Last of Maltese Knights and Bangkok Days
Wednesday
Sheila developed a bladder infection and was not able to get up early. I went up the hill to a nearby pharmacy and was able to get an equivalent to ‘Ural’ to help neutralise the acid in her bladder and reduce the discomfort. However Sheila felt that she was not able to move around much and decided to spend the day resting at the hotel.
Adam, Rosalind and I caught the bus from opposite the hotel, intending to get of at the ferry terminal at Sliema and get the boat over to Valletta, but I forgot to ring the bell indicating that we wished to get off at the ferry terminal, so we stayed on the bus for the ten minute ride to the bus terminus at Valletta. It was just a couple of minutes walk to St Paul’s Co-Cathedral; it is called a Co-Cathedral as it is a sister church to the Co-Cathedral in Mdina and I think shares just the one archbishop.
Fabulous and awe-inspiring are just two appropriate adjectives. One does not have to be a ‘believer’ to appreciate the décor of the Cathedral and we wandered around for a couple of hours at least appreciating the richness of the decoration and the history. There is no such thing as a blank wall to be seen anywhere and the entire floor is decorated with fantastic marble frescos, though the skeleton figure appears in so many it was a great surprise. When we entered Rosalind had to buy a cheap pair of slippers as her heels were too small in area and could have damaged the floor; very reasonable request of visitors as I found myself feeling guilty about walking on these works of art in my sandals.
The picture above is of Republic Street Valetta Malta, just after siesta.
St Paul's Co-Cathedral
An example of two very small parts of the floor in St Paul's Co-Cathedral Valetta
We walked back up Republic Street and around to the left or south side of the headland near the bus terminus; there we found s very pleasant garden, Upper Barrakka Gardens, with great views overlooking Grand Harbour. In this garden was a display of about twenty large photographs, a sample from a project in which 1000 families around the world had been photographed. We started by looking at a photo of an Amish family and reading the text about the family and their location. We thought that it was intriguing as the ‘models’ were just ordinary families and as we wandered around and saw more we became fascinated by what we saw and looked at them for about an hour. Worth visiting the site (www.butd.net)
The '1000 families' project
Having seen the view across Grand harbour we were keen to try and get across to the other side and see Fort Angelo and Fort St Michael from close up.
Walking out of the city via the bus terminus we found a set of steps that led down to the bottom of the hill and to Customs House Steps. There used to be a very large lift that took people from the harbour edge up to the city of Valletta, but apparently after a few accidents it was dismantled and not replaced. There has been talk for many years of installing some other option, but all the talk has resulted in no action to date. We walked around more in hope than with any plan in mind, and asked a couple of people if it was possible to get dghajsa (Maltese version of the gondola). Each person we asked was not sure and directed us to the customs building, suggesting we ask there. The gateway said that it was a private area, but we entered anyway and as we did we met a lady coming out. She also did not know if it was possible but suggested that we ask in a little bar nearby, as the owner of the bar had a friend who lived on the other side of the harbour and he had a boat. I went into the bar, which was no bigger than our sitting room at home and asked the owner if it was possible to get a boat to the other side. “No worries mate, I will telephone my friend and ask him”. “He will pick you up in ten minutes from the custom house steps,” was the quick response.
“Thanks mate, how much do I owe you for the telephone call?” I thought that was the least I should do.
“Nothing, my pleasure enjoy the trip”. I was enjoying Malta more and more each day.
We walked back to the customs house and through the gates and waited for the dghajsa.
The slight sea breeze was very welcome as it was a hot day.
Within ten minutes our boat arrived and we embarked for the 15 minute ride across Grand Harbour, up Dockyard Creek, past Fort St Angelo and the City of Vittoriosa (Birgu), going ashore at the marina.
