Since my first brave walk last Friday I went twice more, and I can clearly say it does feel a little better each time, though anything ever so slightly uphill is a killer. Also, at the peril that people will hate me for this: walking through Gharb is rather uninspiring.  Sure, there are still a few enchanting corners, where the view on the surrounding country-side hasn’t been shut off with walls yet. But all in all the village isn’t as pretty as one might expect.

Yesterday I took my nifty 50mm out with me, seeing that dusk was near, but there were very few inspiring views… or maybe I just wasn’t in the mood to see them?

Arid land & San Dimitri Chapel

Shut

Nobody home?

Architecture in Gharb

Religious devotion

Shaded alley in Gharb

At the end... light!

“Optimism. The doctrine or belief that everything is beautiful,
including what is ugly.”
Ambrose Bierce

No, I’m not exactly panicked, I do realise that the mortality is extemely low. But the thought of having to fight a fever in this kind of weather (33-34°C / 92°F) is making me sort of queezy!

A big thank you to the pyromaniacs who have this idiotic urge to shake people out of their sleep with atomic clock precision, at 8 am sharp. I ask this question every year but nobody, ever, has been able to answer it: what exactly is the reason for petards being let off at 8 in the morning? Well, at any time, really?  There’s nothing beautiful about them (quite the contrary actually). They are nothing but a nuisance, powerful enough to kick car alarms into action and send pets scrambling for cover. Oh yeah, and to shake people out of their sleep…

Yesterday we stayed out in the garden until just after midnight, despite the fact that hubby had to go to work this morning. It would have been impossible to sleep though, with the festa hullabaloo taking place right underneath the bedroom window – and those bangs going off at random all through the evening.

Oh well. In trying times such as these, I usually try to distract myself and look around for lens fodder. And last night a beautiful moon obliged – see above. I’m quite pleased with it – but before you say, “wow”, take a look at the original photo, which is rather less spectacular…

The next photo, of the church all dressed up for the feast, could be of last night, too, but I actually took it a couple of nights ago. I might arm myself tonight with my nifty fifty and venture out there for some better shots. Then again, I might pass on dolling up just to get a few pics. I’ll just wait and see where my mood takes me…

Last but not least, here’s a pic of our staple food on such nights. 

Il-festa t-tajba… And to my American friends: Happy Independence Day!