Food, glorious food!
Hello everyone,
How are you all doing? Satya, how are you feeling? I hope you’re OK, and I’m keeping my fingers crossed for you during your mid-term exams – I hope they all go well for you. And thank you for your birthday wishes – I had a lovely day.
We’ve had another celebration today – it’s our wedding anniversary! We thought we’d go out for lunch, so we went to a place in Darling Harbour (where Owen could watch all the boats) and shared a big plate of seafood. Yum! And that got me thinking about a subject for today’s post – food! A lot of you have been asking me about Aussie food, and what better place to start than with seafood?
Seafood and fish here in Oz are great – you can get them in most places. Sydney Fish Markets are on the water near Glebe (just a bit further round from the ANZAC Bridge) and the stalls there are stocked with all sorts of interesting things. The markets get really busy around Christmas as everyone is stocking up on prawns and things for Christmas lunch. I think most of the produce is local, although some things are imported.
Fresh produce here is wonderful – because Australia is such a big country with a range of climates, most fruit and veg are locally grown. As we’re just coming into summer, mangoes are coming into season – hurray! I love mangoes – I don’t think I’ve ever had one before I came here, and I’m hooked! Queensland produces most of the tropical fruit like mangoes, pineapples and bananas, whereas the cooler states (Tasmania, Victoria and southern NSW) produce stone fruit like peaches and nectarines, and things like apples.
Australia is quite well-known for its beef and lamb, although meat is getting more expensive (as are fruit, veg, milk and bread) because the drought is starting to have an effect on prices. Many areas of the country have been in drought for 10-15 years and the farmers and primary producers are really starting to suffer. Meat features prominently in that great Aussie culinary tradition – the barbie (barbecue), especially as we’re coming into summer and the days are getting warmer and longer.
I should also probably talk about wine and beer – there are some very famous wine-growing areas in Oz, notably the Yarra Valley in Victoria, the Margaret River in WA, the Barossa Valley in South Australia and the Hunter Valley in NSW. Australia exports a lot of its wine – in fact, when we went back to England in May I was surprised by how many Aussie wines I recognised. Many states are known for one particular beer – the most widely-drunk NSW beer is probably Toohey’s New, and there are a lot of smaller breweries opening up and producing boutique beers. In Sydney, there are also restaurants devoted to Belgian, German, and Czech beer, so there’s a really wide variety!
I was thinking about sharing some traditional Aussie dishes with you – here are a couple of sweet things you may have heard of – lamingtons and pavlova. Lamingtons are made from sponge cake which is cut into squares, covered in chocolate and then dipped in coconut. Pavlova (which both Chris and I love!) is made from egg whites and sugar, which are beaten together until they’re stiff, and then baked until crispy. This crispy meringue base is then filled with thick cream and fresh fruit (usually strawberries, but you could use anything really). It’s delicious, but also really bad for you!! (But most desserts are, I suppose!) If you’d like me to find a proper recipe for pavlova so you can have a go at making it yourself, let me know and I’ll see what I can do!
How did you do with the gerunds and infinitives? As Satya says, it is a tricky topic, so keep coming back to the posts and reading them again – hopefully they’ll be around on the site for a while, so you can come back and look at them as often as you need to.
Did you work out the use of go on for yourselves?
Go on + gerund means that an action is continued
Go on + infinitive means that a new subject has started
Well, I’m sure you’ll all be very happy to know there are only three more to look at, and the same patterns can be applied to all three. Isn’t that good news? And I promise that my next post will be much less grammar-heavy!!
OK, let’s look at forget, remember, and remind.
With the gerund:
• I still remember eating mangoes for the first time.
• I’ll never forget watching England beat Australia in the 2005 Ashes series.
• I regret not working harder at University.
These examples with the gerund all refer back to the past, to things that I did (or didn’t do). You could also say:
• I can still remember the first time I ate mangoes.
• I’ll never forget the 2005 Ashes series when I watched England beat Australia.
