The Queen With The Frozen Heart - Flying With The Stars

Sisa grabbed the queen’s hand and felt Kuyllur take hold of her another hand.

Then they were flying high over the night sky.

In the palpating light of the star she could see the land below them.

It was the first time she was not standing on it and she felt earth's yearning to have her in its safety.

And at that moment she was falling.

- Stupid child of the earth, Kuyllur chided her, you will rest safe on it when we arrive but meanwhile you must trust the wind, like your queen.

- Oh, I am a child of the wind and the air, the queen laughed and she rode over the clouds, I have always loved the land and its devotion to our people. But my heart belongs with the sky.

- I don’t know what happened, Sisa muttered, I didn't do anything.

Her magic had turned into a small mouse and hidden under her clothes, scared, just like she was.

Its heart beat against her skin at a terrifying speed and it whimpered in a high voice.

- You are a child of the land, the star laughed, and you need the earth for your magic to survive. But our travelling won’t take long, don’t worry. Nothing shall happen to you, I promise!

Sisa closed her eyes and concentrated on the touch of Kuyllur’s warm skin in her hand and the coolness of the queen’s touch.

Little by little the terrifying feeling of being lost with nothing to hold on to, all alone, without anyone else in the world, left her.

Her magic’s heartbeat became more regular and she started to enjoy the touch of the cool night air against her skin.

- Let go, the queen whispered into her ear, let the wind carry you. It really wants to!

And Sisa could feel how the wind tugged her hair and wanted to fly her off to the sky, towards the awaiting stars.

She relaxed her body and let it flow together with the air, riding the currents and not fighting against them.

She was flying!

With a star!

She opened her eyes to stare at Kuyllur, the magical brother.

To be continued....

This is the twenty-ninth part of the story.

To read the first part of the story, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart 1  

To read the second part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart 2 

To read the third part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart 3. 

To read the fourth part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart 4. 

To read the fifth part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart 5.

To read the fourteenth part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart 14

To read the sixth part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart 6

To read the seventh part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart 7

 To read the eight part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart 8

To read the ninth part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart 9

To read the tenth part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart 10

To read the eleventh part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart 11

To read the twelth part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart 12

To read the thirteenth part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart 13

To read the fifteenth part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart 15

To read the sixteenth part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart 16

To read the seventeenth part, go to the The Queen With The Frozen Heart 17

To read the eighteenth part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart 18

To read the nineteenth part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart 19

To read the twentieth part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart 20

To read the twenty first part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart - The Night Of The Black Moon

To read the twenty second part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart - To The Enchanted Night

To read the twenty third part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart - At The Mouth Of The Cave

To read the twenty fourth part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart - The Visiting Star

To read the twenty fifth part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart - Time To Leave The Home

To read the twenty-sixth part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart - A Suitable Wife

To read the twenty-seventh part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart - Down In The Dungeons

To read the twenty-eight part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart - Savouring The Chicha

Orchids' Paradise - Monkey Forest Resort in Archidona, Ecuador

"Orchids’ Paradise" - Monkey Forest is a resort located in the Canton of Archidona in the province of Napo.

It is near Tena, and just three hours from Quito.

Orchids' Paradise is a peaceful and comfortable place that also helps to conserve the environment and biodiversity of the Amazon rainforest.

Truly a unique space designed for people who love nature.

The conservation of flora and fauna are part of the facilities and you can observe several species of monkeys in complete freedom along with native plants such as wayusa, ishpinku and ayawaska.

The Amazing Plants and Animals

It is my son’s favorite place for a swim during the hot days which we have too often.

I enjoy the beautiful pools but also the gorgeous views and nature paths.

The trees and flowers surrounding the facilities are amazing and I truly enjoy taking pictures of all the life teeming in the forest.

There are many different animal and plant species living on the grounds.

One of the monkey species is chorongo or brown woolly monkey.

The chorongo is also called Humbolt’s brown woolly monkey and it is the second biggest monkey of the new world.

They live in groups from two to 70 individuals.

One of them got a bit too friendly but finally calmed down and wanted to play with us.

Brown Woolly Monkey

The woolly monkeys’ heads are rounded and large, the body is heavy and the tail is prehensile and naked at the bottom

The brown woolly monkeys have a highly developed thumb and short, thick fingers.

Their coat is short, thick and woolly and the coloration of the head is darker than the rest of the body.

They form family groups, with a social hierarchy where the dominant male has priority access to females and food.

They are fruit eaters, their diet consists of fruit, leaves, seeds and some insects, which makes them important seed disperser agents.

In Ecuador chorongos are found in the Eastern Subtropical and Tropical planes.

You may find it around the Napo and Aguarico rivers and is common in the Cuyabeno Wildlife Reserve and the Yasuní National Park.

In general they live in the Amazon region of Brazil and east of the Andes in Colombia, Venezuela, Ecuador, Peru, and Bolivia.

Their natural predators are the harpy eagle and jaguar.

