Natty Jumreornvong

Wow!! Live performance, medieval food and fancy wine. What more can a poor hungry college student asks for? Seriously though, the live performance  really captivated me. I’ve always been a fan of classical instrumental music and opera. Apart from some in Shakespeare’s plays I’ve been in, I have never heard any vocal music from before the Baroque era. But to hear professional singers sang without any instrumental background really enhances the experience as it allows me to only focus on the beautiful voices. From the songs chosen this week, I learned that medieval music can be both religious (as suggested by the song about Virgin Mary) and also fun non-religious with a lot of innuendos (the song about women and birds, which was hilarious and I commend who ever chose the song). We were also able to hold an old medieval music text and I was quite nervous because it looks old and expensive. Inside the text, especially in the beginning, the notes and pages were decorated beautifully. The decorations became less impressive near the end of the book. Bu, I still feel so privileged to be able to hold such a beauty.

I chose Golden Sops for this week’s recipe because the recipe reminds me of French Onion Soup, my favorite soup of all time because of the toast and somewhat gravy soup. Because I love toasts so much, I was in charge of toasting two loafs of bread. It was not as challenging as previous recipes but it was very fun talking to my toasting partner. It was also my first time eating a grouse, which also reminds me of pheasants. We had to eat with our hands, which I am not used to but it gives me a hands on experience of how medieval people would eat their birds. Personally, I prefer chickens because grouses are quite small, rough and have a bitter taste. But I am glad that I had the opportunity to try it!