• I regret the fact that I didn’t work harder at University.
With the infinitive:
• Please remember to pay the phone bill.
• I forgot to buy an anniversary card for Chris.
• I regret to tell you that you failed the exam.
These examples with the infinitive are looking forward in time.
• Remember / forget + infinitive look forward in time to the things that you still need (or needed) to do.
• Regret looks forward in time to something that you are (or were) going to do but that you feel sorry about.
If you’d like a bit of practice, see if you can complete the gaps in the following sentences with either the gerund or infinitive form of the verb in brackets. I’ll do the first one for you as an example.
1. Cityrail regrets to inform you that the next train has been cancelled. (inform)
2. I mustn’t forget ………… some vocab at the end of this post. (include)
3. I can remember ………… snowmen in the garden with my sister when we were little. (make)
4. I’ll never forget ………… Chris’ face when he realised he was having a birthday party. (see)
5. You must remember ………… a drink for Owen next time you go to the park. (take)
6. I still regret ………… away my husband’s best shoes – I didn’t mean to do it. (throw)
Answers next time! I’ll also try and reply to all of you again, as it’s about time I did that, especially as you’re all so good about posting comments for me to read. We might have a look at some of the new vocab too, if I can think of a more user-friendly way to do it!
Hope you’ve all had (are having?) a great weekend,
See you soon,
Rachel
Today’s vocab (not much, really!)
to stock up (phr vb)
come into season (expr)
hooked (adj)
boutique (adj)
Comments
Hi Rachel, I'm still having a great weekend. Yesterday I spent the day with my family fishing and taking bath in a natural pool at the countryside. The place is wonderful to recharge the batteries. I know fishing is very popular in Australia too and there are fishing clinics being conducted there. I think it could be also a great business here and an eye-opener to the global warming for children. My belated congrats to your birthday...sorry because I haven't had time to do the homeworks recently but I have been dutifully reading and studying all. Lovely your pictures and description about Glebe. Let me tell you that your explanation about gerunds and infinitives is amazing. I'm having a belated look at that because I assume it's very useful for me as much as the vocab that you have been generously giving to us. Talking about sports, I must confess to being frightened by the time of the Football Word Cup, after reading some racist comments from journalists and readers in the Sydney Morning Herald (sports blogs). I felt very sad when I read something about Ronaldinho's looking because he's my idol but I don't think everybody in the country think and behave at the same manner and I'm happy to know Australians are an example for us in behaviour at the stadiums. Although I don't want to move to Australia anymore, I still have a dream to visit the vibrant thriving nation. Have a nice week Rachel. Bye
Dear Rachel, First of all I like to say happy birthday and happy marriage anniversary. For last few days I was unable to open webpage due to technical error and we were busy on celebrating Dasain festival. When I checked your previous posts I was astonished to see gerund and infinitive lesson. It will take me whole day to recap all lessons properly. When I started to learn language in proper way, I found it interesting and much more challenging everyday. 1. Cityrail regrets to inform you that the next train has been cancelled. (inform) 2. I mustn’t forget to include some vocab at the end of this post. (include) 3. I can remember making snowmen in the garden with my sister when we were little. (make) 4. I’ll never forget to see Chris’ face when he realised he was having a birthday party. (see) 5. You must remember to take a drink for Owen next time you go to the park. (take) 6. I still regret throwing away my husband’s best shoes – I didn’t mean to do it. (throw) to stock up (phr vb)- to buy a large quantity of something come into season (expr) - a period of time in which something is plenty in market hooked (adj) - enjoying something so much that you are unable to stop having, watching, doing, etc. it boutique (adj)- prepared based on someone’s desire
