Trying A Different Tack

I finished the first leaf, so progress has been made.  In looking at the pattern for the second leaf, I saw that it wasn't individual motifs like the last one.  For this reason, I decided to try the instructor's method of doing the whole piece as lines of running stitch instead of as motifs.  This is the start of that experiment.

Chateau Migdal - First Hall

 Chateau Migdal, also known as Chateau Cojusna, is an independent modern winery about ten miles outside of Chisinau.  They export mainly to China, the former Soviet republics, and Africa.  We went on a tour last Saturday.  Our tour guide was not a regular employee, as they have no English speaking guides.  She was a French teacher from the nearby school.  This means our tour wasn't nearly as insightful or in depth as it could have been, but it was still fun. 

There are huge wine aging vats, ceramic lined, in the front cellar hallway.  They're used to age whites and other wines that aren't oaked.

Lots of pretty ironwork throughout the complex.

And, of course, collections of wines in cubbies.

Sheepfully Done

I finished!  This is a Shepherd's Bush design called Hold Hope.  It was a pretty easy stitch, and a small one.  I'll be making it up into an ornament soon.  I'm trying to get a bunch of smalls stitched up before I move.  I also like that it's a finish for one of my Crazy January starts.

C House With Dawn

We went to C House with Dawn after our last visit to MolDeco.  Their margaritas are frozen, red fruit, and large.  They taste pretty good, too.  We shared a proscuitto plate and Andreas had his usual greek salad.   My salad was a beef salad that was truly a meal in itself.  Dawn had a pasta dish with cream sauce and pancetta, while I had a steak and Andreas had pasta too.  I don't know how this Italian chain decided to open a restaurant in Chisinau, but I'm glad it did. 

Moldovan Italian Food

Trattoria Della Nonna is a local chain in Moldova.  They do Moldovan and Italian food.  We went to the one in the mall last month, and well... I kind of wish we hadn't.  The food was so bland and tasteless.  At least it's also inexpensive.  Andreas' caprese and shopski salads were good, although the caprese was drowned in olive oil.  He did like that it had a lot of olives on it, though.  

The bruschetta had plenty of tomatoes on it, but required more spices.  There was a distinct need of basil and I ended up salting it, too, which meant a lack of garlic. The tomatoes were typical of greenhouse around here, with less flavor than summer.  On the other hand, they were firm and fresh.

We both had different kinds of bolognese.  As you can see, the portions were fairly generous, but there wasn't even a tomato taste, let alone one of meat, in the sauce.  It had the right color, but I'm not sure what it's made of.  We probably will not be back because I can consistently make better Italian at home.

Big Cactus

When I started working on this cactus, I thought it'd be ugly.  I was following the directions, and it was bulky and messy looking.  By the end, it straightened itself out and I now have a 3D cactus on this belt buckle.

Lofty Lunch

It was fish day at the cafeteria and Andreas hadn't brought in something to eat, so we went to the Loft.  Mackerel is just not our thing.  So, Andreas had the baked camembert and I had zeama, then I had the poached egg salad and he had a pizza.  Much, much better than fish!