DECK THE HOLIDAY'S

This is a loaf cake that my mum liked to make and it remains a firm favorite of mine. The lemon syrup poured over the freshly baked cake seeps down into the sponge and adds a special moisture to the taste. Perfect to have with a cup of tea in the afternoon. ingredients flour for dusting the pan 1 stick butter, softened, plus more for greasing the pan 3/4 cup superfine sugar 2 large, free-range eggs, beaten finely grated zest and juice of 3 lemons 1 1/2 cups all-purpose or light spelt flour 2 teaspoons baking powder 1/4 cup milk 1/2 cup confectioner's sugar, sifted preparation Preheat the oven to 350°F. Butter and flour a 9-inch non-stick loaf pan. In a medium mixing bowl, cream the butter and sugar together with a wooden spoon (or use an electric mixer). Gradually beat in the eggs and mix until light and fluffy. Stir in the lemon zest, flour, and baking powder, and mix well. Add 2 tablespoons of the lemon juice and mix well again. Then beat i

   The attractions of snakes seems to be a huge pull factor, and seemingly the whole world's major  ophidiophillaccs  (snake lovers) often accompanied by their snakes, alongside keen photographers, descend on the small medieval town of  Cocullo , in the  Abruzzo Majella Mountains , ready to take part in this festival which has been re-enacted in its current Christian format each year, apart from 2009.    There are three supposed origins to the  Cocullo Snake Festival ....In the 11th century, apparently  Saint Dominic  cleared the local fields which were being overrun by snakes, and as a sign of thanks, since 1392, the locals parade his statue and snakes around the streets.  The second version dates to 700 B.C., locals experienced the same problems in tending to their field and  Apollo  ordered the village to entwine the snakes around his statue so that they would become tame and be able to farm once more.  The first origin dates back some 2000 years to the  Marsi  w

   May Day  on May 1st,  is an ancient Northern Hemisphere spring festival and usually a public holiday;     it is also a traditional spring holiday in many cultures. Traditional May Day Celebrations    May Day is related to the Celtic festival of Beltane and the Germanic festival of Walpurgis Night. May Day falls exactly half a year from November 1, another cross-quarter day which is also associated with various northern European pagan and the year in the Northern hemisphere, and it has traditionally been an occasion for popular and often raucous celebrations.    As Europe became Christianized, the pagan holidays lost their religious character and either changed into popular secular celebrations, as with May Day, or were merged with or replaced by new Christian holidays as with Christmas, Easter, Pentecost and All Saint's Day. In the twentieth and continuing into the twenty-first century, many neopagans began reconstructing the old traditions and celebrating May Da