Guess who's having a birthday tomorrow!

Yep - the big 4 - 0 on 1 October.

I wonder if WDW will go out for a nice meal with some friends, get drunk and say regretable things reminiscing about failed youthful love affairs and wondering where it's career went wrong.

Cause that's what I did at 40.

Eating my way around Australia in Florida

Well - as I have now discovered no-one is reading this blog and/or my few readers are completely unable to post comments as to iconic Australian dishes to be showcased at the Australian Booth at the Epcot Food & Wine Festival, I will just keep forging on alone.

I obviously need to increase the snark content.

I shall give you a head start - as Sam Kekovich prescribes: BBQ Lamb Chops:

Hmmm - am I unpatriotric? I use Nigella's Greek inspired marinade for my lamb chops.

so the rest of the Aussie menu includes: Shrimp on the Barbie (and that's not some new Mattel launch where Malibu Stacey and Barbie have become co-joined twins)

You think I do creepy things with Barbie? Go check out the Barbie for Grownups site!

 where was I?? Oh - Shrimp on the Barbie :

with a pepper berry glaze

and a Lamington,

The wines are:

• Penfolds “Koonuga Hill” Chardonnay
• Greg Norman Estates Shiraz, Limestone Coast
• Lindeman’s “Bin 90″ Moscato
• Penfolds “Thomas Hyland” Cabernet Sauvignon

So what do you think? Is this how you would think Australian cuisine would be immortalised?

p.s. I found this on the Barbie site

Barbie Sea World Trainer

Given this:

... I wonder what accessories are available? maybe this:

Nuuurse?!

Eating around the world

Only 6 weeks to go and I will be eating my way the world - around World Showcase that is - at the EPCOT Food and Wine Festival 2011!!

They were up late working on that logo

behold - the glorious wonders of cookery!

HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA jealous now? No?

I'd better show you what else is cooking and get your taste buds drooling worse than Muffy when we tickle his soft warm furry belly.

So the Festival runs for 45 days and includes a myriad of events and tastes and sounds. There are Signature Dinners with fancy chefs from around the world, wine seminars, cooking demonstrations, shopping (of course) and bucket loads of food to try.

I am going to four events (as well as all the other eating I am doing). So we have 6 weeks to prepare! 

One of the seminars I am attending is Shake, Taste and Indulge - with Grand Marnier. About 2 hours long, we apparently get a glass of Moet and Chandon Champagne (don't ask - I don't know), taste 3 different vintages of Grand Marnier, make our own Grand Marnier cocktail, and are served Crepes Suzette and Grand Marnier Souffle all whilst being lectured by the Grand Marnier people, if we are not lurching drunkenly around the room groping the old ladies.

I will post my photos here first! (just for you - an exclusive for my readers!). Meanwhile:

Shamelessly stolen from the DisBoards - a place setting on arrival. Embiggen to read the varietal tastes printed on the placemat

World Showcase will be the host to some 30 little booths representing different nations serving tapas portions of "national" tastes. Some of the offerings don't really test the imagination: dumplings from China, baklava from Turkey, Guiness from Ireland.

It is the Aussie booth travesty which I will preview first.

WDW have prepared this lovely little Aussie stand:

Sydney historical terrace combined with Andy Warhol style indigenous art? Have to say that WDW Imagineers give it a good try

See  - I can do it too! (btw: random indigenous artwork image from google - unattributed)

We're all Aussie's (or honorary Aussies) here - what would you consider to be representative of our cuisine and what beverage would you serve? Think main course, dessert and an alcoholic bevvie.

Post your ideas in the comments - which are supposed to be working now! If there are any readers and commenters out there I'll eventually reveal the actual 2011 menu.

Why did the pirate go on holidays?*

Aaarrgghhh me scurvy landlubbers be it Talk like a Pirate Day!

I has some treasure for ye bilge rats that will have ya drinkin up, me hearties.

Kaptn Katnip will be your piratey host for the day

Buzzfeed give a show of 20 of the scurviest scallywag piratey kittehs to darken your door

Cake Wrecks haul up the Jolly Roger and send some cakes to walk the plank

Visit Yaaarrr for Aussie Pirates

The Manolo shows superfantastic piratey boots

Get your new piratey name

My pirate name is:

Dread Pirate Rackham

Like the famous Dread Pirate Roberts, you have a keen head for how to make a profit. You have the good fortune of having a good name, since Rackham (pronounced RACKem, not rack-ham) is one of the coolest sounding surnames for a pirate. Arr!

