Le Gioconde

Posing like Lisa Gherardini (The Lady Lisa or....the Mona Lisa) was so tiring even though I only posed for a few minutes.  I can't imagine doing that for hours while Leonardo da Vinci painted.  I would probably fall asleep for I would be too bored and tired.

When we set this photo shoot up I paid attention to:  what clothes she wore, how her hair was, how her hands were (and no, she is not holding a duck in the original like I have seen in some copies!), what her face looked like, where she was looking, etc.  I found out one reason why she looks a bit strange, too.  She has hardly any eyebrow!  Some historians say that during the time it was painted (1503-1505) it was popular or fashionable for ladies to pluck or pull out their eyebrows and eyelashes.  It may have been, but scans done of the oil-on-wood painting in 2007 show that her eyebrows may have been darker before but the painting has been cleaned so many times that they have been cleaned right off.

I wanted to copy the painting as much as I could so...I plucked my eyebrows!  Just kidding. I 'erased' them on the computer.  I didn't notice until after we took the photo that Mona Lisa was wearing a veil over her hair.

Leonardo da Vinci was one of the first artists to paint imaginary backgrounds and also the first to paint ones like this -- it looks as if she's sitting on a balcony very high up -- the background is VERY far into the distance.

People always say that when they see the painting in person (at Le Louvre in Paris) that they are surprised by how small it is.  I have heard this so I was actually surprised to learn that it is 76.8 cm tall by 53 cm wide, about 30 inches by 20 inches. It is BIGGER than I thought!

While the person in the picture is said to be Lisa Ghererdini, this is not certain.  In Italian the painting is titled "La Gioconda" which means 'the happy one' or 'the jovial one'.  In French it is called "La Joconde" which means the same thing.  In English, the painting is called the Mona Lisa, which back-translated would mean "The Lady Lisa."

This photo we made is called "Le Gioconde" or "Le Giocondini"

For school Y6 is doing biographies, O picked Leonardo da Vinci; they share a passion for inventions.  Because he always tends to cut and paste pictures from the internet without thinking too much about it, mean ole mom made him think of something different and this was a good Sunday morning project.  He's got some other great ideas to make this topic come to life, including comparing his sketches of flying machines with the modern-day planes, parachutes and helicopters, etc. I'll bet we find some ideas that are still waiting to be made reality!

Howdy, Pardner!

Our favourite small girl busted out her tiny red boots last week and threw the best cowgirl party ever.  The boys blew in from school and somehow put these costumes together. OK, she's only 2 so more likely, it was her PARENTS who threw the party....but clearly, she was the star -- JUST LOOK AT HER!  Quite clearly, she's the cutest cowgirl in the Southern Hemisphere.

Tri again!

Team STORM!  (with the exclamation point) Did they win extra awards for all those dimples?

We made thru another triathlon season!  Despite the very miniscule amount of training we did, our race times were.... the same as last year when we put a massive amount of effort into biking, swimming and running.  That's no good! ( Maybe it's because we kept up with a baseline fitness program?  I'm thinking not.)

We did the team sprint race first, O finishing the run and then, after a quick trip to the medic tent to patch up his bleeding-thru-his-shoes new blister, started his individual race.  He was smiling the whole time, so clearly enjoyed himself.  It's so nice to see the boys really challenge themselves like this.

At any rate -- again it was great fun and we all came home with ugly tee shirts that don't fit anyone (actually, only the boys did, we didn't bother to pick ours up!) and LOADS of medals and prizes.  This year the smallest Jennings took home the most awards.  He finished his race (100m swim, 3K bike and 1K run) first for the under 9's (he's 7 remember!) and improved his time from last year by almost 6 minutes despite his very leisurely swim.  (This was very strange to see...he's usually pretty fierce when it comes to racing!)

For his team STORM! race with his buddies his swim was spectacular, Gav ROCKED the cyle and Roan cleared the finish line just 3 seconds ahead of the next under-9 team.  awesome!  Finn is certain that they won b/c he passed someone in 'the chute' between the pool and tagging his cyclist.   The races are run in batches of 4 or 5 people so it's rare that you are actually racing against someone -- races are run/swum/cycled purely by the clock. (they use a 5 lane pool and run each batch 10m apart from 7am til about 1pm -- the ULTRA race uses a different pool). A head-to-head might be in order next year b/c you know how hard these little people push themselves when they can SEE their competition.

As SOOn as we got home they got online and went shopping for new bikes.  They have saved/earned enough money to buy new ones themselves!  The grown-ups are going to be mighty jealous when they arrive in Zambia.