Fort St Angelo in the picture above
Customs House Steps below Valetta
The tip of the Vittoriosa peninsula has been fortified since at least the 9th century, and before that it was the site of Roman and Phoenician temples. The Knights of St John took over the medieval fort in 1530 when it was rebuilt and strengthened, serving as the residence of the Grand Master of the Order until 1571, and was the headquarters of La Valette during the Great Siege. The British took over the fort in the 19th century, and from 1912 until 1972 it served as the headquarters of the Mediterranean Fleet, first as HMS Egmont and from 1933 as HMS St Angelo. The upper part of the fort, including the Grand Master’s Palace and the 15th century Chapel of St Anne is now occupied by the modern Order of St John. The remainder of the fort is officially closed to visitors due to its poor state of repair, but access through the gate above St Angelo Wharf is usually pretty straightforward and you can wander around parts of the site, an unusual mixture of medieval fortress and abandoned 20th century officer’s mess. I remember clearly tying up alongside St Angelo Wharf in the mid 1960’s when I was on HMS Tenby, part of the Dartmouth Training Squadron, and borrowing a bicycle from the expedition stores, so I could ride up to St Paul’s Bay for the weekend. A very memorable weekend better described in another place and time.
We started looking around for somewhere to eat, but as it was siesta time there did not appear to be many places open. Of more urgency was a ladies loo, as Rosalind was getting a bit desperate and starting to look at any options for relief.
Luckily we found a bar/nightclub next to the harbour, it was not open for business, but they were happy for Rosalind to use their toilets. A much relieved Rosalind was then happy to join our search for lunch and we walked to the end of the Dockyard creek and the outskirts of Vittoriosa, one can walk from one end of a city to the other end in twenty minutes in Malta. We then commenced our exploration of the City of Senglea, walking from one end to the other. It was like walking the decks of the Marie Celeste, not a soul to be seen; they really do subscribe to the siesta in Malta.
We took some ‘signature’ photographs of Valetta, across Grand Harbour from the point at the end of Senglea.
We still had not found anywhere for lunch and decided that our best bet would be to go back to Valetta, so we walked back to Dockyard Creek, and were able to hail a passing dghajsa that was delivering two other people to the marina on the other side.
The dghajsa operator picked us up first, dropped his passengers at the marina, and then took us back to customs house steps just below Valetta.
We walked through Victory gate and up the hill to Valletta having lunch at a café next to St Paul’s Co-cathedral.
After lunch we walked to the boat ferry terminus and on the way noticed ‘Strait Street’ that was the venue for many a great run ashore, and got into dire straits when I was in the Royal Navy.
Having just missed the ferry we had to wait 30 minutes for it to return and pick us up, but it is a great trip across to Sliema where we again caught the local bus back to our hotel in St Julians.
As we entered St Julians Adam spotted a Thai lady wearing the ubiquitous yellow polo top with the Thai King’s signature on it. Seeing as we heard the King had supported the coup we guessed that she was wearing it as a sign of solidarity.
Sheila was still in bed when I went up to our room, it was good that Sheila had the rest as Adam, Rosalind and I were very tired from our walking that day.
We had drinks on the balcony of Adam and Rosalind’s room before we went out to dinner.
For our last meal in Malta we chose an Italian restaurant, again just a couple of minutes walk away and right on the edge of the water.
Adam chose a huge plate of mussels, Sheila steak with mushrooms while Rosalind and I had lamb shanks. The evening was very pleasantly warm with a soft breeze coming in off the sea. A lady troubadour sang very well and it was a very enjoyable evening in every way and capped off a fantastic visit to Malta that was over all too soon.
Luckily we found a bar/nightclub next to the harbour, it was not open for business, but they were happy for Rosalind to use their toilets. A much relieved Rosalind was then happy to join our search for lunch and we walked to the end of the Dockyard creek and the outskirts of Vittoriosa, one can walk from one end of a city to the other end in twenty minutes in Malta. We then commenced our exploration of the City of Senglea, walking from one end to the other. It was like walking the decks of the Marie Celeste, not a soul to be seen; they really do subscribe to the siesta in Malta.
We took some ‘signature’ photographs of Valetta, across Grand Harbour from the point at the end of Senglea.
We still had not found anywhere for lunch and decided that our best bet would be to go back to Valetta, so we walked back to Dockyard Creek, and were able to hail a passing dghajsa that was delivering two other people to the marina on the other side.
The dghajsa operator picked us up first, dropped his passengers at the marina, and then took us back to customs house steps just below Valetta.
We walked through Victory gate and up the hill to Valletta having lunch at a café next to St Paul’s Co-cathedral.
After lunch we walked to the boat ferry terminus and on the way noticed ‘Strait Street’ that was the venue for many a great run ashore, and got into dire straits when I was in the Royal Navy.
