February 2017 - Week 4

Monday 20th to Tuesday 28th February 2017

Monday I did a long walk. It was our hottest day of the year so far. Unfortunately, that means flabby, white beer bellies are on show as the Brit tourists strip off their ill-fitting t-shirts. There was another car bomb today, the second so far this year and that on top of three last year. This time it was exploded in traffic so there were a number of innocent bystanders injured. Not good. For dinner Sam had roasted chicken with poached broccoli and cauliflower. I had a Puy lentil lasagne.

Tuesday I went to walk around the National Park at Qali, several acres of unusual shrubs and trees. I had it virtually to myself, like a personal estate. I drove on to Attard and visited the San Anton Gardens. Again it was very quiet. There is a new copper model there about 2 metres high of a five storey pagoda, a “gift from the Japanese Cherry Blossom Association.” How odd! In the evening Sam went to an art class in Mosta. I stayed in, watched TV and ate left over lasagne.

Wednesday we went to Sliema so I could have another filling done. It was quite a painful job and even a full block anaesthetic didn’t completely dull the pain. Anyway, it’s done and hopefully that will end my dental visits for a while. Sam went shopping, spending ages in her new favourite shop, Flying Tiger, which sells such an eclectic mix of low cost products that they defy description. On the way home we stopped at Greens to stock up on fruit and veg. For dinner Sam had a baked Sea Bream with fennel; I had the last left overs of lasagne.

Thursday I did a hike along the ridge from the red fort to the western lookout point, then down towards Paradise Bay and back up again. The views were stunning in every direction. Spring flowers are blooming now and the hillsides are covered in yellow and purple blossom. For dinner Sam made Nigella’s tequila and lime chicken with sweet potato wedges.

Friday we went for a walk along Dingli cliffs and stopped at The Cliffs restaurant for average cappuccini. On the way home we stopped at the garden centre to buy herbs. In the evening we went to Miracles for a drink. It’s carnival weekend with street parties in Valletta and Nadur (Gozo). In that spirit the staff in some bars and restaurants were wearing mouse ears or bunny ears. We went to dinner at I Due Sardi, our first visit. We had read some good reviews of it and the menu choices are pretty much limited to pizzas and pastas, which we took for a good sign. The room was bright and the staff friendly but the pizzas were very ordinary, no better than you’ll get at any of the umpteen tourist restaurants in town. We enjoyed our evening but we won’t be going back.

Saturday we drove along the ridge past the Red Fort to take in the views but the air is quite dusty at the moment so we couldn’t see very far. We drove on to Armier Bay where we were pleased to see diggers finally clearing away the mounds of seaweed deposited by the winter storms. While there we had cappuccini at Mambo’s, of course. We stopped off at Valyou in Mellieha to do a bit of shopping on our way home. In the evening we went for a walk along the prom and stopped at Miracles for a couple of beers. For dinner I made an Indian spiced vegetable and cashew nut pilau. Sam’s avoiding pasta and rice, so she got a take away pizza from Portobello.

Sunday we had a lazy day. For dinner Sam baked a sea bream and I had a goats cheese and vegetable pizza.

Monday we shopped, worked and walked. For dinner we had chicken roasted with blackening spices, sweetcorn and left over Indian rice pilau.

Tuesday I went to Sliema while Sam worked. My last four visits to Sliema have been to see the dentist, so it was nice to go there purely for pleasure for a change! I bought a pair of long trousers for my forthcoming visit to the Isle of Man; despite global warming, it seems that shorts and flip-flops still don’t work there in March. Sam went to her art class in the evening. For dinner I made a pork vindaloo in our slow cooker. I’m still amazed how something so simple can taste so good.