Let's Gozo!!

Oh man...I am just chuckling to myself about the title of this blog post. I can't exactly take credit though, since it was the title of a Gozo-ad. Anyway...so, Malta and flat #13 are starting to feel a little bit more like home. I know what a blood-orange looks like--and, most importantly, what one tastes like (which, is pretty much indescribable, but I’ll try: a burst of tangy juicy citrusy goodness that, if dribbled on your shirt, might stain it red unless taken care of right at that very moment); I have eaten my first piece of Tiramisu at a cute restaurant down-town called Cara's; I have begun to familiarize myself with the area in town and by the sea; I have done my first load of laundry in the tiny washer and hung it on the roof to dry; and, lastly, I have finally felt completely settled-in to my room now that my mementos from home make a nice collage on my half of the closet.

We actually didn't have too long to settle-in before we set off for Gozo--which is a little island next to Malta. The area has been having festivals all weekend to get the most out of this time before Lent--Gozo, we discovered, is a prime festival location. Friday afternoon we took a van out to a ferry. The drive out there was absolutely gorgeous. Around the city of Sliema, there's some green here and there, some palm-trees and a few flowers...but, out there, it was all rocky rolling green hills (along with some ancient limestone buildings). The ferry was way bigger than I ever expected any ferry to be--but the view was beautiful from it. Someone pointed out The Blue Lagoon to me in the distance. It's on the edge of another small island. People say that those waters are unbelievably blue...maybe that will be on the to-do list.

The beauty didn't stop once we got to Gozo. If anything, it just got better. The island full of hilly rocky green-ness. Our hotel (which I'll describe in a minute) sat on a hill with an amazing view of the sea and the island. Across the road and down below was a plot of private land and someone’s amazing garden. I couldn't quite tell what they were growing, but, they had planted a type of cactus next to each sprout--for protection, I guess? Pretty innovative, I thought.

Now, back to that hotel. First of all, it was called "The Grand Hotel" if that tells you anything. The rooms fit four of us and there was still tons of room to spare--not to mention each room had a balcony over-looking the sea. Then, there was the free dinner and breakfast that was not like any hotel food I've ever eaten. Feasts--that's what they were. To any Luther people I'd say the breakfast even went a step above Peace Dining if that gives you any kind of a gage. I felt un-worthy (but of course got my fill).

The rest of that afternoon didn't go exactly how we had originally planned. We had wanted to take two different buses to the beach, but we had to wait so long for the first bus that we just decided to stay at the first stop: Victoria. You know, it was kind of a run-down little town to tell you the truth--but, it did not hold run-down people. The locals seemed to be in pretty good spirits. We found a rusty little park, a humane society, and a place to buy some gummy-candy. Then, it was time to head back. Well, we had our feast of a dinner and then got ready for the festival in the streets.

We got there about 8:15 or so, and, really, there wasn't a whole lot of action goin on in those streets--but, the later it got, the livelier it became. We talked to someone who said the best time to be there was about midnight. He said that even little kids stay out for the festivities until they are over (which was about 3 AM). Around 10 things were just crazy and exciting on that street. A live band played at the very start of the street; people, young and old, paraded back and forth in costumes or pushing home-made floats--many very creative (a group of people were tourists: big bellies, hiked-up socks and pants, passports hanging around the neck, tons of stuff in a backpack) People were eating, laughing, dancing, drinking. It was a happenin place--and we were in the middle of it all! What a great cultural experience. No better way to learn about a culture than to be right smack in the center of a traditional celebration. One of the best parts was that it wasn’t really a tourist attraction--most people there were locals (except for us, I guess). It was a fun night.

The next morning was great too. After the wonderful breakfast a group of us went exploring. We walked up a lot of stairs in the side of a clif to a church on a hill. The view from up there was amazing, and while exploring around the church an old man let us see the inside. It was one of the tiniest little churches I've ever seen--but so pretty inside! A few of us walked over the hill on a little path to the edge of a town nearby. On the rest of the walk we admired the plant (cactus and numerous flowers) and animal (snail) -life around the area. It was fun to become familiarized with some of the natural life on the island--although, I'm not sure what most of it was called. I collected some pretty snail shells and a cactus branch from the walk. The cactus isn't really prickly, but it is really thick--kind of a rounded scoop-shape that has been perfect for holding some things on my nightstand. We'll see if it starts to rot. After a while it was time to head back on the ferry to Malta. It was sad to leave Gozo, but, strangely enough Malta and the flats were starting to feel a little homey and welcoming.

Also, I've decided that I love grocery shopping--especially, in a little place like this where you can walk to the store and there is a wide selection of fresh fruits and vegetables. Since the stove-incident (when glass infested my whole bag of freshly opened pasta and pasta sauce) I was definitely in need of some food supplies, so we had another grocery excursion today. You'll be happy to heat that my food making experience was definitely more successful the second time around. I was actually very proud of an egg-plant, tomato, orange and red pepper with pasta sauce on pita bread-creation that I made at dinner.

Well, I guess that's it for now. Tomorrow I think I am going to check-out the Anglican Church; and the next day: school!! Oh geez...it feels like it's been a while. I'm kind of excited--is that strange?