Having just missed the ferry we had to wait 30 minutes for it to return and pick us up, but it is a great trip across to Sliema where we again caught the local bus back to our hotel in St Julians.
As we entered St Julians Adam spotted a Thai lady wearing the ubiquitous yellow polo top with the Thai King’s signature on it. Seeing as we heard the King had supported the coup we guessed that she was wearing it as a sign of solidarity.
Sheila was still in bed when I went up to our room, it was good that Sheila had the rest as Adam, Rosalind and I were very tired from our walking that day.
We had drinks on the balcony of Adam and Rosalind’s room before we went out to dinner.
For our last meal in Malta we chose an Italian restaurant, again just a couple of minutes walk away and right on the edge of the water.
Adam chose a huge plate of mussels, Sheila steak with mushrooms while Rosalind and I had lamb shanks. The evening was very pleasantly warm with a soft breeze coming in off the sea. A lady troubadour sang very well and it was a very enjoyable evening in every way and capped off a fantastic visit to Malta that was over all too soon.
Thursday
Our last day started with a very leisurely breakfast, before we were taken to the airport in a large old Mercedes in time for our flight by helicopter to the Island of Gozo.
Adam and I had had various times been in a helicopter before, but this was the first time Rosalind and Sheila had the opportunity. The four of us were sat in a row behind the pilot and co-pilot and the ladies were intrigued by the huge display of instruments that they could see and the view through the front window. Our bags were a bit of a challenge for the pilot and co-pilot but eventually they managed to get them all stowed and we taxied a few inches off the ground across the tarmac until we were lined up with the runway. Apparently even helicopters follow the direction of the runway, I guess it is so that no-one will bump into anyone else while taking off, so a bad system. I was a little concerned with our extreme nose-down attitude as we moved slowly along the runway, then felt better as we gained altitude and levelled off. It was about a fifteen minute flight to Gozo and we enjoyed great views of Valletta, Fort St Angelo etc as we headed for the east coast and our transit to Gozo over the small island of Comino, the site of the very famous Maltese Blue Lagoon a Mecca for swimming and boating in deep very clear azure sea.
Our last day started with a very leisurely breakfast, before we were taken to the airport in a large old Mercedes in time for our flight by helicopter to the Island of Gozo.
Adam and I had had various times been in a helicopter before, but this was the first time Rosalind and Sheila had the opportunity. The four of us were sat in a row behind the pilot and co-pilot and the ladies were intrigued by the huge display of instruments that they could see and the view through the front window. Our bags were a bit of a challenge for the pilot and co-pilot but eventually they managed to get them all stowed and we taxied a few inches off the ground across the tarmac until we were lined up with the runway. Apparently even helicopters follow the direction of the runway, I guess it is so that no-one will bump into anyone else while taking off, so a bad system. I was a little concerned with our extreme nose-down attitude as we moved slowly along the runway, then felt better as we gained altitude and levelled off. It was about a fifteen minute flight to Gozo and we enjoyed great views of Valletta, Fort St Angelo etc as we headed for the east coast and our transit to Gozo over the small island of Comino, the site of the very famous Maltese Blue Lagoon a Mecca for swimming and boating in deep very clear azure sea.
Gozo is the island which has attracted people to settle on it for more than 7,000 years. Proof of this are the megalithic temples of Ggantija which were erected between 3,600 and 3,000 BCE and are considered to be the oldest free-standing structures in the world. Thousands of years later, according to tradition, Gozo served as a home to Odysseus as mentioned in Homer’s Odyssey. From this era was derived the name of Calypso’s Isle. The legendary cave of Calypso, overlooking Ramla Bay is still visited by tourists. During the Great Siege of Malta in 1565, Gozo’s Citadel provided shelter to all of the population of Gozo. Today Gozo still has a magic that steals and keeps the hearts of many who visit her.
We had an early morning ahead of us so we did not stay up late.
Friday
We had completed most of our packing last night so when we got our 0330 wake-up call we did not have to do much to get organised and get or luggage down to the foyer.
A mini-bus was our transport to the airport, along with one other passenger.
Of course the roads were very quiet at that time of the morning, and I do remember that many of them were full of potholes that were being repaired using funds from the E.U.
