vailian

I have an important concert on Saturday, preparation for it has been pretty much draining me for weeks, but the Ossie dragged me out to the countryside this afternoon, a grill party at a colleague's house. They live some 30 miles from here, in a little village. They are just finishing building the house, a 2-story wooden construction with a big garden. Our host told me proudly that the heating system, the latest design of eco-friendly, worked so well this winter that they didn't have to heat the house once. (How that works exactly is a mystery to me, has something to do with extracting heat from the ground and chanelling it into pipes in embedded in the floors... evidently the princple is of a refrigerator in reverse) .
There was a copious supply of wine and beer, and the food was pot luck-- this is very unusual in Germany, where a hostess prides herself on the menu. The standard of the dishes was very high... I didn't cook anything but the Ossie made her famous Dill Quiche.
What was there to eat? A fabulous homemade Tzaziki (very high garlic content), some excellent Frikadellen (kind of large meatballs, eaten cold). Various salads, both of the green and potato variety. German, Turkish, and French bread. Lamb chops and sausages and whole fish on the grill. Various and sundry desserts, many of them heavy and sinful with chocolate.
And this plant in the garden, I have no idea what it is but it is BIG, the stalk is about 4 feet high and the flower the size of a tennis ball. Anyone out there know what it is (the owner couldn't tell me).