After our long day yesterday, we rewarded ourselves with a day of rest. Christine did a bit of work, napped, and did pleasure reading. As you might imagine, yesterday’s blog post took quite a while to compile and write, so I was preoccupied with that much of the day.
We did go out in the afternoon. Smaller shops here tend to open in the morning until noon, then close until 4:00 p.m. We wanted to go to a health food store in St. Julians (Balluta Bay area) so we walked round the front to the shop. It was not quite 4:00, so we decided to walk around a few blocks we have yet to explore up the hill from the end of Balluta Bay. The area was around that large apartment building I referenced a few days ago, the Balluta Building. Between Mt. Carmel Church and the apartment building are a set of steps going up to the streets behind the Balluta Building, so up we went. The back of the apartment is nothing to look at and no real clues about who lives in the building or how many apartments are occupied. We walked around a couple of blocks then returned to the health food store, which still wasn’t open. There was a pharmacy next door that looked promising for purchasing our vitamins, but that wasn’t open either. So we decided to walk around a few more blocks.
It’s fun to explore. We didn’t find much of interest, but we learned a few more streets and their directions in relation to other parts of our neighborhood. But there are still nice things to look at.
On the ground level of the Balluta Building are many shops, one being a bar/restaurant called the Electro Lobster Project. Christine was reading a poster about jazz events in their bar. Someone affiliated with the place overhead us and told us about their Thursday jazz night. Also, he took us up the stairs into the restaurant which is on the first floor of the Balluta Building. The restaurant is swanky and hip and the bar on the street level, or really down a few steps below street level is also very swanky and hip. Christine, being a jazz lover, will undoubtedly want to go some Thursday evening.
We never tire of wandering the streets. Someday, I will write a post about Maltese doors and their knockers. I’ve been collecting photos of all the various door knockers I’ve seen. I also love all the many assorted colors of the doors and balconies.
Shortly before 6:00 p.m. we headed to St. Julian’s Tower to meet up with Carol for a drink. We were at a nice bar/restaurant called it-Torri. Carol is always full of stories and one never need worry about keeping up a conversation with Carol. We have so enjoyed our times with Carol, and with Joe when he joins us. Joe tends to not socialize as much as Carol and prefers puttering around at home with his antiques. Carol said that she listens to the radio while cooking and so she hears of events and activities and comes with little scraps of paper with times, phone numbers, etc., jotted down so that we can have things to do.
At one of our meetings with Carol, she noticed Christine’s ring and said that she has one very similar to it. Christine got hers from her mother, who presumably got it from her mother. Carol came to our date this evening with her ring. She got hers as an inheritance from family as well.
Carol and Christine are just two months apart in age and so the jewelry from their mothers/grandmothers clearly were fashionable during the same period. Christine’s has green stones and Carol’s has dark blue stones. Quite amazing how similar in design the rings are.
After our date with Carol, we walked her back to her apartment. We popped in to the store across the street from her building to pick up a couple of things and then walked back to our flat where we had snacks for dinner.
It was a nice restful day.