If you ever come to Tena – Ecuador, I recommend visiting "Orchids’ Paradise" - Monkey Forest Resort.

Easy Au Gratin Broccoli and Cauliflower

The first time I ate au gratin broccoli and cauliflower was when I was already an adult.

I had an intense hate - hate relationship with broccoli when I grew up.

I did like cauliflower, especially in a soup, actually in one specific soup and nowhere else.

I must admit I was a horribly picky eater, a total nightmare to my mom.

Especially because what my sister ate, I refused to eat and viceversa.

Which is why I am totally cool with my son's pickiness.

I can't really complain after what I put my mom through.

At least he doesn't throw up the food on his plate.

Our children truly are how we pay back for our childhood's sins...

But moving on to the broccoli and cauliflower au gratin.

I was an adult when I finally accepted that broccoli is actually a food.

And I was actually suprised to notice how delicious it is.

So when I was offeced this absolutely amazingly delicious au gratin, I just had to make my own version of it.

Unlike me, my son enjoys eating broccoli and I have been very happy to cook it to him.

And since he is a cheese lover, just like I am, it has been a staple in our house since the first time I cooked it for him.

Sometimes we eat it with a side of rice but usually I eat just the au gratin with meat or chicken.

Or just by itself.

 Au Gratin Broccoli and Cauliflower

Ingredients

5 cups large broccoli florets

4 cups large cauliflower florets

4 oz.  (1/2 of 8-oz. pkg) Cream Cheese

½ cup  milk

½ cup Cream

2 teaspoons salt

1-1/2 cups Cheddar Cheese

3 Tbsp. Grated Parmesan Cheese

1. Mix the cream cheese, milk, cream and salt in a blender until its uniform.

2. Put the broccoli and cauliflower in an oven safe recipient and pour the cream cheese, milk and cream mix on them.

3. Sprinkle cheddar and parmesan cheese on top.

4. Bake in 375 degrees Farenheit until golden brown. (About 30 min)

ENJOY!

The Queen With The Frozen Heart - Savouring The Chicha

The jaguar men devoured the food and belched after the choice bits.

They picked their teeth and gnawed the bones; few lucky ones popped the eyes and sucked them noisily.

One man cracked a skull with his bare hands and munched the brains while his friends roared in laughter.

- What a fest, the leader raised a bone in his hand, you cook well, old woman. Would you want to cook the next feast for us too? The meat will be even better, I can promise.

- Do you mean those ugly, smelly men downstairs, Iluku shook her head, I don't think I could cook anything tasty from something that skinny and bad smelling. You better fatten them up first!

The kasike roared in laughter and smacked his hand on the table.

- That we shall do, he shouted, that we shall do! But now, bring us some of that delicious chicha of yours. I've been hankering for it since I smelled it earlier. It's a rare treat we get chunta chicha, since only human females know how to do it.

- Everyone has their uses, Iluku answered dryly.

- Oh, that is for certain, kasike laughed out again.

On his nod two men run to the kitchen and carried the vats of chicha out.

Iluku walked to the vat and took out her pilche, the little cup made of coconut shell was decorated with red and black seeds.

The chicha was ready, a special chicha that she had prepared with angel trumpet tree's leaves.

Leaves that we're sure to offer a good night sleep when smelled and unconsciousness when digested.

Ceremoniously she scooped the first portion of chicha and walked slowly towards the jaguar men’s kasike.

She offered the pilche to him and he took the first sip, savoring the taste.

Smiling he looked up and stared Iluku straight to her eyes.

- Delicious, kasike smacked his lips, just like chunta chicha should be!

- Enjoy, he roared to his men, and drank the cup full.

Starting with kacike Iluku offered a drink from her to pilche to each and every one of the jaguar men.

They all drank heavily and laughed, savoring the sweet, fermented taste of chicha.

To be continued....

This is the twenty-eighth part of the story.

To read the first part of the story, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart 1  

To read the second part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart 2 

To read the third part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart 3. 

To read the fourth part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart 4. 

To read the fifth part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart 5.

To read the fourteenth part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart 14

To read the sixth part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart 6

To read the seventh part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart 7

 To read the eight part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart 8

To read the ninth part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart 9

To read the tenth part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart 10

To read the eleventh part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart 11

To read the twelth part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart 12

To read the thirteenth part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart 13

To read the fifteenth part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart 15

To read the sixteenth part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart 16

To read the seventeenth part, go to the The Queen With The Frozen Heart 17

To read the eighteenth part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart 18

To read the nineteenth part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart 19

To read the twentieth part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart 20

To read the twenty first part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart - The Night Of The Black Moon

To read the twenty second part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart - To The Enchanted Night

To read the twenty third part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart - At The Mouth Of The Cave

To read the twenty fourth part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart - The Visiting Star

To read the twenty fifth part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart - Time To Leave The Home

To read the twenty-sixth part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart - A Suitable Wife

To read the twenty-seventh part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart - Down In The Dungeons