不管步驟多複雜, 不考慮自己從來沒做過, 秉持著只許成功, 不許失敗的信念, 照著網路上找來的食譜, 仔細斟酌食材, 照單操課, 在缺少派餅模具, 天氣熱, 派皮鬆軟不好塑型的各種難關中, 突破窘境, 花了整整二十個小時 (包括前置做業時間), 老何把酒漬什錦派完成了.  酒漬水果乾雖然不是我的菜, 但在吃完耶誕大餐飽肚的狀態下, 竟能連拼兩個, 不能厚著臉皮, 違背良心說不好吃, 辛苦塑型的派皮很酥脆, 花了一晚醃漬的水果乾濕潤, 不甜膩.

完成應景甜點後, 老何才如吃了定心丸般地開始準備耶誕餐, 老何家的第一個耶誕大餐菜單是: 煙燻鳟魚冷盤, 蜂蜜芥末烤火腿配馬鈴薯, 義式培根高麗菜芽, 巧克力耶誕布丁佐白蘭地奶油 (英式傳統耶誕主菜是烤火雞, 但老何一家只有兩口, 實在消化不了七, 八公斤的火雞, 所以準備了半隻份量的烤火腿), 一個下午, 兩人一道一道吃完後, 唯一能做的事就是攤在沙發上聽耶誕音樂發呆.

傍晚, 老何延續何家傳統 - 吃完耶誕餐後到村子附近走走, 開車到雪梨港灣邊的 Blues Point Reserve, 延著岸邊散步, 經過 Lavender Bay 走到 Luna Park, 邊走邊欣賞坐擁港灣美景房舍的耶誕佈置, 並分享偶爾從屋內傳出的酒杯碰撞聲和笑聲.
耶誕節傍晚, 雪梨港寧靜, 涼爽, 天邊一抹淡橘色彩霞, 伴著岸邊幾個延續耶誕野餐的家庭, 老何在夜幕低垂後返家, 點上燭火, 在電視轉播的耶誕聖歌演唱中交換禮物.

What did Family H. in Australia have for Christmas? Apparently on top of the list were "Mince Pies". By ignoring all food preparation for the main meal, Andy paid all his attention in making mince pies. Despite a long list of ingredients and long hours to prepare, regardless of the lack of experience, after 20 hours of preparation, 20 gorgious mince pies came out from the oven with a delicious smell. (After a big meal, Kelly couldn't resist and had 2 mince pies, you could tell how nice these mince pies were.)

After the mince pies were done, Family H. started the Christmas meal preparation,.The menu was: smoked trout with cucumber, mango, avocardo salad / honey mustard glazed ham with roast potato, Panchetta with Brussels sprouts and squash / Triple chocolate Christmas pudding with brandy butter / mince pies.

After finishing the big meal, the only thing Family H. could do was sit on the sofa and listen to Carols on the TV.

In the late afternoon, Family H. went down to Sydney harbour, strolling from North Sydney to Luna Park. The houses by the harbour shared their Christmas joy through their decorations, a few families were still carrying on their Christmas picnic on the water front. Christmas Day in Sydney was definately not a warm and cosy atmosphere; in the evening the sky was blue with a touch of orange when the sun was setting. It was quiet and peaceful and the Family H. enjoyed the harbour walk with a cool breeze.

專心做派的老何 / the pastry chef in Family H.

送進烤箱前做最後裝飾
Brushing mincd pies with egg mixture before putting into oven

香噴噴, 甜滋滋的什錦派
voila! the tasty mince pies are done!

煙燻鳟魚配小黃瓜, 芒果, 酪梨沙拉
Smoked trout with cucumber slices, mango and avocado salad

24日到城中看聖瑪莉教堂的聲光秀之一
The Light of Christmas at St.Mary's Cathedral in downtown Sydney

生動的動畫影像從遠方精確地投射在教堂立面, 讓人目不轉睛
the images or animations projected precisely on church wall from distance

莊嚴的教堂化身各式美麗建築, 耶誕樹, 美麗夢境...
through the images, St.Mary Cathedral transformed into various beautiful buildings,
Christmas trees, sweet dreams...

- the end -

顛倒國的耶誕節 / Christmas Downunder

跟我們過農曆年一樣, 在真正的大日子到來之前, 會有好幾ㄊㄨㄚ的尾牙活動, 只是這裡沒有客戶辦的活動需要參加, 都是自己的公司, 社團辦的Christmas party.
在過節前, 這裡還流行辦 ”Christ Kringle” 的活動, 這是類似”小天使”的活動, 公司裡每個人被指定買耶誕禮物給某個同事, 預算多在20-25澳幣之間, 禮物用包裝紙包好, 或直接到文具店買耶誕紙袋裝好, 再附上一張不具名的小卡片, 裡面只寫收禮人和恭賀詞. 所有的禮物會集中起來, 再推派一, 二位同事當耶誕老人 (這裡叫Father Christmas, 不是 Santa) 依照指名卡片發禮物.

