For the first time in her life, fifty-two-year-old Marion was unemployed. Lonely at first as her partner Steve was working away from home much of the time, she found the best way to make new friends was by joining local community groups. And she relished having time to develop her writing and photography skills.
Before long she had fallen deeply in love with her new surroundings which she describes in a lyrical poetic way:
“What I love most about our bay is its moods- the everchanging light that switches in seconds, creating new landscapes full of emotion. Mountains reflect, like green gems flung on a sapphire sea, but can quickly transform into shadowy entities as if the bay is indeed possessed by a long water monster.
In Living, Feasting and Writing deep in the Marlborough Sounds she shares her three great passions, Living, Writing and Feasting.
With her camera she has captured the beauty of the landscape and the local wildlife.
From her pen comes a fascinating potpourri of local history, excerpts from her diary, anecdotes, poems and stories about life in Clova Bay. The tone changes from nostalgic to romantic, poetic, and humorous but underlying them all is her passionate love for their life in Clova Bay.
Marion, who comes from a family of great cooks, loves creating recipes and sharing the food which they harvest from the sea and the land.
She has shared a wealth of her seafood recipes for cod, gurnard, snapper, kahawai, crayfish, oysters, cockles and mussels. And there’s her Mum’s Pukeko soup, Goaty Roasty, Nibbling Rabbit, Venison Back Steak & Tamarillo, and Pork Belly & Black Pudding as well as treasured recipes from her Dutch heritage.
As well as hunting wild red deer they also farm fallow deer for venison. Steve has surprised Marion by showing an amazing talent for creating delectable venison prosciutto, salami, biltong and sausages. Recipes for these too are in her book.
Those who love cooking will find plenty of inspiration in Passion. Living, Feasting and Writing deep in the Marlborough Sounds. And those who love exploring their own back yard would also enjoy this fascinating insider look at what life is like in this isolated part of New Zealand. It has certainly whetted my appetite for visiting this place of outstanding natural beauty.
Passion. Living, Feasting and Writing deep in the Marlborough Sounds by Marion Day. $65. Available from www.marionday.nz
Reviews by Lyn Potter
Parent and grandparent, Avid traveler, writer & passionate home cook