G'day Rachel, Wishing you a very happy wedding anniversary. So that means two great events of your life come in October. God sent you in the world and made you for Chris in the same month. I really really liked reading about seadfood as I'm a big fan of it. Lamingtons and Pavlova were absolutely the sweet and tender punch to my mouth, I would say that I have a sweet tooth. It will be great if you share the recipe for Pavlova. Oh God! I can't stop myself talking about food, but I will have to, as I've already had the dinner. I must hand in the HW:2)to include,3)making,4)seeing,5)to take,6)throwing. Best wishes, Naheed
Hi Rachel! My region, that is, Veneto is famous for: radicchio(a leaf chicory), rice and I cannot forget our vineyards. Have you ever had a glass of Prosecco or Merlot as a drink? They are excellent wines ! We usually make barbecue ribs with grilled sausages and polenta. I love this dish!! Do you celebrate Halloween in Australia? This tradition has become popular in Italy too. Have a good day
Hello Rachel!!! I´m really fine, thanks. It´s still raining here, and this Saturday I couldn´t go out of home. There was a big storm, which didn´t let me turn it on my computer, so after cleaned and tidied up all the house, I started to read Emma, which I´m enjoying reading it very much. However, among Jane Austen novels my favourite one is Persuasion. Anyway, October is a month full of celebrations for you. Congrats for you and Chris for your wedding anniversary :-). Well, my mouth is watering just because I read about lamingtons and pavlova. Hmm... I have a sweet tooth. And you Rachel? Are you have a sweet tooth too? Oh let me have a quick go at homework, once my sister is back from her shower and she´s wanting to use the computer in order to end her essay. 2. I mustn’t forget to include some vocab at the end of this post. (include) 3. I can remember making snowmen in the garden with my sister when we were little. (make) 4. I’ll never forget seeing Chris’ face when he realised he was having a birthday party. (see) 5. You must remember to take a drink for Owen next time you go to the park. (take) 6. I still regret throwing away my husband’s best shoes – I didn’t mean to do it. (throw)-(Haha! that´s one was funny :-)) Vocab: to stock up (phr vb): to buy a large quantity of sth; come into season (expr): period of the year that you have a friut or veg. By the way I love mango juice. Thanks God its also mongo time here! :-) hooked (adj): describes a nose which is large and curved; boutique (adj): a small shop that sells fashionable goods. Oh Rachel, I bid you farwell now. Rosana is giving me 'that' look. Haha, it´s better I say good bye. See ya, Ana Paula.
Hi, Rachel. Nice to meet you. I am sujan from Seoul in Korea. I think it's my first time to leave some comments here despite that I came here so often to see your post. Because I had stayed in Australia for 1 yr and 9months and just came back last July. So I almost know about what you are talking about and what you would like to mention... Actually I am quite happy when I read your post as I feel like I am still there and enjoying. I love Australia and I would like to go back there again. I am also hoping to improve my English skills with this blog from now. The BBC did a fantastic job and it would be very helpful to the people like me. I would like to have more time with you. Keep it up! Cheers!
Hi Rachel :-) I wish you a hapy wedding anniversary! I hope you will have your good Aussie wine. I don't think I should advertise wine (alcohol shouldn't be advertised), but Aussie wines are getting more and more popular in Europe. They are thougt to be better for you than French, which use chemicals for preservation and Australian don't. They are cheaper yet very good. Once again thanks for your grammar explanatons on infinitives and gerunds. All the best for you, Owen and Chris.
Hi Rachel, happy birthday (although a bit late) and happy wedding anniversary. I'm sorry that I didn't comment in previous post. Last week, I'm very busy because of job competition and interview (I have just graduated from University). Hope they have happy ending. Wow, when I read this post, I feel very hungry. I love sweet foods, I eat very much, but I'm not getting fat, really I'm very thin, small. Everybody think that I'm still a high school pupil, not a graduate (^_^). Vietnam also grow many fruit, but tropical fruit is more than cool fruit. I also love mango: unripe mango pickles with salt, sugar and dry chilies; and vitamin mango. I also like seafood but house is far from sea, so seafood is very expensive and not fresh. We often eat seafood whenever we go on holiday in the sea. Well, thanks for two Aussie dishes You mentioned above. I hope you'll give me the recipe for them. See you soon. Bye bye!