Photos from the day:

Popping wheelies and doing tricks while waiting.  Only 1 Endo while going DOWN THE STAIRS?!!   This we did not hear about until much later in the day.  Notice the fashion statement.  Typically the socks are only long enough if they can reach ABOVE the knees.  Thankfully he's over the waistband-to-the-armpits phase.  That phase lasted far longer than you can imagine.

The handoff.  The Rabble-Rousers' cyclist tags the runner.

Our runner...looking for the medic tent closest to the finish line... He wore nearly new socks AND shoes.  Oops.

Brrrrrr.  The morning swims were cold!  The only thing keeping this kid warm right now is his sunburn. O is just starting his individual race after having just finished his run and gotten his toe all wrapped up.  Three cheers for school nurses! (and kids who won't back down from a challenge!)

and...into the drink he goes....

Team Jennings gloating over our apparent victory over Team Akros.   Benj only LOOKS like he's going to kick our butts.  We are waiting for O to cycle in.... Here he comes now on the bike he borrowed from his best friend the night before.  We had to switch out tyres and make some other adjustments but we were so happy to have found a bike at the last moment!



and here he goes!  "My LEGS!! They feel so FUNNY!"

Most peoples' reaction to the muscle-awkwarndess of the bike/run transition is grimacing and limping.   This kid was giggling.  He thought it was hilarious!  Also, he was happy not to have a repeat of last year's bee incident.  A ginormous carpenter bee chased him IN on the cycle and OUT on the run!

Happy to be done.  And to get some orange juice.  And to have had a cheering section along the way!  The school organized both participants and supporters! That was exciting.

Make sure you don't lose your swim trunks!

Thing 2's Individual race begins!  What a dive!

He's long since crossed the finish line.  He's looking for the juice.....

Here he goes AGAIN!  Back for another 100m swim for Team STORM!  He got to race against his buddy Oliver who he knows from his soccer team last year.  Oliver has a tiny little brother who was racing solo in the Juniors race (25m swim, 1km cycle and 300m run) -- SO CUTE! 

It was this sprint from the pool that edged team STORM! to victory...they finished just 3 seconds before the next under 9 team, the Fizzing Fireworks.

On the podium!

 until next year....

Easter Holiday

For Easter we camped out at our friends' property.....just 40 min from our house, across town. I love how this photo makes it look like we are IN space.  It felt like it -- the night was so beautiful.

Exploring at dusk -- as soon as the sun fell, the valley cooled off instantly. We were out looking for giraffe...found lots of impala and guinea hens and other lovely creatures.  (giraffe prints and giraffe poo, but no twiga)

Silent Night.

The boys being boys.

Bridge building before the Safari Ants came out to play (ouch)

This young fellow came to check out what was for breakfast.

Art Deco moth 

 Two other families joined us -- and brought the most amazing easter brunch spread you could have imagined!  It was such a great day.

 Not everyone could come.... Tej? Ivan?

Zambia Baristas

The incredible explosion of cafe culture in Zambia is more than a side-note.  In 5 years, we've witnessed what feels like the birth of an industry.  While the growers have been busy planting, harvesting, drying and selling beans for ages in the Munali Hills for years, it's really just in the last 5 that there has been a demand for fresh coffee in Zambia.  Previously instant Nescafe and powdered milk ruled the 'scene' and coffee fans were kind of on their own.  Look how far it's come!  Last year the Blue Moon sent two of their best baristas to the world competition in Vienna and this year....who knows!  (we'll know tonight, actually)  The winner will carry on to the World Championship in Melbourne, Australia.  

The competition itself is intense and involves a head judge overseeing all the judges:  2 technical judges and 4 sensory judges plus an official timer.  There could be a visual judge somewhere in there as well.  The technical judging is a bit of a mystery to me but it involves the technical part, duh.  Like what?  Well, like how do they handle the equipment, how clean is their station, how even is their tamping, how hot is their milk.  I'm making some guesses here but that's some of it.

The sensory judging I got to know a bit, having gone through the training and from judging the first of five sessions in the competition this year.  The sensory judge's day starts with a 'calibration' session.  One of the technical judges pulls some shots and we all sample and get our palettes ready as they explain what tastes are coming thru for each shot; we all nod our heads in agreement (ideally!) Then, the competition begins.