這裡除了沒有靄靄白雪, 溫暖爐火營造傳統耶誕節氛圍外, 其他活動跟北半球的類似, 諸如過節前的聚餐, 趁商店打佯前大採購, 採買聖誕樹, 居家耶誕佈置…等一樣不少

但也發現溫度不同, 過節氣氛差很大, 北半球在低溫中, 街上靜悄悄, 屋內熱鬧團聚, 紅的, 綠的, 金的耶誕裝飾, 讓餐桌上的噴香烤雞, 龍蝦鮭魚更加美味, 溫馨過節氣氛是從每一扇窗戶中透出來的;

而在南半球豔陽高照, 微風徐徐, 怎麼可能窩在家裡? 多數人不是在自家花園, 就是跑到公園, 海邊慶祝, 大熱天佳餚怎麼可能乖乖的從烤箱出來? 當然是架起烤肉架, 一份一份從烤架上往野餐桌上送, 大家在草地上或躺或坐, 吃喝說笑, 一整個熱情洋溢的慶祝耶誕.
今年 Andy 領了第一次過耶誕節的我, 和第一次過豔陽耶誕節的愛爾蘭同事到海邊入境隨俗的過節.


Christmas preparation in downunder is pretty similar to northern countries, Christmas season started from numbers of pre-Christmas party, Krist Kringle event, Christmas shopping and house decoration.

I find people from “The North” has difficulty to fit in Christmas downunder, I reckon the main reason is because of temperature.

Traditional Christmas celebrates in house due to cold weather, but Australian celebrates it in great outdoor, it’s a shame not to embrace big sunshine and soothing breeze, therefore, many Christmas gatherings take place in flora gardens, green parks or sunny beaches, people will have BBQ or open buffet as Christmas meal.

This Christmas, Andy held his first Australian Christmas lunch at Balmoral Beach with me, the one having first Christmas event, and his colleague Bren, the one having first sunny Christmas.

戶外耶誕餐: 沙拉, 烤蝦, 烤鮭魚加番茄煮蛤蜊,
旁邊的東西叫 Cracker, 是英國及前英屬國家耶誕節必備助興玩意兒
Christmas lunch with salad, grilled tiger prawn,
and stuffed salmon, clam with tomato sauce

餐後點心: 洋梨塔, 起士, 水果, 巧克力
pear tart as dessert, to go with cheese, fruit and chocolates

大餐吃玩, 娛興節目開始, 兩人努力排拼圖 (Andy 的教母给的耶誕禮物)
Bren and Andy are trying to solve the puzzle given by Anne

隔天, 我們跑去 Middle Head 看 雪梨到塔斯馬尼亞島的風帆賽
We watch SYD to Hobart Yacht race on Boxing day

雖然現場估計不到一千人, 而且不算是最熱門的觀賽點,
救難人員還是到場待命 (典型的澳洲風格: 邊吃三明治邊聊天的待命)
比賽結束後還有警察指揮疏散遊客, 整套公共安全措施施行完備
Emergency rescue is well prepared for special needs



比賽開始, 風帆從雪梨灣裡開出, 經過 Middle Head,
North Head往海口的太平洋航去
Yachts set off in SYD Habour, after North Head,
they are out of SYD Habour and into the Pacific Ocean

到灣口, 風帆往南開, 目標是塔斯馬尼亞島,
整個賽事須花兩天的時間, 也是挑戰很大的比賽,
許多風帆因為折桅而不能完賽,
圖中船帆上有數字7的即是今天的冠軍船
Yachts turning south at North Head, and heading to Hobart
This year's winner took 2days, 7hrs and 37mins to arrive Hobart

 
ps. Cracker 長得很像大顆的糖果, 中間的部份放有紙帽, 小玩具, 加一個冷笑話. 玩法是由兩個人各執一端用力拉, 打開時會有禮炮一樣的聲響, 之後一人會只拿到角角, 另一人則拿到連著中間的戰利品, 雖然都是小東西, 但是對保守的英國人來說, 應該算是很大的樂趣了吧!?
 
