GUDMUNDUR MEETS JOUKAHAINEN.

The Finnish mythological  idol Joukahainen meets in Los Vives the Viking chief Gudmundur and they decide
to solve the problem with a culinary contract.

The Viking Chief Gudmundur on the left behind her wife.

The photo from Akseli Gallen-Kallela's painting Joukahainen's revenge.

AUTUMN IMAGES FROM OUR FINCA.

The sunset towards west and Abanilla.

The sun coming up  from east direction Alicante.

The stone wall in the canyon. It was built to form a terrace and hinder the water to run away.

A semi wild grenadine tree with small fruits.

                                  FINCA SOFIA TEAM.

PAELLA VALENCIANA WITH RABBIT.

"Paella Valenciana",  is a typical  on rice based countryside food tradition. Paella was prepared outside on open fire  during the day  and served later under the fresh and cool shade which the green trees and plants gave. In rural areas  it's ingredients are still  from the local vegetable production  and the meat is rabbit or chicken or both mixed on the pan. The open fire from  dried grape-vine wood gives it the authentic Levantine  aroma .  

The Chef "Pepe "from Albatera cooking the ingredients on open fire.

"Paella Valenciana" redy for serving.

Finca Sofia Team enjoying the magnificent afternoon in Los Vives with  the Chef's family.

"Chef Thor" holding a functioning musket , which has been used in "Fiestas de Moros y Cristianos"  in Albatera.

FINCA SOFIA TEAM

"ZIMBABWE" CHICKEN'S WILD LIFE OUT OF THE HEN-COOP.

There was totally 16 eggs,and one egg rolled out from the nest, and was abandoned.

Three one day old chickens lurking under the "mother".

At last it was 9 chickens and 6 eggs was not fertilized.

The nine "braves" enjoying chicken life.

Outside the hen-coop the world is cruel. We have hawks, owls, foxes and cats and a small chicken cannot survive the total freedom.
                                   
                                     FINCA SOFIA TEAM.

"RAPUJUHLAT" ALSO IN SOUTHERN SPAIN.

We will imitate the old Finnish culinary tradition also here in southern Spain. We need to buy a variety of different kind of  fresh crabs, which we normally cannot have alive here in Costa Blanca . In Finland you never cook or use a crab as human food if the animal  is  dead.
Finnish "Rapujuhlat" ingredients are lot of "happy" alive river crabs. Lot of dill and toasted bread slices.
Lot of ethnic gourmands, a lake side place between birch trees and a mystic illumination with natural fires, and the Russian inherit for the  Finnish kitchen, French white wine or Champagne and ice cold Finnish vodka "Koskenkorva " schnapps .

A plate of Finnish boiled river crabs.

                   FINCA SOFIA TEAM

MIXING SPANISH,SCANDINAVIAN AND FINNISH TRADITION DURING THE MIDSUMMER EVE.

In Sweden and Finland  the Midsummer Eve,has a mystic atmosphere. After the long and dark winter this solstice day ,with half Scandinavia without night, and the area north of Polar Circle, without sunset, is something to experience .The towns look abandoned, everybody must smell the smoke from bonfires and the scent  of green leaved birch woods and hear the melody of the lake water breaking against the green beaches.To take this natural sensuality to Southern Spain is very difficult, but with good food and clean nature and smooth summer night air, like we have here in Los Vives, the magic transfers from Scandinavia to Spain.

A Midsummer bonfire by a lake in Finland.

Our Midsummer Mix is a traditional combination of Finnish gourmet.

Gravad lax,Smoked salmon and mussels,marinated herring,a big schrimp and a salad.

NIGHT STALKER AND A "BELLE DE JOUR"

The larva of Death's Head Hawk moth (Acherontia atropos)  eating olive tree leaves, which is an unusual  "menu" for it.

A colorful Swallowtail (Papilio machaon) sucking nectar from Geranium flowers.

Finca Sofia team is a community where everybody works for maintaining wildlife and nature for the future generations, so that also our grand children can enjoy the nature's magic and it's marvels.

REPTILES AROUND THE HOUSE

MEET THE OLD SEA BOTTOM AT 225M ABOVE THE SEA LEVEL.

Our finca in Los Vives is situated about 225 meters above the sea level and some 50 kilometers from the Mediterranean coastal line.Somewhere here near us the European and the African tectonic plate meets each others in subduction belt.It means that the African plate is diving under us, and sometimes we here it "making noise" when there is a small earthquake. The hot springs near us in Fortuna and Archena are consequences of the  cracks in the the earth's crust where ground water meets the magma.
If you climb towards  Cerro Agudo hill , and start to observe the stones, the more fossils you see the higher you follow the slope.Here are  my recently collected samples of different kind of mollusc and coral fossils.

                                FINCA SOFIA TEAM

PINOSO-CULEBRON VINTAGE ROUTE

Today we carried again through  our old culinary route with my still very active 86-year old mother-in-law and her daughter, my life partner, to experience the Spanish viticulture heritage. If you visit our "FINCA", there is a "MUST" to do this journey, and buy at least one bottle of "FONDILLON" gran vintage  from bodegas de Culebron.

Fondillon in tasting barrels in Culebron.

Vintage wine in barrels in Bodegas de Culebron.

