The sun shone on an awesome day this weekend. I bounced out of bed apprehensive and excited at the same time. I was off to the first ever Taste Franklin Food festival, showcasing all that was fabulous about our region. There would be food, wine, music and guest speakers. It would be such fun.
I was looking forward to indulging in it all, except maybe part of the guest speaker offerings. The first speaker left me shaking in my boots. But I guess that is only to be expected when that speaker was me! I even got a mention in the NZ Herald that had an article sharing all that cool about out wonderful region. Although, selfishly, I prefer to keep it our little secret so our beautiful beaches stay uncrowded. You can read that article >HERE<
We loaded up the car with all my gear – my books to sell, my banner and display board loaded with cool photos, a spaghetti squash to give away to the first person who could guess what it was and a marrow because let’s face it, any excuse is a good excuse to off load a marrow! And we set off for a great day.
There was quite a queue when we arrived at the gate. Then we saw a lane that was quite free flowing and the sign above it let us know this was the one for us. It said VIPs. There aren’t too many situations in life where you get to be a VIP! Our wristbands were placed on for us and then we were handed an empty glass. We were off to a great start.
We checked out the venue looking for the speaker’s tent. And there it was, beside the bouncy castle and other child friendly amusements – an empty tent with loads of chairs facing the same way. Empty it looked daunting, filled with people waiting for you to speak is even more daunting.
That’s the funny thing when you write a book or two, everyone asks you to speak about it. Speaking and writing are two completely different skill sets and the one I enjoy the most is quite solitary. Having said that I do like talking about my garden and my journey and so I find myself actually having a great time with my audience as I reveal some of the more ‘interesting’ situations I have found myself in as I made the transition from naive city slicker to country bumpkin. Although I’m sure our farmer neighbours still laugh at us from time to time.
So I survived unscathed and the crowd applauded. I was on a bit of a buzz and so headed to the wine tent to celebrate. Being at a food festival is the weirdest thing as it is perfectly ok to and wander up and down the stalls to see what is on offer whilst sipping my lovely light and fruity rose wine. Not the kind of thing you can do when shopping in town. There were so many different things to see, try and buy, I’ll let the pictures do the talking. The day was a resounding success and completely exhausted we headed home.
Come again soon – I have had a bit of a mad idea that I understand is possible, so I’ll give it a whirl.
Sarah the Gardener : o )
Oh and don’t forget to go for a wander through my garden – there are some interesting things going on…
I loved your video! It was fun to visit your late summer garden while we’re pining for spring here. I didn’t know that lupines could be used as a cover crop to add nitrogen. Do you let them grow in the spring to bloom and then cut them back to use the bed for other plants? Definitely going on my to do list!
Thanks for your kind words. Lupins are a legume so they are great for the soil and they are quite a fleshy plant and so when you chop them into the soil you add a lot of organic matter. With cover crops you are really supposed to cut them down before they flower, but I like leave them to flower and cut them down before they go to seed. That way I get to enjoy the flowers and the bees have something to eat in winter. Our winter is mild enough that sowing them in the autumn will have them flower and be dug in and rotted down into the soil before the garden is ready to use in the spring. Cheers Sarah : o )
Wonderful Sarah .. Gorgeous pics. I bet you were fantastic. I’m loathe public speaking .. Makes me quake in my boots. Isn’t the transition from the city the best? 😊
Hi Julie. Somehow everyone expects you to be able to talk about what you write, so I have had to get brave. I now quite enjoy it, which is just as well! I wouldn’t go back to the city, country life is too perfect for me! Cheers Sarah : o )
It all looks like such fun. I would enjoy some of that bread, but like the tired child picture the best!
Hi Lucinda. It is always good to see the amazing things that are produced in your own community. The Joeyosaurus was pretty tired at the end of the day. Cheers Sarah : o )