Hello again from the slightly less sunny Finland! The weather has just changed completely, it's gone from sunny +25 to rainy, cloudy and miserable +15. It was so chilly today I didn't even fancy going swimming after sauna, the wind has really mixed up the water.

Anyways, here's two pictures from my walk the other day. I've started being very paranoid about walking around in the sticks, I just keep thinking that what if an angry mummy bear with her cubs appears from the woods just to say hi to me.

This farm must be about two hundred years old (if not older). Back in the day you had to be self sufficient with food and that has resulted in my mum being a very keen gardener as the way of life has passed on from generation to generation. I do absolutely love it, my mum grows all kinds of veg and berries / fruit every year. It's one of the main things that makes me want to come back here.

Eventually I will want to build my own veggie patch in our garden. It's so simple in the end, all you need is a few bags of dirt, a nice box or two and seeds. I actually saw a very cool way of doing it earlier today, you just get these bags of dirt, cut one side of it open, pierce some holes into the other side (so the excess water runs out from the bags instead of drowning the plants) and plant whatever you want. Very little effort for something very rewarding.

I do really think that healthy living has been made easy for everyone. You can just buy some big garden pots and grow your own food, with none of the nasty preservatives and pesticides you get in everything they sell in supermarkets nowadays. The growing itself must have such a positive effect on you as well, you get to grow something, make sure it's watered on a regular basis and in the end you get to harvest your own produce and eat it.






And as you can see in this picture, the weather really was miserable today when I went for a walk. Really windy and cold, I felt like I was going to fall over when the wind really started blowing. I've also noticed that walking on the dirt road is very difficult! The sand obviously does give way a bit when you walk on it, making your muscles work a bit harder to stay in motion. This really wore me out quickly, I think I was out for half an hour and I really didn't want to do anything else afterwards. My plans for one hour walks all week really has gone out of the window, I just really don't have the energy to walk when the road isn't solid. They say that walking on a softer surface is a lot better for your knees and joints, but screw that if I'm so knackered after 30 minutes.





These pics are from my aunt's summer cottage, she lives in Helsinki but comes down to Sulkava every summer to enjoy the peace and quiet. Luka was so disappointed that I didn't go for a swim, she was crying for a good 15 minutes outside the sauna. That dog just loves water...


And as I haven't posted any food pics this week, here's a little something! An oven pan full of homemade pizza. :D Obviously not all for me, my mum absolutely loves my pizza and even knew to stock up on all the ingredients before I came over! That's enough pizza for four people, will happily share the recipe if people are interested. :) I have modified the original recipe so it's a bit healthier than your regular white flour based pizza.