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Ocean Series Race II / 海洋系列划船賽第二賽

Andy attended Ocean Series Race, the 2nd race last week, it was taking place at Palm Beach, which is further north of Long Reef, approx. 1 hour of driving from north Sydney.
上週末Andy 參加海洋系列划船賽的第二回合賽, 競賽地點是在比 Long Reef 更北邊的 Palm Beach, 從北雪梨開車約1小時的車程.

To me, it was a race hosted by very professional organiser, not because there were a coffee ventor nearby, a BBQ sandwich stand offering hot grilled sandwiches (well, my judgment is mainly bcs of freshly brewed coffee...), but because of the smooth registration procedure before race, 2 hosts as commentators carrying on the race report in the entire race, they also interviewed the winners after the race...etc
個人覺得這次的主辦單位十分專業, 當然不是因為現場有義式咖啡餐車, 和BBQ 熱食供應(well, 當然有現煮咖啡讓我私心的給主辦單位加分不少), 主要是當天從報名到簡報, 到開賽流程都很順暢, 賽事進行中, 還有兩位主持人兼現場轉播員, 一搭一唱報導比賽狀況, 比賽結束, 還訪問前幾名選手的心得.

Although the weather was not good, but Andy was in good condition this time and enjoyed this race a lot, that's main thing :-)
雖然當天天氣不怎麼樣, 但Andy 狀況不錯, 也划得很愉快, 這是參賽重點 :-)

the registration office
賽前報名站

the souvenirs from organiser
當天發的紀念品

many racers turn up
有多少人參加? 多到連停船位都難找得多...

the kayaking route which starting from inner of palm beach,
made a round circle to outer sea on the right,
then head to north of Lion Island,
then come back to finish point in inner bay, total 14K.
比賽從海灣內開始往外灘繞, 之後在往北繞過獅子島,
再回到灣內結束, 總長14公里

racers heading to starting point
參赛者開始往起點集合

this racer as well, with a bottle of water and a banana.....
這位參賽者也是, 只是加帶了一瓶水跟一根香蕉...

And I am glad that I had chance to film the starting of race clearly this time,
這次還很幸運地可以很清楚的拍到開賽時況,

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Fenn Cup Ocean Race / Fenn 盃划船賽

Fenn Cup Ocean Race consist 4 series race, first race took place at last Sat. (18Sep), it's a approx 17kms race, although the wind was dreadful Westly, in which condition that racer would make greater effort to reach shore, still many racers turn out for the race, Andy was one of the hundreads.

The original starting point was Long Reef, however due to tricky wind condition, the racing route had changed and started from Fisherman's Beach.
這個划船賽共有4場, 第一場在上星期六舉行, 全長約17公里, 本來的比賽起始點是在 Long Reef, 但是因為海象不好, 比賽改在Fisherman's Beach 舉行.當天吹的是會將人往紐西蘭吹的最不討好的西風, 雖然氣候不好, 當天還是有上百人參加比賽.

Here are few photos to share the atmosphere that day...

The registration office in Long Reef
比賽報名地點

registered, T-shirt fit, heading to race place
報名完畢, 比賽裝也合身, 前往比賽地點!

the kayaking route with short & long course
當天比賽路線圖, 參賽者可選要長程或短程賽

arrived, carrying kayak from car park to beach
到達會場, 著裝完, 扛起船步向海邊

 

after 500m of walk, finally arrived racing spot, carrying on walking toward beach
走了約500公尺, 終於到海邊 , 把船繼續扛到海灘上

 

discussing wind condition with mates
海象不好, 跟同伴一起緊張的討論海上狀況



race is about to start, paddling to the starting point
比賽時間快到了, 開始往海上的起始點前進

firstly, had to fight with the strong wave though
一個大浪將船給打走了, Andy 迅速抓回, 安然往前划

everybody is ready at starting point n wait for the signal to start
大家都在起始點等著開始ㄉ哨聲響

After approx 1.5 hours, racers started to return to finishing point, I can not tell Andy's score, all I could say is that, it's all busy works in the office to be blamed... :-)
約一個半小時後, 開始有參賽者回到終點報到, 我不能告訴你們Andy划得如何, 我只能說他上星期加班得很厲害, 完全沒有練習就硬著頭皮上場了... (以下影片請注意其他參賽者都是用跑的回去終點站報到的)

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This is another usual week / 沒有新鮮事的一週

經過狂風掃落葉的週末(晚間新聞還報導了市區巨風造成的災情呢...), 這個星期天氣不再做亂, 陽光和煦, 微風可親,  我和Andy 認真上班, 吃飯, 睡覺, well, 簡單一句就是...乏善可陳啦! 在此拿濫竽來充數, 不要見笑啊!
Last weekend's strong wind did cause some casualtiecs in downtown, luckily Andy and his mates return from paddling safe and sound. The weather this week was much nicer, lots of sunshine, breeze and shower for plant to grow, Spring has officially arrived I suppose...
We didn't have much but routine this week, in a another word... nothing particular to report...., therefore, I think maybe some photos from our Weekend Master Chef might take your interest...