Each competitor has a chance to practice on the machines, which are provided for the competition.  They have 15 minutes to get ready for their individual session -- setting the judge's places, collecting and placing their ingredients, checking everything over, etc.  Then they have 15 minutes to make, serve and very (critically) importantly EXPLAIN their drinks:  4 espressos, 4 cappuccinos and 4 specialty drinks.  They need to 'know' their coffee intimately: where is it from, what elevation does it grow at, how many days has it been resting (4 days from roasting is optimal here), and of course, what are the flavour notes of the coffee.  The espresso can be:  acid/bitter/sweet/smooth/light/bold/full/rich and the range of tastes goes from grass, lemon, citrus to chocolate, red current, molasses and everything in between. (Tasters have a separate 'tasting' competition of their own even.)

The session begins....The barista explains what their coffee 'plan' for the session is and fills the judges in on what very specific tastes they are going to encounter.  The barista can be as chatty as they like but they had better not lose track of what they are doing.  15 minutes goes by quickly.  Once served, the sensory judges first check the 'crema' of the espresso -- does it cover the entire glass?  are their breaks? does it 'stretch'?  is it persistent?  Next, how does it taste?  Like they set it on high and walked away to chat or like it was extracted for the 'perfect' 27 seconds?  (each roast/blend has their own optimal extraction time).  The judges then spoon thru the crema with three short strokes and then take 2 sips.  They note the taste scores based on their experience and rate the espresso also against what the barista told them.  If they said it would be lemony and it isn't, the score reflects the omission.

Next comes the cappucino.  The sensory judges first evaluate the 'service.'  Is there coffee and milk dripping down the sides?  how does the foam look?  Is there a nice even dark brown ring around the edge?  If they tried latte art, is it symmetrical and even?  Is there a lot of contrast between the dark and light in the artwork?  (See what I mean about this being an intense competition??!) Next, the judges run a spoon thru the foam.  Is it smooth and velvety?  glossy?  Are their microbubbles that melt back into the spoon's path? Does the foam stack up nicely behind the spoon?  Only then do they TASTE.  The judges are to turn the mug and taste where the foam was not disturbed.  Two sips.  Is it too milky? how is the temperature? Is there a nice balance in coffee/milk taste?  Is the milk sweet and carmelised? Does the coffee flavour come thru nicely?  Is it balanced? And, once again, how does it stack up against what the barista said it would be?

Lastly, the specialty drink.  The barista can prepare any non-alcoholic espresso based drink. While I have heard of some very, uh, unpleasant experimental 'signature drinks' our session thankfully featured some lovely drinks.  One had fresh mint steeped in cream, another made a guava-espresso smoothie (we were all dubious, but it worked), another had honey and banana (also worked), etc.  The most memorable was the "Blue Moon Pancake" prepared by their newest barista.  After the signature drink the sensory judges also evaluate the barista's performance, appearance, professionalism and overall charm (for lack of a better word.)  Did their passion and knowledge come through in their presentation?

Did they finish in time?  There is (maybe?) a one minute grace period.  If they go over, points are deducted.  If they REALLY go over, they are disqualified.  The judging carries on and they are given feedback and comments afterwards but they are excluded from advancing.   This happened to the 'favourite' last year and she was disqualified.  Thankfully, her sponsoring cafe secured funding which allowed her to accompany the 2012 Champion, Dailass, to the all-Africa competition and the World Competition.  This is another experience altogether -- the baristas don't just go for a holiday, they have classes and training and all kinds of opportunities to work with and learn from the world's best baristas.  And when the timer starts, they have their 'shot' at Andy Warhol's 15 minutes of fame! Every barista has their own story of course but many of the Blue Moon staff are the most unlikely baristas, thanks in part to the unique relationship that the cafe has with an amazing grassroots Women's and Orphan's Project, Chikumbuso. 

Enough explaining, eh?  Enjoy the photos and keep an ear to the wind to hear who won!

 

special thanks to the little guy who too frequently is my bag-watcher, drink-tester, seat-saver, lens-cap holder, and chocolate-taster. he is BEGGING to try Emeldah's signature "Pancakes" drink! (how can I resist?)




LATE BREAKING NEWS:  2013 Zambia Barista Champion:  Miriam from the Blue Moon Cafe, Runner-Up:  Emeldah from the Blue Moon Cafe.  The ladies are off to Melbourne, Australia...stay tuned for fundraising news! Click way for PAST REPORTS from the Blue Moon, (only in it's 3rd year of operation!) including a piece on their 2012 champion, Dailass and the backstory on her signature beverage, the iced Macademia Nut Milk latte.