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FAQyesterday was one of my favorite types of days: one that starts with a plan (in this case, to pick wild blackberries from the Australian Man’s parents’ farm), but then forges its own path and draws you in.
started the day at melbourne’s mother of all food destinations, the Queen Vic Market. vast and impressive, it spans entire city blocks, offering the freshest local produce/meat/seafood/cheeses and a variety of specialty cooking classes. i could die happy in the deli section.
by 2pm we’d scarfed down 2 boreks and our parking meter was almost up. time to head off.
of course we had to stop for a coffee.
within an hour we’d made it to the farm, fueled up with another coffee(!), threw on some boots and headed for the back fences. i couldn’t believe the size of the bushes – some about 10 feet in diameter and spread across acres and acres of land.
the darker and plumper, the better.
i probably ate that one.
perfect.
gnarly and thorny as hell!
a few hours and splinters later… 4kg / 8lb of wild blackberries in tow.
on the way back to the house, we spotted 2 kangaroos hopping away as we approached. i reported my news to the parents, since it was on their farm that i witnessed my first, and also because i can’t contain my childlike excitement. because they’re so sweet (read: they know i’m obsessed), they offered to take me to a popular roo hangout for a closer look: the golf course.
forget what i said about dying happily in the Queen Vic deli.
the evening finished off with an Indian smorgasbord in Gisborne, a country town near the farm. unfortunately i left my camera in the car. the food and service were both impeccable (as is delightfully common in family-run Indian restaurants), and the whole experience was further proof that authentic and delicious cuisine can be found in the most unassuming places.
so, what does one do with 4kg of blackberries? stay tuned.