We arrived on-time at the heli-port, but had a frustrating wait for one of the pilots who must have had a sleep in; Sheila called them Malta minutes, a bit like Thai time, however the flight to Luqa airport was quick. Rosalind, Sheila and I went to the luggage carousel to retrieve our bags while Adam rushed to the check in desk. Our luggage was the only items on the carousel and had come through quickly which was a relief.
When we got to the check in desk Adam was second in line and most other passengers had already been processed and were in the boarding lounge, our flight to Rome having already been called for boarding.
Adam asked for our luggage to be checked through from Malta to Bangkok via Rome and Singapore.
Rosalind and Sheila having a ‘glass is half empty’ view of the world did not think that it was a good idea.
Adam had the courage of his convictions and my support and booked them through.
We were escorted at the double to the boarding lounge and from there to a bus which took us to the plane on the tarmac.
We took off on time and landed as scheduled at Reggio in Calabria where a few people disembarked and others joined our flight.
The doors were closed and we settled in for take off then, “Ladies and Gentlemen, we are sorry to inform you that because of fog at Rome airport we will not be taking off until we get clearance for landing in Rome.”
We waited and waited and then another announcement, “Ladies and gentlemen, we are sorry to have to tell you that we have been informed it will be another four hours before we will be able to take off and land in Rome.”
Following this announcement a few passengers stormed to the front of the plane demanding to know what was going to be doe about them missing their connecting flights, as if the purser was responsible for the fog!
It appeared that we would also miss our 1215 flight to Bangkok via Singapore, but Adam just said ‘mai pen rai’ (no worries in Thai) and said that if necessary we would just spend the night in Rome. The purser was very good at customer relations and managed to reassure a few people by saying that if all flights were affected our outgoing flights would also be delayed and we would probably still be able to make our connections when they all started flying again.
One chap in particular was very stroppy and started to have a go at the pilot who was standing by the door way talking with the purser, “what are you going to do about my connecting flight, and why was your landing at Reggio not very good?”
The pilot was very patient and explained that the topography/geography meant that it is a different approach than many other airfields, and told grumpy bum that they would do all they could to help people. Within two minutes the purser was making another announcement, “ladies and gentlemen I am pleased to announce that the fog at Rome has lifted and we will be taking off in fifteen minutes.”
I thought that he had earned the right to say something to the stroppy passenger but he just smiled. It was about a twenty minute flight to Rome where we landed safely with no hint of fog. We rushed through the transit area to the re-booking desks looking for ours. Luckily we spotted a desk with a scribbled bit of paper taped to the desk indicating that it was the desk we needed. At this stage Adam and I expressed our pleasure at him having the foresight to book our bags through from Malta so that we did not have to worry about retrieving them from a carousel and dragging them around. While we were waiting in the queue, a small Maltese lady approached Sheila asking for her help as her husband and she were trying to get a connection to a flight to Sydney via Singapore, and they were not sure where to go and what to do. They lived in Australia and had been visiting family in Malta and were now just keen to get home to Sydney. Sheila basically told them to follow us and then heard the tales of this ladies visit to Malta. We were second in the queue and the Italian girl at the check in desk was taking ages to process the two ladies in front of us as the queue behind us grew longer and longer. We were not full of confidence as we eventually stepped up to the desk. Adam had sorted all of our tickets, passports etc into the order they would be needed for processing. The helpful young lady grabbed them all and scattered them across the desk before she started to try and process them; constantly shuffling the documents backwards and forwards across the desk as she tried to make some sense of them, NOT a good sign! It took her about fifteen minutes to do what she thought needed to be done and issue us with our boarding passes.
I started to look around for the departure lounge until Adam pointed out that we had to get the train shuttle to another terminal where the departure gates were located. This added some urgency to our movements, Sheila was pleased to see that the Maltese lady and her husband had been able to follow us on to the train shuttle.
When we arrived at the terminal at which the departure gates are located we had a quick coffee and then boarded the plane. The plane was a little late taking off, but it seemed a very quick flight to Singapore, the business class pods make a huge difference, especially since Sheila and I had learned how to operate them properly.
The pilot announced that he tried to make up some lost time on the way to Singapore, but because of headwinds was no able to do so. We had a three hour scheduled lay over at Singapore so the hour late arrival was not a problem for us, and we then had just a two rest in the club lounge before our flight to Bangkok.
