CAFE - Malta

Hi all, just looked on the webcam at Golden Bay, seems busy down there, i guess it must be a nice day.

Amanda x

Anyone up to anything interesting today?

Amanda x

checking out hell - seems OK so far

More rain than i expected!

Hope this works! I thought i was quite funny.

Amanda x

Uh!  Don't know how to make it any bigger!

No rain here !

Wonderful sunshine and 27 ° C.

I'll bring it with me when I return to Malta on Tuesday -)))

Ricky

It's not the rain so much, those of us who are British are used to that, but why does it have to bring all that sand with it...makes cleaning up afterwards a real pain! Even my Maltese friends/work colleagues are surprised at this as the sand usually comes when the wind is from the South (ie Sahara) but this has been from the North so should be cold but clean....instead it's cold and dirty

Tim

Well get me on that plane to Malta today!  ha ha ha, your not selling it lately Tim! Are you more ready to leave than you realised!?

Amanda x

It's malta's way of growing.

ajwebber wrote:

Are you more ready to leave than you realised!?

Honestly, I'd be on the first plane out if the kids weren't in school and I had a job lined up elsewhere - 18 months has taken it's toll. But our experiences/personality may not be the norm so I really don't want to put anyone else off. As I said before - the first few months here were new and exciting, though challenging and we marvelled at the beauty, the history and the weather - but over time we got used to all that and the daily irritations became increasingly more difficult to handle. We could develop a thick skin, but we don't want to. We know well 3 other couples/families that have lasted less time than us (one young couple from Romania moved on to Germany because Malta was just too small, a Canadian couple moved back to Canada because they missed family, and a UK Family moved back to the UK because they missed the UK and were disappointed in the schools here). Of course, there are plenty of expats here that are happy and love it (and I am really happy for them, honestly) - it entirely depends on what you left behind, your opportunities here (and elsewhere) and your personality - though time does factor in as it did for us. We have to deal a lot with schools and the Health Care system here and both are extremely frustrating - but if you don't have kids and are healthy how would you know how frustrating those things can get?

...and then I move to a lovely place overlooking the sea and all I get is sand dropping from the sky that we have to clean up!

'Nuff said - sorry for going on so long (again!)

Tim

If your hearts no longer in it then you need to get out! Don't head to the UK though unless you have savings, If you breath more than 30 times in 60 seconds you'll be billed for it! Then billed for the administration costs for raising the bill!!! 

Schools and childcare are going to be the biggest issue for us we think, not so much for our youngest but more for our 12 year old.  He's already got his heart set on what he wants to do and which college and university he'd like to attend, so Me and Hubby have chatted lately about giving Malta a couple of years or so for the experience, and returning to the UK in time for Ben getting ready for secondary and Brad starting college.

Are you actively seeking employment now outside of Malta or are you going to enjoy another summer?

Amanda

Amanda, you presume I enjoyed the last summer - July/Aug are brutal (and I had the mossies to deal with)...see I'm moaning again!

If we leave Malta it will likely be for the UK, warts and all. We are fortunate to have savings (though unfortunate because they are the result of inheritance after death of parents...I'd much rather they were still around and I had less savings).

Anyway, I'm going to stop posting negative stuff now, at least for a while ;-)

Tim

There must be some plus points still! What about the kids.....are they enjoying it?

Amanda

My daughter is 15 next week - so she changes her mind about Malta every week depending upon her social situation! My son is 9 and embraced the history etc when we first arrived but frankly we're running out of things to do here with him - it's a small place with a rich history but there's only so many times you can go to the Inquisitor's Palace or the Air Raid Shelters! But they also both hate their school and teaching culture. It's also tough for them that their school friends are not nearby and so it's quite difficult for them to socialize/play with them outside school (which they were used to in the US). They both enjoy the beach in the summer though....and Wudy and Pastizzi!

To be positive, we do love a lot of the activities here, we frequently go to Valletta for cultural stuff (St. James Cavalier, Manoel Theatre, Malta Jazz Festival, Malta Grand Prix etc). There are some lovely restaurants and bars and outdoor areas and lots of beautiful places to see. But that's "fun" time at the weekends mostly - and increasingly has not made up for the rest of the time. Also my wife has made some exceptionally good friends (all British expat mothers of San Anton children) who help keep her sane.

You asked - sorry of I'm boring anyone. You have to remember as a West Ham fan and the season we have just had I have a right to be grumpy!

Hi all,

I'm back on the rock. But with a bad cold as a souvenir so it will be a few days before I will be out and about.

But then I'll schedule a get together here in Sliema, probably next week.

Regards
Ricky

I'm sure it will soon clear up with a few days of relaxation in the sunshine. Hope you all have a fab get together.

Amanda x

Well, it's a bank holiday here in England and, it's raining ....again!  The kids are bored, hubby is working and my eldest is teasing his little brother to pass the time! Colouring book have been exhausted, dvd's watched a thousand times, tv is on repeats, jigsaws have pieces missing, xbox kinect needs new games and PS3 causes arguments......Oh what to do without having to spend a fortune just to entertain the kids! 

Moan moan moan

Amanda x

Any of you British remember playing 'kick the can'??? or 'knock a door run'!! muhahahahahaha!

'knock a door run'! - how very to-the-point but unimaginitively named! We called it "Knock Down Ginger" where I come from (Kent). (apologies to any red-haired people on the board, it was before Political Correctness).

Tim

Depends on where you lived, we also called it 'Tap Latch' These days it's 'nick shoes from the porch' or 'rob the garage' ha ha only joking! although my hubby has lost a few pairs of trainers

Amanda x

Ding-Dong-Ditch where I grew up.

|Chad

me3512 wrote:

Ding-Dong-Ditch where I grew up.

|Chad

Hey, that's what my wife calls it!

Oh, same place.

funny how that works 

Ok, going back 25+ years, who had a pen pal? i remember writing pages and pages then waiting 2-3 weeks for a reply, but how exciting when you finally got one!

Amanda

I'll reply to this post in 2-3 weeks then.

Tim

Dear Abby,

I have never written to you before, but I really need your advice. I have suspected for some time now that my wife has been cheating on me.

The usual signs; phone rings but if I answer, the caller hangs up. My wife has been going out with 'the girls' a lot recently although when I ask their names she always says, just some friends from work, you don't know them.

I try to stay awake and watch for her when she comes home, but I usually fall asleep.
Anyway, I have never broached the subject with my wife. I think deep down I just did not want to know the truth, but last night she went out again and I decided to finally check on her around midnight, I hid in the garage behind my golf clubs so I could get a good view of the whole street when she arrived home from a night out with "the girls."
When she got out of the car she was buttoning up her blouse, which was open, and she took her panties out of her purse and slipped them on.

It was at that moment, crouching behind my golf clubs, that I noticed a hairline crack where the grip meets the graphite shaft on my Taylor Made 460 driver.

Is this something I can fix myself or should I take it back to the PGA Superstore?

Signed...
Concerned Golfer

good comedy for the morning

Sounds like a shafting is required.






Sorry, no idea on the golf club.

hammersfan wrote:

'knock a door run'! - how very to-the-point but unimaginitively named! We called it "Knock Down Ginger" where I come from (Kent). (apologies to any red-haired people on the board, it was before Political Correctness).

Tim

in geordieland it was called knocky nine door...heaven knows why?