Friday 1 October 2010

Spotted in the Netherlands: It's that time of the year...

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Autumn has set in - oh, yes! It is *that* time of the year, again. Days have shortened considerably, the skies do not always look bright and woolly but mostly grey and dull,  though there have been exceptionally pretty skies like these captured by blogger Alison in Utrecht.

Sunday walks in the nearby forest of Westerveldsebos have a particular charm during this season and, together with my husband, we have already been on our first mushroom hunt of the year. Look at the size of this one!
 
My husband put a coin (a big 25c. one  from Argentina he carries always with him) on top of it, to give an idea of the size of this big fellow.

This other one, somehow reminds me of the hats Princess Máxima sometimes wears to events like the opening of Parliament for Prinsjesdag


There is something else that always tells me that we have passed the autumn equinox once again. On Saturdays, as we ride to and from the shooting club where my husband usually goes to practice, we often spot roadside stalls selling farm produce:


Farmers usually put up these stalls along the road where people can stop and take their pick of the recently harvested produce and -get this- leave the payment in a tin or box. Sometimes there is a fixed price, like in the next photo; but sometimes, you can leave whatever amount you think is appropriate.


Back home in Argentina, I used to spend a lot of time in my grandparents' farm, but I never saw this kind of produce sale over there.
I can't help thinking if people actually do leave money behind or they forget to perform that part of the transaction; and if so, does it actually make it to the farmer's pocket or do some people take the coins as souvenirs as well as pumpkin and a couple of courgettes for their soup or Sunday pie?

14 comments:

JaPRA said...

Oh, very nice mushroom spotting! I think that first one is like the one I found on my walk the other week. The second one is so pretty!

I hope people DO leave money for those veggies and that the farmers DO get it :-)

Happy Autumn!

Aledys Ver said...

Thanks, JaPRA! Yes! That mushroom looks like the one you found! I bet it was just as big!
Happy Autumn to you, too!

flamingotje said...

That one mushroom DOES look like some of Princess Maxima's hats! And what a trusting way to do business with the veggies. I hope no one takes advantage of the farmer/seller.

Thanks for sharing the link to my photos!

Sonya said...

I LOVE this time of year. I always go hunting for what I call the Fairytale mushrooms..they are so amazing here!

Back home we always went to a big produce stand where you also dropped the money into a tin. Everyone would stand around and break change for eachother because noone had the the small change to pay for anything. We also bought fresh egg from a woman who would line them up on wooden slots along her fence. You take the eggs out and replace it with money. Back then noone ever took the money..I can't imagine it's like that now.

Invader_stu said...

Ah yes. Autumn is well and truly here. Although the cold is a shame it does lead to some very nice visuals.

Aledys Ver said...

Ohhh that's nice! In my case, this is not a familar sight back home, so I find it quaint!
Thanks for your comment!

Presepio No Canal said...

The first one is huge! And the second one reminds indeed Maxima's hat ;-) Well done, Aledys!
I love this kind of trust in the client with the vegetables stalls along the roads or the book stalls in Bredevoort! ;-)
I cannot imagine that in my land...sad, but true...

Patricia Sgrignuoli said...

Beautiful post... I wrote another comment in the spanish blog, it´s easier!!!

Aledys Ver said...

OK, Pato! Thanks!!!

A Touch of Dutch said...

Great photos! I've not yet bought produce from the side of the road, like what you've featured, but now you've got my curiosity as well! ;-)

Aledys Ver said...

Thanks, Isabella! I have, actually! I bought pumpkin! :)

Aledys Ver said...

I'd love to see those photos!!
I'll be staying in Argentina for 2 months, actually! I'll be back by beginning of December.

melissa said...

What fun..exploring the forests and finding beautiful mushrooms...sounds like a perfect day!

dutchification said...

In Canada, farmers do this too. You can leave money in a box and take what you want. What's funny is that this probably originates from the Netherlands since a lot of Canadian farmers are originally Dutch immigrants.