Enjoy freedom and find something special in simplicity. Unaffected, close to nature, honest. Gerlinde Weger does not hold a mirror up to her guests when it comes to the hard, daily work in agriculture. On the contrary, everyone is invited to become a part of the big picture. "We don't need to invent anything new, it's not people looking for action and adventure who come to us, but rather those who want to experience the 'loud' silence." Where the crickets invite you to their daily summer concert in the evening and thundering storms over the Gailtal mountain pastures remind many people of their reverence for Mother Nature.
Genuine primal experiences
At the Weger organic farm, you can feel it again, the "old" freedom that has become foreign to many and which the youngest have often never even encountered. The children can romp around all day, ask questions and curiously look over Gerlinde's shoulder as she heats up the rustic wood-fired oven, only to bake the bread that has been diligently kneaded and shaped a few moments later. "We are part of the Urerlebnisbauern, a community of several farms where we undertake various activities with our guests, so-called Urerlebnisse. Gerlinde is responsible for baking bread, a few kilometers away you can try your hand at wood carving, hikes and carriage rides are also on the program. For a playful exchange, an informal get-together and to collect unforgettable vacation moments.
Raise awareness of healthy food
Gerlinde and her husband Christian produce the purest organic meadow milk on their dairy farm. In addition to renting out vacation apartments, this is their second mainstay. Most of the milk is delivered to Kärntner Milch, the rest is processed. Curd cheese, butter, yoghurt, Gerlinde's creations are very popular with her guests and in the local gastronomy scene. "Many children are no longer used to this real taste, they only know the artificial strawberry taste, for example. You really have to sensitize them to it." Which is not particularly difficult for her: "I love cooking and the guests are welcome to help." Making Carinthian pasta together, processing fragrant garden herbs, biting into a freshly harvested carrot - everyone enjoys it. "I don't always have to follow the latest fashion trends or buy designer furniture, but what's on my plate has to be good," says Gerlinde. "People are paying more attention to where they get their food from, and we farmers have to do the same. I don't buy my pork from the cheap range either, but from a farmer I know. It may cost a little more, but that way I let everyone live." And she couldn't reconcile the cheap products with her conscience anyway: "When you know that thousands of animals like that live a miserable existence crammed together in stables, it makes me shudder to cook, doesn't it?"
Promoting slow food ideas
Supporting each other, promoting the Slow Food idea and appreciating the work of each individual is their clear message. "Sometimes other people have very little understanding of our work. But I like being at home with my children, I am proud to be a farmer and can make a very good living from it. Because it is worth something to me that we farm our land ourselves with my husband, that my children get a freshly cooked lunch every day and that we look after the landscape so that holidaymakers can enjoy a beautiful Carinthia."
She hits the nail on the head: "The tourism industry praises our country in advertising films and brochures. But who ultimately looks after this cultural landscape? We farmers do. Some people should take it to heart that we look after the landscape where others go on vacation. And I'm proud of that." Because as the saying goes: if you do what you love doing, you won't have to go back to work for the rest of your life.
Sabine Ertl
www.gedankenschmiede.at, 44 Article(s)