On arrival in Bangkok, we got through immigration etc very quickly and we did approach ‘our’ luggage carousel with some trepidation, but had the view that if it had not arrived from Malta with us it would be delivered later, and there would be more room in the car. However our luggage arrived off the carousel very quickly and Adam and I shared a smug smile. Our conclusion was that Luqa in Malta and Bangkok airport function very well, Rome sucks. Khun Boon Chuay was at the airport to meet us and as there was not much traffic we arrived back at their apartment quite quickly.
We felt tired, so showered and had a quick nap for a couple of hours and a Lebanese banquet was delivered. After dinner we watched the television programme called ‘Top Gear’; we enjoy the programme very much and the accident to one of the presenters Richard Hammond heightened our interest being very pleased to hear that he was well on the way to recovery.
Sunday
A real ‘vege-out’ day for Sheila and I, while Adam and Rosalind went to the gym for two hours followed by some shopping. Adam made fish soup for dinner followed by tiramisu, nice!
Monday
I found it very difficult to get to sleep on Sunday night finally getting to sleep as dawn broke. So I was a little tardy in getting up and going along Suan Plu to find a bank that would change our residue Euros and Maltese Lire. It was the fourth bank that I went to that would take the Euros but none would exchange the Maltese Lira. When I returned from the bank there was a Thai lady in the soi near the apartment, she explained in better English than mine that she was retired now, but used to work with Air France and now she cares for everyone and everything in the So. She explained that her husband her brother and her live in the large house at the end of the soi, adding that her husband is an election commissioner, I must have flinched a little as she quickly added that he was not one of the corrupt ones.
I did some more research about the three right hands and three heads of St John the Baptist, and to date I am still waiting on a reply from the Vatican library. Rosalind and Sheila went to pick up some spectacles that Sheila had ordered to replace a pair that were lost when her bag was stolen. I also finished reading ‘A further Adventure of Sherlock Holmes: The Italian Secretary’ written by Caleb Care. The author was commissioned by the Arthur Conan Doyle Trust to write a book in the style of Arthur Conan Doyle featuring Sherlock Holmes. It is well done, featuring murders in Edinburgh during the Victorian era with connections to Mary Queen of Scots and the muter of Rizzio.
Tuesday
We are both suffering from Sheila’s insomnia and did not get out of bed until about noon when we struggled down to the pool on the ground floor and did forty laps of the pool followed buy a very hot sauna. The cleaning staff of the apartment block were a bit perplexed when they realised that Sheila, and I had been in the sauna together, but of course did not feel able to say anything directly to us. I was also booked in for a pedicure in a salon at the top of the soi and was walking to my appointment when one of the security gourds brought his motor bike out and gave me another unsolicited lift that I found I could not reject. It was an excellent pedicure and somethinmg that I could get to like very much. Sheila and Rosalind went for a walk, a fact that surprised me very much as they don’t tend to walk much in Bangkok. Thai chicken for dinner was great as usual.
Wednesday
We got up early without much sleep again, Sheila had an appointment with the hairdresser and I had a coffee and a walk around while I waited for Sheila. Afterwards we went shopping in various or the very large shopping centres something that I ‘enjoyed’ very much. Though I must admit I was pleased with our purchase of a couple of books. We used the sky-train for most of our trips around and then a taxi from Chong Nonsi station back to the apartment where tempura battered red snapper with salad awaited us. We stayed up watching television for a while after dinner hoping that we would be exhausted enough to sleep that night.
Thursday
Another night with no sleep, but I figure that at least we were resting even if we could not sleep. I got up out of bed about midmorning and Sheila at 1215. Meanwhile Rosalind had made disc copies for me of al the photos that Adam had taken of our trips in Europe. Sheila went to keep an appointment for a pedicure and nail polish job. When we returned to the apartment I started to read on of the books that we had purchased on the previous day. It is called ‘First Casualty’ written by Ben Elton. It is dedicated to his grandfathers one of whom fought on the German side and the other the Allies side in World War I. It is a fictional account of a murder investigation carried out in the trenches during the World War I; I found it a great read and in fact read the entire book at one ‘sitting’ “bugger” I was hoping that it would have lasted me a few days, but I could not put it down and many other people who have borrowed it since have also enjoyed it.
