Wednesday, November 26, 2014

"Preparing for the Holidays"

Photo: We are just one week away from Preparing for the Holidays on November 22! Make your own unique gift, check out the 19th-century method of smoking meat or see how families made candles, soap, fruit cake or sausage for the winter. What is your favorite winter tradition? Event details: http://bit.ly/GCVMHolidays

This was the name of the special day at Genesee Country Village last weekend.  What did we see and learn?

Weihnachtsvorbereitungen standen im Mittelpunkt eines besonderen Tages des Museumsdorfes Genesee Country Village.  Was gab es zu sehen und zu lernen?

Making crafts:
Basteln: 

 Here Flora and Veronika are making dried cranberry hearts.
Hier machen Veronika und Flora Herzen aus getrockneten amerikanischen Preiselbeeren.

 Miriam and Flora made little potpourri bags.
Miriam und Flora haben auch kleine Duftsäckchen gemacht.

Charlotte is making a Victorian gift box out of pretty paper.
Charlotte macht eine viktorianische Schachtel aus hübschem Papier.

Eating inside a historic tavern:
In einer historischen Gastwirschaft essen:

 A real fire place
Ein echter Kamin

 Menu
Speisekarte

 View out the tavern window
Blick aus dem Fenster der Gastwirtschaft

Eating sauerkraut with sausages, one of the waitresses was another homeschooled student from our co-op group. 
Sauerkraut mit Würstchen: Eine der Kellnerinnen war eine Schülerin von unserer Heimunterrichtsgruppe.

Spinning and weaving:
Spinnen und Weben:



Candle Making:
Kerzenziehen:

 Candles out of tallow
Kerzen aus Rindertalg


Hog butchering:
Schweineschlachten:

 Big kettles for hot water
Große Kessel für heißes Wasser

Cutting apart a hog: We did go close to watch how they cut it apart and saw heart, head, ribs, etc.  I did not take a picture up close so not to offend any readers here.  The men did not show how they killed the hogs behind the barn, but everything else was demonstrated.  They did a wonderful job in showing how you do it and that nothing got wasted.  They also answered questions very well.

Zerlegen des Schweines: Wir haben genau zugesehen, wie sie das Schwein zerlegt haben und Herz, Kopf, Rippen usw. gesehen.  Ich habe aber keine Nahaufnahmen gemacht, um meine Leser hier nicht zu schockieren.  Die Männer haben nicht gezeigt, wie sie die Schweine hinter der Scheune getötet haben, doch alles andere konnte man miterleben.  Sie haben das ganz wunderbar erklärt und demonstriert.  

Rendering lard and brining, Salting and smoking meat:
Schweineschmalz gewinnen und Pökeln. Salzen und Räuchern von Fleisch: 

 Here the meat was salted to get ready to be put into the smoke house to make bacon.
Hier ist das Fleisch gesalzen worden, um dann im Räucherhaus geräuchert zu werden, so daß man Speck hatte.

A view of the smoke house
Ein Blick ins Räucherhaus

Making soap:
Seifenherstellung:

 Potash (lye) and lard (from the just slaughtered hogs) makes soap
Pottasche (Lauge) und Schweineschmalz (von den frisch geschlachteten Schweinen) macht Seife

Soft soap
Weiche Seife

Fruitcake:
Früchtekuchen:



Baking fruit cake
Backen des Früchtekuchens

We also watched how to make chocolate, but the room was so dark that my pictures are all blurry.

Wir haben auch bei der Schokoladenherstellung zugesehen, aber der Raum war so dunkel, daß meine Fotos alle unscharf sind. 







8 comments:

  1. What a fantastic day! Also a great lesson in resourcefulness and stewardship, all parts of the animal used and nothing wasted.

    Happy Thanksgiving to you all, thinking of you most especially this day.

    San, Dave and all xx

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    1. Thanks so much, San. When Flora prepared our apple candles today, she asked me if they were made from animals. She paid attention at the museum :).

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  2. Der riesige Webrahmen sieht toll aus. Durften alle daran probieren? Unsere Kinder haben ihre Tischwebrahmen wieder herausgekramt und weben damit im Moment. Kerzen ziehen macht auch immer wieder Spass! Tolle Erlebnisse für Deine Kinder! Und sicherlich ein schöner Tag.

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    1. Nein, da durfte man nur zugucken :). Veronika webt im Moment auch, ich habe das früher auch gerne gemacht. Ja, es war ein schöner Tag.

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  3. Welch schöne Gelegenheit. Da habt ihr in der Tat viel gesehen und gemacht. Das also war die Geschichte des Schweineschlachtens.

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  4. Hello Eva, That is something to see! I think I would be squeamish, but I'm glad they use all of the hog. I always like to hear how the Native Americans would offer up prayers of thanks to the soul of the animal they would kill. It seems appropriately respectful. Genesee is very much like Sturbridge. It's such a good place to go to get into the holiday spirit. The cranberry hearts are really nice. Happy Holidays!

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    1. You should have seen them carting the pigs' legs through the village in order to make sausage :). You know, I don't know if I would have liked this as a child, but my mother always insisted that we had to look at everything, the birth of a calf, dead animals, how things were done in the older days, and also old age and sickness. Although I was not always thrilled when I was growing up, I am so thankful now. That is a wonderful gift you can give your children if you do it right. I am trying to pass this on and show my children that life and death are connected and that there is nothing to be scared about. Yes, I also think that the way the Native Americans treated animals was so much more respectful than what some people do today. Happy Holidays to all of you as well!!

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