Get your own pirate name from piratequiz.com.
part of the fidius.org network

and Pirates have invaded the Disney Parks Blog where you can learn how to talk like a pirate with Pirate Mac, check out new pirate vinylmation, and see historic photos of the Pirates of the Caribbean which - really - started this whole piratey thing.

As I hoist the mainsail and run for the islands, the captn himself shares his tale of the Pirates of the Caribbean

*because he wanted some aarrr and aarrr - Blame Pirate Mac - I don't write 'em, just steal 'em

Munchies

US Agricultural policy is rather more complicated than the Australian policy. I know that many of you are educated readers and fully aware of the history of the US Farm Bill. Back in the Great Depression the Farm Bill was launched by Roosevelt as part of his New Deal, and it's been around ever since although it looks very different today.

The big change was brought about in the 1970's by Tricky Dick and his Ag Secretary Seymour Earl Butz. Tricky and Seymour turned the Farm Bill on it's head removing limits on production - giving subsidies for increasing production. There was a bit of hoo har with soy bean exports, secret loans to the Soviets for wheat sales and off-the-charts corn production.

VICTORY .......for cheap corny snacks!

What to do with all the excess corn??

High fructose corn syrup - and stick in EVERYTHING.

When you go to the US you will find corn in almost every food product you can buy. It has either been added as a sweetener - it is WAY cheaper than sugar cane; used as an additive - it's in every chemically sounding additive you can think of; or it was fed to the animal you are now enjoying in between 2 slices of bread (which also contain corn). It's in your tea bags, cosmetics, even toothpaste.

So all the food became cheaper and more calorific. Today, you'll hear many Australians talk about how Americans have a "sweet tooth" and that's the HFCS.

When you go on holiday you expect to get treats to eat and Disney doesn't slack off in this area!

So let's have a quick whip around the Disney World of Snacky Sweet Goey Treaty goodness.

BUT  - what fun would there be in showing ice creams, fries and chocolate bars? Let's take a look at the deeply popular treats that are pretty rare or non-existant in Australia and are big time favourites in the US, especially in the south.

Join me after the jump for a cornucopia of corny, creamy, calorific comestibles - all in full colour!

Oh and you might want to get a cup of tea. The Americans have invented rather a long list.

Kitteh power

Once again I inspire other bloggers to greatness

Disney tell everyone they run the Mark Twain on used vege oil from the french fries but now you know the truth.

To Infinity and Beyond!

So whenever I am stuck with this:

I just show him this:

and then he's all this:

For most people, the 'bubbles' come out the other end

so I knew I had to get this shot for him:

tee hee hee .....jet exhaust .....smirk smirk ........

One reason why Zonta is still relevant

Girls.

In Zonta we understand that girls make the world go 'round.

I don't need to add any commentary. This would have to be one of the most content intensive websites I've seen.

Learn why the Girl Effect is important.

Manatee mingling

You're probably all wondering when is the strange woman gonna shut up about freakin' theme parks! Even when promised something other than Disney in Orlando - it was just another theme park - AAARRGGHHH!!

Dick's house must be AWESOME!!!

Perhaps you are more the 'back to nature' type and would be interested to know that Central Florida is predominately swamp with really cool wildlife and gators!

So for the nature lovers out there I'll checking out the 'snorkling with manatees' option.

 I had to choose this video to share - it is full of the AWESOME that I imagine would be at Dick's house!

It even has a tree hugging hippy song at the end!

If you held onto your lunch and made through the song you will have noted the couple of mermaid references. Yes - the Florida manatee legend has it that in times of yore seafarers would confuse manatees for mermaids. Hmmmmm.......

Mermaid:

manatee:

mermaid:

manatee:

I suppose if you've been at sea for long enough ...............

Anyway you'll be sad to discover that I am not going snorkling with Bob of video fame. Somehow his sales pitch just didn't win me over.  Instead I'll be swimming with Capt. Stacy from Manatees in Paradise. 

The epicentre of manatee tourism is Crystal River, which is approx 2 hours drive, in a very fast car, from WDW on the west coast  of Florida - Gulf of Mexico territory - but Crystal River is in a large natural spring area, and with apparently little damage from the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. 

There are a huge number of manatee tours operating out of central florida and down the Gulf coast. Just google and find the one that suits your purposes and wallet.

UPDATE: Sept 2011: I just found this awesomeness from The Family Guy:

You will not find this character at Disney