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"There's always a plan, but unexpected things happen and we just go with the flow. Though I do believe that fate and destiny often play their part"
sailing blog
Anyone who knows our son James will know that he's fascinated by all things pre-historic. Ancient cultures and long lost civilisations float his boat big time, so a trip to the Hagar Qim Temples was very high up on his list of things to do whilst in Malta. In a nutshell, the temples are a UNESCO World Heritage Site, regarded as the oldest building complex in the whole world. Archaeologists call them temples, but in reality nothing is really known about what actually went on inside these intricate constructions. They didn't excavate any evidence of people living there, such as pottery fragments or animal bones, which is why the general view is that Haga Qim was a place of ancient worship. The Megalithic temples originate from Neolithic times, about 5,000 years ago. When the sun rises for the summer solstice, a beam of light shines through the entrance right down to the main altar…..maybe this signalled a moment to sacrifice something or someone……spooky!!! Circular holes had been strategically cut into other rocks allowing beams of sunlight to hit other parts of the buildings at various times of the year. A few hundred yards away is a second temple called Mnajra, built in the Ggantija Phase, some 3,600 years BC. Again, it was interesting to see how these ancient people created different areas and altars within the overall construction. A bit like stonehenge and the pyramids, the stones were massive and so accurately bonded together. It was a really fascinating experience to walk on the same ground as people had done so many thousands of years ago, and to touch the very same stones that they had touched with their hands. Your mind races with thoughts about what these ancient civilisations did and how they lived on what would have been a very remote island in the middle of the Mediterranean. After we'd had our fill of culture, the general view amongst my crew was that a cheeky beer was in order. Always happy to oblige, we drove up to Dingli Cliffs to our favourite little hostelry right up on the top overlooking the island of Fifla. Back in the days of British occupancy, our warships and bombers used the island as target practise with live munitions. Today, thankfully, it's a nature reserve and nobody is allowed to set foot on it. I'm sort of getting to grips with all the knobs and fiddly bits on my camera, so I thought I would experiment with an arty shot of James looking cool.
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A FEW PICS OF COMINOClick a photo to enlarge and use side arrows to scroll through.
COMINO IS CURRENTLY HEREDID SOMEONE SAY SEAFOODOn our journey from Portugal to Greece we enjoyed amazing seafood almost everywhere we stopped. Finding the local fish market was always a priority because seafood was so plentiful and so reasonably priced. And, the displays were a feast for your eyes.
Locating a market sometimes meant pounding the pavements in searing heat, but if you kept your eyes peeled, you often came across a little clue. The pic below was a rather less than subtle advert for a fish market - it was eight feet tall.
Freshly cooked onboard, a plateful of giant prawns, baked in wine and garlic, washed down with a few glasses of local vino, was like heaven. Watching the sunset on the boat eating a meal like that was the epitome of "living the dream".
Now we're in Greece we've another favourite to savour. I'm talking about fried Calamari. It's usually good, but every now and then it's off-the-scale fantastic. At Natalie's Taverna on Kontokali Beach in Corfu, it was nothing short of epic.
We're based in Lefkas now and It's been a bit of a mission to find somewhere just as good. And we have. Rakias is a mere ten minute walk from the marina and this little fish market, with its very own taverna attached, is quite sensational.
Oh...and it's also worth mentioning that, on occasions, a bit of barbequed Octopus is on the menu at some of the tavernas we frequent. Can I resist....no. SUNSETS AND DRAMATIC SKIESNo filters, or any other monkey business, have been used to enhance these images.
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