Sept 2015 - Week 2

Monday we had a busy day working, cleaning and shopping. Had left over chilli con carne for dinner.

Tuesday was a big public holiday here and we had a lovely visit to our friend Tina in a town called Bingemma. Her husband is away so we went to keep her company. She had arranged for a lady and her grown up son to be there; it turns out they are from the Isle of Man! No coincidence, clever Tina! Tina has a traditional Maltese house that has been seriously renovated and has a pool. We swam and sunbathed and chatted and ate all sorts of salad dishes including Waldorf, coleslaw, a green salad, ratatouille, buckwheat with herbs and chickpea pasties. The food was great and the joke is Tina had got it into her head that Sam was a vegetarian which is as unlikely as it gets, hence all the salad dishes! We were there about six hours in all, the longest lunch we have had in a long while. It was lively and fun and we drank virgin mojitos and I felt thoroughly cheered up after Lauren’s departure. I took on the role of pool boy and I exaggerate not when I tell you I cleared over 200 wasps from the pool. Apparently wasps have been a particular problem in the country this year; thank God we live by the sea!

We weren’t too hungry at night so only had crisps, 16 fish fingers and chips, and cheese and biscuits for dinner.

Wednesday was stormy for a change – the first properly rainy day we have seen for months. We worked all day anyway, so it really didn’t matter, except that I had to cancel my guitar lesson. I got a lot of work done on my food blog – here is a silly story to check out. I have a guest recipe section now, so feel free to send me any recipes you’d like to share.

We raided the freezer for dinner; burgers with chuck wagon beans.

Thursday and it was hello sunshine again. We took a break from work to go and sit outside for a cappuccino at XemXija Café which I hadn’t been to for ages. It was excellent as always and the carrot muffin that came with it wasn’t bad either! We went to a huge new garden centre for the first time – Sherries – to buy compost in anticipation of murdering a load more pot plants. In the afternoon Sam had physio on her back.

I cooked blackened chicken with roasted vegetables for dinner.

Friday John called to do a few maintenance jobs and we stayed in most of the day working. It’s still too humid to do much outside but not as bad as before we went on holiday. Each morning in July our terrace and patio furniture were soaked from the humidity; now they are dry.

We went to Miracles for a drink then on to Sun City for dinner. Sam had fish and chips and I had curry and chips. Good old pub grub. We met Dave and Sue for a catch up and they entertained everyone as usual with their guitar sing song. On the way home I had bacio and cherry ice creams but Sam abstained.

Saturday we went to the farmers’ market to stock up on fruit and vegetables. We bought peppers, courgettes, onions, garlic, plums, peaches, bananas, oranges, apples, lemons, grapes and pears. We better be hungry because they’re all ready to eat now! For dinner I made a beef curry.

Sunday we lounged around on the terrace for hours watching the world go by. The sea was dead calm and, being a Sunday, the boaters were out in force. The schools go back over the next couple of weeks so this may be a last hurrah for many boaters. We have noticed the number of boats at anchor in the cove below us is thinning out; by the winter the number will have dwindled from well over 100 to just a handful. Today we watched sailboats and dinghies, ribs, motor cruisers, day boats, water bikes and kayaks. The tourist boats were heaving with day trippers visiting Gozo and the Blue Lagoon. Several dive boats headed out to sea, presumably to dive on the many wrecks in our waters. We watched passing people of all colours, ages, shapes and sizes ambling up and down the promenade. Some were dressed as if for winter with thick coats and long trousers. Others sported nothing more than ill-fitting Speedos. Ugh! There was a parade of sports cars, some new, some vintage and the usual Sunday scramble for parking spaces. One of the things we love about our apartment is the birds-eye view we get of all this entertainment. I bought still-warm freshly baked bread, Swiss cheese and gammon from our local bakery for lunch. I strolled out in the afternoon to stretch my legs and had lemon and coconut ice creams. For dinner I made a roasted vegetable risotto.