Dinner was Thai prawns in tomato soup, very nice.
Friday
Still no sleep, and Sheila and I went back to the beauty parlour to get a couple of nails repainted as they had chipped a little; they were repaired and repainted at no extra cost and with no problems. I bought a copy of the Bangkok Post newspaper to read while I waited. I think it is one of the world’s better newspapers as it employs its own journalists and does not just print sanitised syndicated columns from foreign papers. There is also more world news that we get in Australian papers.
Rosalind had decided to give Khun Noy the night off and make dinner that included an exquisite cheesecake. Sheila with Rosalind help had bought me a ‘Breitling’ watch, because the numbers had started to drop off my six year old ‘Rolex’. I was very impressed with my ‘Breitling’ but I needed to take it to a watchmaker in Suan Plu as I needed a few links taking out to make it fit properly. It was done while I waited and cost the equivalent of six Australian dollars; I did not feel it was appropriate to haggle over that. On the way down the Soi I had seen the four dogs and gave them a bit of a scruff. After I got back to the apartment I thought that I should get the names of the two security guards opposite who had been kind to me by giving me many lifts on their motorbikes. I went back down to the Soi and the two guards pointed to one of the dogs laying at the side of the Soi. “Yes yes” I said “Fang”. “No, No Mr John,” they exclaimed with very serious looks on their faces. They pointed again to Fang and made loud “brm brm’ noises while miming that a car had run over the of Fang. I knelt by the side of Fang and he was breathing very shallowly and not moving at all with his eyes very wide and fixed. Fang was obviously in deep shock and my first instinct was to try and see how badly he was hurt, but also concerned how the guards my react about me interfering.
I smoothed Fang’s fur and could see no obvious injuries but all his limbs were so slack it was obvious that he was badly hurt. I then thought that perhaps there was some way I could quickly put him out of his misery, but again concerned at how the guards might react. While I was pondering this dilemma another guard came back from the bottom of the soi and in broken English managed to get me to understand that they knew who had ran over the dog and they had gone to his house to get him to take Fang to the vet. Within a minute a large black Mercedes was driven from the bottom of the soi to where we had Fang and a well dressed Thai man got out expressing his sorrow for what had happened saying that he was not aware that Fang had gone under his wheels. With him was a Thai lady who I suspect was his housekeeper, she had brought some newspapers with her and she lifted the very limp Fang on to the newspapers which she placed on the back seat of the car. I was pleased that Fang was being properly cared for, but I suspected that he would die. I went back up to the apartment feeling very sad and was barely able to explain what had happened. Khun Noy’s response was “Ah well everything lives, everything dies,” a judgement that was delivered with a smile. I found this a little hard, but I guess it reflects her Buddhist beliefs and in the long run is a philosophy that causes far less distress.
Saturday
We did not go to bed until 0145 after a great meal and despite thinking of Fang many times I di d get some sleep. As soon as I had my breakfast I went down to see the guards and find out any news about Fang. The guards were very sombre as I approached and the news was not unexpected when they told me that Fang had died forty minutes after they had got him to the vets. “Ah well, we all are born and we all die,“ I offered by way of condolence and insight to the Thai philosophy they nodded and seemed to understand but were as sad as I felt. It was worse when they pointed out the three remaining dogs who were all laying with their noses pointed to the ground showing no interest in anything around them. They managed to explain to me that Fang had been the leader of the pack and that they did not know what to do without him. When I went back up to the apartment and told Khun Noy and the others the news about Fang, everyone appeared suitably sad, including Khun Noy; but I think that she was more sad for me feeling sad, rather than Fang who was on his journey to his next reincarnation.
Sheila and I went for a walk around Lumphini Park, where we saw a few large monitor lizards and some terrapins. Sheila was affected by the heat and humidity so we went back to the apartment quite quickly. On the way back the large black Mercedes stopped near us and the driver explained that we was the one who had run over Fang and had taken Fang to the vets. He added that he had been very upset and was just now returning from the temple where he had given prayers for Fang and asked for forgiveness for having killed Fang. I felt pleased that Fang’s passing had not gone without appropriate recognition and contrition.
Friday
We had completed most of our packing last night so when we got our 0330 wake-up call we did not have to do much to get organised and get or luggage down to the foyer.
A mini-bus was our transport to the airport, along with one other passenger.