Hi Rachel, happy birth & anniversary day:) , my birth was a few days ago exactly October24 and I enjoyed a lot that day!Talkin´ about food I ate shrimp salad that day and of course a delicious cake(vanilla flavour and spread with nuts) ,yum yum yum. Here in my country a famous beer is "CORONA" I think it has an international market,in fact the main factory is here in my city, it´s a very big brewery.And its the creator and main sponsoring of the great "International marathon of the Pacific" every year came a lot of visitors and competitors,last year the winner was from some place of Africa; I don´t remember the name where he came from. But the award was fabulous!(in American Dollars),oh I forgot to tell you our seafood are great too!!! I live in a port called Mazatlán,in the state of Sinaloa we are located at the side of the Pacific Ocean,we always have fresh fish and fruits,also my state won the first national place on food producers, not only the fishing is great,we have a great agriculture and cattle breeding too.I hope you have the chance some day to visit my country México and taste our delicious tipycall food.;) I feel sad because in your blogs you never mentioned mexican food,I think there´s no mexican restaurants there. Wow I´ll never write that much! Sorry if there are grammar mistakes(still learning!!!) Best regards to Owen,Chris and you! Bye.
Happy wed annivesary, Rachel! Another gorgeous topic of food Aussie rejoice at their present taste. And I think Australian wines turns recently to widely-known to the world market as well similar to French brands. I really like them, especially fruit wines that taste more authentic and pleasant I've ever experienced. If you come up with another the post of typical Australian wines, I'll be bowled over and hope everyone else will be. I'm also with you about Australian beef and lamp because my country's importing loads of beef to give another choice to the consumers. Lamp is not so ubiquitous to be fair, however some of restaurants in Vietnam are starting off their plans. Here is my practice on grammar points of gerund and infinitive. 2. I mustn't forget to include some vocab at the end of this post. 3. I can remember making snowmen in the garden with my sister when we were little. 4. I’ll never forget seeing Chris’ face when he realised he was having a birthday party. 5. You must remember to take a drink for Owen next time you go to the park. 6. I still regret throwing away my husband’s best shoes – I didn’t mean to do it. Keep going on. So long!
Hi Rachel!…What an exciting month is October for you! Congratulations! Don’t tell us that Owen’s birthday is next week! It would be too much!…. And about your wedding anniversary, How long have you been married?… It is said that most wedding anniversaries have got a name… for you to have an idea the 5° anniversary is known as Wood Wedding Anniversary, the 15° is the Crystal Wedding Anniversary and so on… This weekend was a special one because We had general elections in Argentina… We had to vote for president, governors, members of parliament, mayors and so forth! I spent almost 2 hours queueing to vote. Finally It was my turn to enter the room were the ballots were, but I got a great surprised when I realised that many ballots of different candidates were missing…Imagine what?…I had to wait still more! A woman (who I didn’t vote and was the one I liked the least) was elected president for the first time in Argentina’s history. She is the wife of the current President! As you see everything remains in family! Sorry Rachel… I guess that I’m boring you again with my stories… Let’s talk about food a much more pleasant topic! Argentina has an amazing cuisine! I suppose that you would like it very much! Your pavlova is a typical type of dessert here, but of course with another name: Torta de Merengue! And I completely agree with you that it’s delicious (my mouth waters!) but I had never heard of something similar to that lamington (it sounds like a surname, isn’t it?) which I’d like to try! As regards the fruits you mentioned… My husband is mad about mangoes (it is coming into season here too!) but I really don’t find it nothing out of this world! Moreover,I prefer plums, pears, kiwis, strawberries (alone or with cream), peaches (peaches in syrup with “dulce de leche” which is a kind of sweet made from milk!), or any other fruit but mango. My God, I’m forgetting one of my favourites AVOCADO!