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Sunday, June 27, 2010

Lavender

In Spanish language we can call it with three different words :

LAVANDA, ESPLIEGO and ALHUCEMA.

Lavanda comes from Frech “lavande”.

Espliego comes from Latin “espicilum” (which means spike).

Alhucema comes from Arab “alhuzama”.

I prefer to call it Espliego, it is the word we use in my region : Aragòn and I adore its colour and its aroma.



It is very easy to cultivate. It doesn’t need almost any water. It only needs to be planted in a sunny place. It can resist very well during very hot summers but also during very cold winters. It is convenient an important pruning at the end summer.

It was very well known by Antic Romans . They put these flowers into the thermal water. They prepared perfumes and decoctions to be used for their beauty.






You can make your eau de toilette if you mix flowers + alcohol + demineralised water.

You can alleviate your headache if you massage your temples and your nape of neck with a very few drops of Lavender Essential Oil.

You can put small bucket into your wardrobe in order to chase away any moth.

Its aroma is detested by mosquitoes.

I harvested first flowers in my garden yesterday and I took are some pictures.



Sunday, June 20, 2010

Quasi Estate / Almost summer





Sono felice che sia arrivata l’estate o quasi.
Insomma, sono felice che sia arrivato il mese di giugno. Non è ancora troppo caldo ma la temperatura ha raggiunto un livello piacevole.

A giro, ci sono tanti uccellini, farfalle e nel calar del buoi tante lucciole .Quando eravamo bimbi, ci dicevano che se ne prendevamo una e la mettevamo sotto un bicchiere capovolto l’indomani mattina avremmo trovato un soldino .

Mi sembra molto singolare che sia il vocabolo italiano, che quello spagnolo derivino dal latino, ma che a loro volta attingono da due termini latini diversi:
italiano : lucciola da lux / lucis = luce
spagnolo : luciernaga da lucerna = candil (lampada a olio).

Tornado all’inizio, è anche piacevolissimo svegliarsi presto ed andare a fare una passeggiata nei campi qui attorno . L’altra mattina mentre scendevo verso il bosco, ho visto tre cervi che fuggivano perché impauriti dalla mia presenza.

















Ho avuto un momento di grandissima emozione. Ho sentito rallentare il mio ritmo cardiaco, ho trattenuto il respiro. Come avrei voluto che non andassero via spaventati!! Sarei stata felice di mettermi seduta da una parte e in silenzio ammirare la loro bellezza. Invece sono scappati..., comunque li ho visti correre, vitali, bellissimi!!.


Invece nel pomeriggio sono andata oltre il boschetto perché avevo visto che avevano tagliato l’erba medica e avevano lasciato per terra tantissime balle bellissime e possenti nella loro grandezza.
Mentre scendevo tantissimi uccellini che erano venuti a mangiare semini, insetti ed altro, volavano via . Veramente rilassante !!


Here in English
I am happy that summer is already arrived. I adore June month. It is not too much hot, but at same time the temperature is very pleasant.
Here around there are many birds, butterflies and when in the evening it becomes the dark, it is possible to see many, many fireflies. When we were children, adults told us that if we took one of them and put it into a glass in down position, the morning after we would have found a coin!
It is strange for me that this word in Italian and Spanish languages come both from Latin but from two different words, so also in our days the words are different:
Italian : lucciola from lux / lucis = light
Spanish : luciernaga from lucerna = Oil lamp .
In any case, it is very nice to get up early in the morning and to walk around the fields nearby.
Some morning ago when I was walking to the forest I saw three deer, which run away since they saw me. It was a beautiful emotion. I felt my heart beat slowly, I held one's breath. I would liked they stayed there, so I could admire their beauty. Instead of they ran far….. in any case I saw them in the beautiful vitality.
Later, in the afternoon I walked over the forest since I knew that alfalfa has been cut, so grass rolls were still on the field.
When I was walking many, many birds, which were there to find seeds and insects, flew away…., very relaxing moment!!!