Plaza in the center of Culebron.

Co-operative wine producer in Pinoso.

Vineyard in Pinoso by the road to Jumilla.

COCHINEALS ATTACK!

Cochineal is a small tick (5mm) which lives on Opuntia Ficus-Indica cactus. It sucks the juices of the plant and reproduces on the leaves. Only the wingless  female cochineal (Dactylopius coccus) sucks the plant liquids, while the male has wings and it's only purpose is reproduction. Cochineals has a nymh phase which lives together with the females and produces waxy white substance. The ancient Aztecs and Mayas used dried insects  for coloring clothes.
We had lot of Opuntia fig cactus here in Los Vives , but the cochineal plague has destroyed most of them.

 In the picture above ,waxy substance covered cochineals.Near the white square  flattened  insects with their carmine color.
   

FINCA SOFIA TEAM

VINTAGE ROUTE

We have a new trekking route which can be connected with Finca Sofia - Cerro Agudo route.It is called Ruta de Rio Chicamo-Finca Sofia  and you can find it in es.wikiloc.com. Also I will advertise here our old Pinoso Vintage Route, which starts  from Abanilla and goes through  Pinoso to Culebron. These two communities belongs to Alicante province and they are famous for their wines. In the picture L'antigon table wine bottles.

L'antigon red and white wine from Alicante.


FINCA SOFIA TEAM

PICUDO ROJO ATTACKS!

The warm weather and the sun shine brings back one of the most harmful plagues, the Red Palm Weevil (Rhynchophorus ferrugineus). They  are not  good flyers and their  flying makes a faint noise so you may have time to catch them before they have laid their eggs in the  defenceless date's stem. The plague was first reported in  Spain in1994, and already in 2005 it was attacking Elche's Palm tree forest, the patrimony of humanity.

The Red Palm Weevil , Picudo Rojo, (Rhynchophorus ferrugineus)

A date palm with young fruit starts.

SPRING MENU
Cooked mountain snails (Serranos) in hot sauce.
Spinach soup with boiled eggs
Grilled sardines with lemon and pepper
Season's fruits

FINCA SOFIA TEAM

SNAILS, CAPER AND LONG BLOSSOM THYME

Here in Los Vives one  can enjoy a very exquisite gastronomic delicacy, Iberus gualtieranus alonensis- snail. You can find it here on the rocky slopes of Cerro Agudo.Very common are   also Helix aspersa, Helix aperta  and Helix engaddensis snails. At this time of the year, the fresh  Long blossom thyme leaves  (Thymus longiflorus) and  fresh Caper shoots (Capparis spinosa), can be a good alternative for seasoning the snails.

The Iberus gualtieranus alonensis- snail is highly valued among the Spanish gourmands and in some places it has disappeared because of excess collecting.

Chef Thor's Aroma Aurora Borealis Category for edible snails.

I    Iberus gualtieranus alonensis: Vaqueta,Caracol  blanco,Serrano, Serrana (ESP)

II   Otala punctata : Cabrilla, Caragol cristia (ESP)

III  Helix pomatia : Roman snail (ENG), Viinimäkikotilo (FIN)

IV  Helix aspersa: Garden snail (ENG), Tarhakotilo (FIN)

V   Helix aperta : Green garden snail (ENG), "Vihreä tarhakotilo" (FIN)

VI  Helix engaddensis :"Garden snail" (ENG), "Levanten tarhakotilo" (FIN)

Otala punctata snails

Young Caper shoot

Thymus longifloris thyme 

PARASITIC PLANTS GROWING IN LOS VIVES

Cistanche phelypaea,Pijo de lobo ES,Mata pojera ES,

Cuscuta epithymum,Cabellos del monte ES, Apilanvieras FI

Orobanche amethystea, Pijo de lobo ES,Jopo ES, Piikkiputkennäive FI

Cytinus hypocistis, Keltakistuksenloisio FI

FINCA SOFIA TEAM

OLEA EUROPEA AND PHOENIX DACTYLIFERA NOW IN BLOSSOM

An assortment of photos of fruit trees and plants now blooming in Finca Sofia.The weather in Los Vives on  13.4.2013  is sunny and the temperature at 13.45 PM is 24.3 C.

European common olive tree (Olea europea)

Date-palm, female tree (Phoenix dactylifera)

Lampranthus spectabilis

Dimorphoteca barberiae

Geranium (Pelargonium hortorum)

Cactus( Echinopsis oxygona ) with 12 flowers.

Dimorphoteca barberiae

TRANS-MOUNTAIN TREKKING IN SIERRA DE ABANILLA

I was to day checking a new wandering  route which is situated behind the Sierra de Abanilla  mountain group. I will name the trek : Following   Rio Chicamo flow from Umbria till Mahoya. It starts from the badlands of Abanilla in Umbria and follows the River Chicamo through Cajer, El Partidor, Ermita de la Santa  Cruz till Mahoya.
The length is 8275 m, and the descent 120m. The time required to wander it is about 2h 30min.
And  the dinner in the evening after the  hard day's trekking is the Jaime el Barbudo one.

Map of the route.

Rio Chicamo in La Umbria

Rio Chicamo in La Umbria

Scenery from the badlands in La Umbria, Abanilla