Of course the roads were very quiet at that time of the morning, and I do remember that many of them were full of potholes that were being repaired using funds from the E.U.
We arrived on-time at the heli-port, but had a frustrating wait for one of the pilots who must have had a sleep in; Sheila called them Malta minutes, a bit like Thai time, however the flight to Luqa airport was quick. Rosalind, Sheila and I went to the luggage carousel to retrieve our bags while Adam rushed to the check in desk. Our luggage was the only items on the carousel and had come through quickly which was a relief.
When we got to the check in desk Adam was second in line and most other passengers had already been processed and were in the boarding lounge, our flight to Rome having already been called for boarding.
Adam asked for our luggage to be checked through from Malta to Bangkok via Rome and Singapore.
Rosalind and Sheila having a ‘glass is half empty’ view of the world did not think that it was a good idea.
Adam had the courage of his convictions and my support and booked them through.
We were escorted at the double to the boarding lounge and from there to a bus which took us to the plane on the tarmac.
We took off on time and landed as scheduled at Reggio in Calabria where a few people disembarked and others joined our flight.
The doors were closed and we settled in for take off then, “Ladies and Gentlemen, we are sorry to inform you that because of fog at Rome airport we will not be taking off until we get clearance for landing in Rome.”
We waited and waited and then another announcement, “Ladies and gentlemen, we are sorry to have to tell you that we have been informed it will be another four hours before we will be able to take off and land in Rome.”
Following this announcement a few passengers stormed to the front of the plane demanding to know what was going to be doe about them missing their connecting flights, as if the purser was responsible for the fog!
It appeared that we would also miss our 1215 flight to Bangkok via Singapore, but Adam just said ‘mai pen rai’ (no worries in Thai) and said that if necessary we would just spend the night in Rome. The purser was very good at customer relations and managed to reassure a few people by saying that if all flights were affected our outgoing flights would also be delayed and we would probably still be able to make our connections when they all started flying again.
One chap in particular was very stroppy and started to have a go at the pilot who was standing by the door way talking with the purser, “what are you going to do about my connecting flight, and why was your landing at Reggio not very good?”
The pilot was very patient and explained that the topography/geography meant that it is a different approach than many other airfields, and told grumpy bum that they would do all they could to help people. Within two minutes the purser was making another announcement, “ladies and gentlemen I am pleased to announce that the fog at Rome has lifted and we will be taking off in fifteen minutes.”
I thought that he had earned the right to say something to the stroppy passenger but he just smiled. It was about a twenty minute flight to Rome where we landed safely with no hint of fog. We rushed through the transit area to the re-booking desks looking for ours. Luckily we spotted a desk with a scribbled bit of paper taped to the desk indicating that it was the desk we needed. At this stage Adam and I expressed our pleasure at him having the foresight to book our bags through from Malta so that we did not have to worry about retrieving them from a carousel and dragging them around. While we were waiting in the queue, a small Maltese lady approached Sheila asking for her help as her husband and she were trying to get a connection to a flight to Sydney via Singapore, and they were not sure where to go and what to do. They lived in Australia and had been visiting family in Malta and were now just keen to get home to Sydney. Sheila basically told them to follow us and then heard the tales of this ladies visit to Malta. We were second in the queue and the Italian girl at the check in desk was taking ages to process the two ladies in front of us as the queue behind us grew longer and longer. We were not full of confidence as we eventually stepped up to the desk. Adam had sorted all of our tickets, passports etc into the order they would be needed for processing. The helpful young lady grabbed them all and scattered them across the desk before she started to try and process them; constantly shuffling the documents backwards and forwards across the desk as she tried to make some sense of them, NOT a good sign! It took her about fifteen minutes to do what she thought needed to be done and issue us with our boarding passes.
I started to look around for the departure lounge until Adam pointed out that we had to get the train shuttle to another terminal where the departure gates were located. This added some urgency to our movements, Sheila was pleased to see that the Maltese lady and her husband had been able to follow us on to the train shuttle.
When we arrived at the terminal at which the departure gates are located we had a quick coffee and then boarded the plane. The plane was a little late taking off, but it seemed a very quick flight to Singapore, the business class pods make a huge difference, especially since Sheila and I had learned how to operate them properly.