(in all it forms and varieties) But you can’t talk about Argentinian cuisine without mentioning DULCE DE LECHE! Have you ever heard of “dulce the leche” before? The use of this kind of sweet is widely spread! We use it to fill cakes, pancakes, with bread, toasts, cookies, bananas, etc. There is a biscuit sandwiched together with dulce de leche known as “Alfajor” wich is simply DELICIOUS! Chocolates mixed with dulce the leche and nuts or peanuts or almond are very commonn too! The dulce the leche flavour of icecream is one of the favourites ones here! Argentinian wine is very good too! All the west part of the country (the mountainous region) is very well known for their excellent vineyards and the wide variety of grapes that they produce. But Argentina has a special drink…The “mate” !! (It is not pronounced as the word mate (friend) in English. We pronounce the “ma” as in mama and the “te” as the “te” in telephone, with the accent in the ma part of the word) The mate is an infusion from the dried leaves of the “yerba mate” plant. It is prepared in a kind of glass also called“mate” and sipped through a kind of metal cane called “bombilla”. Drinking mate is also a social activity shared with the family or friends. You have to pour near-boiling water into the “mate” (glass) and pass it to someone. The person drinks the infusion and returns the mate to be filled again for another person. Mate can be drink with or without sugar according to people’s preferences. My God, it’s very late again…I must go to sleep or I won’t be able to go to work tomorrow!. Have a nice day, Rachel! Homework: 2. I mustn’t forget …to include…… some vocab at the end of this post. (include) 3. I can remember …making……… snowmen in the garden with my sister when we were little. (make) 4. I’ll never forget …seeing……… Chris’ face when he realised he was having a birthday party. (see) 5. You must remember ……to take…… a drink for Owen next time you go to the park. (take) 6. I still regret …throwing……… away my husband’s best shoes – I didn’t mean to do it. (throw) Vocabulary: /to stock up (phr vb) to buy a large quantity of something
Hi Rachel, Happy birthday and happy wedding anniversary! I love the food topic, and I am always interested in the traditional foods from all over the world. Actually, I already started googling the recipe of Pavlova. Thank you. Hope to read more on Australia yummy dishs.
Hey up Rachel! You don´t need being afraid that you got tired us with the gerund grammar. In contrary that are highly useful, clear interesting explanations. The style make the impression that I am sitting in the class (in yours sunny Sydney!) watching the blackboard and try to catch the best sense of the hard understanding subject. My whole study method is to copy something what I read but the point is that often I wasn´t able to recognize what a rule may be hiden in what I am reading. And I am still wondering how many of them are in your language. I fear a little that it can keep me down writing freely comment here. Studying is more difficult for me now when I don´t have my young lady teacher for revising my mistakes. But you are very good at showing me ways acros this language jungle. And I proved on myself that a few days without practicing have gotten me in to dificulties to put down sentences easily. I want to congratulate to us having you as the teacher and to your anniversaries as well by this description of my learning struggle. All the best to you!!
I have read the gerunds and infinitives again and again. Even though it’s difficult to follow it’s interesting to know about it. Your real life examples make me to understand easily. I didn’t have separate grammar note book for writing the grammar points from the teachers’ blog till last week. The last couple of your blog made me to start writing grammar points in a separate note book. It should have helped me to improve my grammar. In fact I taught gerund and infinitive to my daughter yesterday. She is doing seventh standard. She has got these two topics in the syllabus for next week mid-term test. I have shown your examples to get an idea. You mentioned that some of parts of Australia have been under severe drought for many years. Is there climatic condition differ from one part of Australia to another. I hope you get plenty of rain in some parts of Australia. What is the condition of farmers of the drought hit areas. Has government been giving any subsidies to them? Are they migrating from own place to some other places because of the drought. Some time we are also facing this kind of situation in India. Farmers will be in great danger if the monsoon fails continuously. They tend to move to other place to find a job. Leaving their own place to look for a job in this kind of circumstances is difficult one for them. isn’t it?
Hi Rachel! Yes, you can find several paddy fields on the outskirts of Verona. As usual, thanks for answering to my comments.:)
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