NEW! What a relief. My
Latvian Ancestors updated, ordered, arrived.
It expanded:
- from 72 pages to 104 pages;
- with many more photographs;
- including the Estonian RIIS family of
legend;*
- with a brand-new cover, thanks to the talented Jane.
I have been fortunate over the years to
meet three of my mother's first cousins: two live in the U.S.A. and
one in Latvia. Two years ago in Latvia, Cousin Rasma greeted us
Canadians at the Freibergs' ancestral farm, Kalna Koneni, ushering us
to a table loaded with traditional Latvian goodies, the most
wonderful feast. Hospitality knew no bounds as we were given a basket
overflowing with more of the same for our next journey.
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| knifepork&spoon.wordpress.com |
Family, I have words for you. BACON
BUNS. I repeat, bacon buns. Are you listening, nephews and
nieces? Proof absolute of your DNA inheritance, though it be
one-quarter of your makeup. A revered Latvian food item, bacon buns
(pīrāgi)
are part and parcel of any respectable Latvian meal. Thus our bacon
craving is legitimately and irredeemably lodged in our cells along
with the cholesterol.
We discovered another proud Latvian
product in our takeaway basket. Balzams is ... an acquired
taste. It's a herbal liqueur in a vodka base, famously known as Riga
Black Balsam. Personally I find the acquiring is hard work. It's that
word balsam that reeks of evergreen needles, right? And
reminds you of swiping some gummy sap off a pine tree to chew when
you were a kid to see what it tastes like, right?
The twenty-four herbs that go into it
are supposed to be very healthy for you ―
Lord knows the Latvians are a health-conscious lot ―
and if that doesn't cure whatever ails you, then the 90 proof will
ensure you don't care any more. Now I'm thinking that balzams
should follow a bacon buns binge just to clear the bloodstream. I
sort of cheated because the bottle I brought home had an extra dose
of currants in it, rendering it slightly more palatable.
The two foodie photographs are not in
my book. A bonus for reading this. You're welcome.
Time soon for a little rest and ocean
air until the next project starts clamouring.
*
Previously posted about
at length; see "Estonia" in the sidebar at right.
©
2015
Brenda Dougall Merriman
