Tuesday, November 29, 2011

Courses

Course 1 - To start off the party we will be having homemade bread and a tasty salad consisting of some of our finest vegetables. The salad will include fresh lettuce, crisp cabbage, diced cucumbers, and fava beans with a delicious vinaigrette.

Course 2 - For this course we will be serving a splendid pea soup seasoned with salt, pepper, and parsley. Along with your soup, we will be having delicious smoked sausage cooked to perfection and seasoned with various spices.

Course 3 - You will then be served marvelous cooked clams and divine pieces of crab meat after your soup. Followed by this will be freshly picked, red grapes and luscious pomegranates.

Course 4 - Next for our first main dish you will enjoy our delicacy of mouthwatering pork accompanied by sweet, diced apples covered in a rich almond sauce. The pork will be boiled to perfection and then seasoned with various sauces.

Course 5 - The second main dish will consist of lamb boiled and seasoned with our finest herbs and spices. On the side will be heavenly broccoli cooked to perfection.

Course 6 - Then for dessert we will be serving a white cake glazed and sweetened with honey. To top it off there will be a strawberry sauce made out of sweet, ripe strawberries to pour onto your cake.

Course 7 - Lastly, exquisite stuffed dates will be served with various fruits such as juicy apples, freshly picked grapes, ripe pears, and sweet plums.

Drinks - To drink we will be having calda which is warm water with wine blended together with a variety of spices. It is a traditional drink that is typically served in the cold Winter months.

Dinner Table

Dinner Invitation

You Are Invited To My Dinner Party!

Theme ~ Greek Gods & Goddesses

Dress up as your favorite god or goddess from Greek mythology.

When ~ Friday, December 30, 2011 at 11:00 A.M.

Where ~ My House

My dinner party will include seven courses of the finest Roman foods. You won’t want to miss it! I hope I'll see you there!

Guest List ~

· Agrippina Nuzum

· Servius Stuart

· Octavia Gregg

· Tullia Crowther

· Horatia Kyle

· Balbina Cline

· Urbana Dionigi

· Caecilia Blake

· Faustina Pingley

· Sextus Terwilliger








Thursday, November 17, 2011

Education in New Zealand

     New Zealand's education is the 7th best in the world according to statistics. The different levels of education include primary school, intermediate school, and secondary school. It is much like here in the United States with elementary school, middle school, and high school. New Zealand has over 2,000 primary and secondary schools.
     Students in New Zealand start school at the age of six. Kids go to primary school from the age of six to eleven. Intermediate school is for pupils aged eleven to thirteen and secondary school is for ages thirteen to seventeen. The cost to attend these schools can range from $100-$500 which is very different than here in the United States. To leave school you have to at least be sixteen years of age.
     Like here in the United States, the school year in New Zealand has four terms. Their school lasts from February to December though. To graduate in New Zealand you have to pass a series of assessments to get a National Certificate of Education Achievement (NCEA).
     The common courses people in New Zealand have to take are very similar to the ones here. They have mathematics, science, social studies and physical education. They also have art, music, home economics, and languages. If you went to school in New Zealand, some sports you might play include swimming, basketball, rugby, sailing, volleyball, and cricket.
     At most high schools in New Zealand they require you to wear casual uniforms. A girl's uniform would consist of either a dress or a skirt and shirt. For a guy it is shorts and a shirt. Some schools in the United States require uniforms while others don't.
     A typical day for a high school student would include walking, biking, or riding a bus to school at 8:00 A.M. At 8:30 A.M. their first class of the day starts. Then at 1:00 P.M. the students eat lunch. Most people bring their lunch to school while others eat in the cafeteria. At 2:00 P.M. is the student's last class of the day. Then the students would go home or go to after school sports practices.

Sunday, November 13, 2011

Christmas in New Zealand

 
Traditional New Zealand Holiday Dessert- Pavlova
Ingredients- (serves 6)
· 4 egg whites
· 8 oz sugar
· Teaspoon of vinegar
· Teaspoon of vanilla
· Dessertspoon of corn flour
· Tablespoon of cold water
· Pinch of salt

Directions-
  • Beat egg whites and pinch of salt together until stiff. Add half the sugar slowly while beating, then the other half likewise. Then add the rest of the ingredients one by one, beating as you go.
  • Draw a circle around a small dinner plate on baking paper and place on oven tray. Place the mixture in the circle, making the edges slightly higher than the middle.
  • Cook at 250°F / Gas Mark 1/2 for one hour and then 225°F / Gas Mark 1/4 for 1 hour. When cold, fill the middle with whipped cream and put fruit on top (usually strawberries and kiwi). Serves 6.
 
-How They Celebrate Christmas-
  1. People in New Zealand use the pohutukawa tree as their Christmas tree.
  2. They celebrate Christmas twice a year: on December 25 and in July.
  3. Many people have a barbeque or picnic for Christmas lunch.
  4. Santa Claus in New Zealand is referred to as Father Christmas.
  5. Due to the sunny weather in New Zealand on Christmas, Santa is known to be wearing swimming trunks and sunglasses.







-New Zealand Christmas tree
 





- map of New Zealand





 



- New Zealand flag