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忠實的讀者, 我聽到妳(們)的心聲了 / feedback to readers

在台灣台北的忠實讀者懷疑Andy 是不是沾沾水就打道回府了!? 希望能親眼看到 Andy 確實有下海練功, 在此列出詳細出海經過, 保證沒用替身 :-)
A reader in Taiwan is questioning about Andy's paddling, it seems he is showing up in the beach front for some fresh air, then head back home without any sweat from last post, well, here are some clips to show more details about Andy's paddling...

兩星期前的出海, 風和日麗, 風平浪靜出海日

Balmoral paddling 2 weeks ago on a lovely weekend

以上的美麗景象卻跟這個星期六的景象大不相同...
This weekend's paddling is a different story though...

出海前的閒談..., 只是是在狂風中
the usual chatting before kayaking, but in the rain and blowing wind though...

愛划船的熱血男士是不畏風雨的
the kayak lovers fear nothing but not able to paddle...

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Morning paddle at Balmoral / 風和日麗出海日

Usually, Balmoral Blast will have kayaking race every Sat., however, Balmoral Blast helped run a down wind ocean race from Monavale Basin to Long Reef this Sunday, the Sat. race was therefore cancelled. Andy and his mate had a short paddle down in Balmoral Beach still.
終於有個暖暖的週末我有勇氣跟Andy出海, 通常星期六是Balmoral Blast划船社團的練習日, 但因社團將在星期日協辦”順風競賽”, 星期六的活動因此取消, 但Andy跟他的社友還是前往伸展手腳.

It’s very nice day with clear sky and bright sunshine, while Andy and Peter kayaking into ocean, I strolled along Balmoral’s white sandy beach.
Balmoral Beach has two bays, with a rocky island in the middle, which provides a nice lookout point.
這天天氣非常好, Andy 跟Peter 奔向海水, 我則乾遊.
這個海灘很寬, 中間有個小島隔開兩邊, 小島有石橋, 石階供人登高遠眺.
這個海灘一到暖天非常熱門, 海邊還用網子隔出一個區塊當游泳池, 人, 魚分游 

In the next day, Andy headed to join the down wind ocean race, it was as beautiful a day as Sat., but in the middle of race, there came the hail storm, the hail the size of ice cubes make from the freezer, pouring out from sky, what a surprise!
Later on, a friend of Andy show a photo on facebook with kayak half filled of hail…
隔天, 又是一個大晴天, Andy前往參加”順風競賽”, 不料賽事進行到一半, 天氣竟然豬羊變色, 下起冰雹(這個字竟然唸: ㄅㄠ2 !!), 像從冰箱製冰盒裡倒出來的冰塊從天上叮叮咚咚的打在參賽者的頭上, 事後, 友人還在facebook上秀了裝了半滿船的冰雹的照片

coming out from car park and heads to the beach
從停車場把船載出來

a perfect day for kayaking!
今天是個很適合出海的好日子

right, let's go!
裝備檢查完畢, 出發囉!

after 10mins drive, here is Balmoral.
開車10分鍾, 來到 Balmoral 海灘

get the gear, head toward the ocean
扛著看起來很重, 但其實很輕的船下海囉!

where shall we head to, Peter?
彼德, 我們今天划到哪裡?

yes, to chowder bay then Fairlight sounds good
ok, 划到 Chowder Bay, 再轉到 Fairlight 回來
是個不錯的主意

paddle finished, here comes the cleaning routin...
練習完,  準備例行清洗工作

rinse off all the salty water
裝清水把海水都沖掉

then wipe off excessed water, time to head back for a good rest
用毛巾將水漬擦乾, 就打道回府了

Here is Andy's kayaking route at Balmoral Beach at 14Aug and Down Wind Race at 15Aug.
(ps. following maps show street rout, but Andy is kayaknig)
Andy 14, 15日的划船路線如下, 都在雪梨北邊, 你們可以Manly 海灘做指標.
(ps. 地圖只能標陸路, Andy 是走海路)

Balmoral (A) to Chowder Bay (B) to Fairlight (C), then back to Balmoral:


View Larger Map


Mona Vale to Long Reef:


View Larger Map

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