Fresh from the garden

yummy..yummyy...

One of my much loved activities during our summer visit in the Loire Valley is fruit picking. In my own family, we have never had a garden planted with so many fruit trees and the only fruit tree we had was a papaya tree. So, when the first time I saw a tree full of ripe prunes at my in-laws’ well-manicured garden, I was extremely excited. As most of the houses here grow their own fruits and vegetables, there will be barters among neighbours when the harvesting season comes. As for us, we swop prunes for beetroots and greenbeans with two different neighbours. Prunes aren’t the only ones found in the garden. There are also different kinds of apples, walnuts, almonds, pears, cherry tomatoes, courgettes, and figs. The latter is commonly found only in Europe, I think. For the best walnuts and almonds, we often have to compete with the cute squirrels who definitely love them, too.

what have been saved from the squirrels

So, if many young people from Europe travel down under to work during the fruit picking season as well as to take advantage by being in the country, I am doing the other way around. My ultimate satisfaction comes from the experience of picking the fruits directly from its trees, fulfilling my imagination when reading childrens’ storybooks.

The fresh products ready to be consumed