The pilot announced that he tried to make up some lost time on the way to Singapore, but because of headwinds was no able to do so. We had a three hour scheduled lay over at Singapore so the hour late arrival was not a problem for us, and we then had just a two rest in the club lounge before our flight to Bangkok.
On arrival in Bangkok, we got through immigration etc very quickly and we did approach ‘our’ luggage carousel with some trepidation, but had the view that if it had not arrived from Malta with us it would be delivered later, and there would be more room in the car. However our luggage arrived off the carousel very quickly and Adam and I shared a smug smile. Our conclusion was that Luqa in Malta and Bangkok airport function very well, Rome sucks. Khun Boon Chuay was at the airport to meet us and as there was not much traffic we arrived back at their apartment quite quickly.
We felt tired, so showered and had a quick nap for a couple of hours and a Lebanese banquet was delivered. After dinner we watched the television programme called ‘Top Gear’; we enjoy the programme very much and the accident to one of the presenters Richard Hammond heightened our interest being very pleased to hear that he was well on the way to recovery.
Sunday
A real ‘vege-out’ day for Sheila and I, while Adam and Rosalind went to the gym for two hours followed by some shopping. Adam made fish soup for dinner followed by tiramisu, nice!
Monday
I found it very difficult to get to sleep on Sunday night finally getting to sleep as dawn broke. So I was a little tardy in getting up and going along Suan Plu to find a bank that would change our residue Euros and Maltese Lire. It was the fourth bank that I went to that would take the Euros but none would exchange the Maltese Lira. When I returned from the bank there was a Thai lady in the soi near the apartment, she explained in better English than mine that she was retired now, but used to work with Air France and now she cares for everyone and everything in the So. She explained that her husband her brother and her live in the large house at the end of the soi, adding that her husband is an election commissioner, I must have flinched a little as she quickly added that he was not one of the corrupt ones.
I did some more research about the three right hands and three heads of St John the Baptist, and to date I am still waiting on a reply from the Vatican library. Rosalind and Sheila went to pick up some spectacles that Sheila had ordered to replace a pair that were lost when her bag was stolen. I also finished reading ‘A further Adventure of Sherlock Holmes: The Italian Secretary’ written by Caleb Care. The author was commissioned by the Arthur Conan Doyle Trust to write a book in the style of Arthur Conan Doyle featuring Sherlock Holmes. It is well done, featuring murders in Edinburgh during the Victorian era with connections to Mary Queen of Scots and the muter of Rizzio.
Tuesday
We are both suffering from Sheila’s insomnia and did not get out of bed until about noon when we struggled down to the pool on the ground floor and did forty laps of the pool followed buy a very hot sauna. The cleaning staff of the apartment block were a bit perplexed when they realised that Sheila, and I had been in the sauna together, but of course did not feel able to say anything directly to us. I was also booked in for a pedicure in a salon at the top of the soi and was walking to my appointment when one of the security gourds brought his motor bike out and gave me another unsolicited lift that I found I could not reject. It was an excellent pedicure and somethinmg that I could get to like very much. Sheila and Rosalind went for a walk, a fact that surprised me very much as they don’t tend to walk much in Bangkok. Thai chicken for dinner was great as usual.
Wednesday
We got up early without much sleep again, Sheila had an appointment with the hairdresser and I had a coffee and a walk around while I waited for Sheila. Afterwards we went shopping in various or the very large shopping centres something that I ‘enjoyed’ very much. Though I must admit I was pleased with our purchase of a couple of books. We used the sky-train for most of our trips around and then a taxi from Chong Nonsi station back to the apartment where tempura battered red snapper with salad awaited us. We stayed up watching television for a while after dinner hoping that we would be exhausted enough to sleep that night.
Thursday
Another night with no sleep, but I figure that at least we were resting even if we could not sleep. I got up out of bed about midmorning and Sheila at 1215. Meanwhile Rosalind had made disc copies for me of al the photos that Adam had taken of our trips in Europe. Sheila went to keep an appointment for a pedicure and nail polish job. When we returned to the apartment I started to read on of the books that we had purchased on the previous day. It is called ‘First Casualty’ written by Ben Elton. It is dedicated to his grandfathers one of whom fought on the German side and the other the Allies side in World War I. It is a fictional account of a murder investigation carried out in the trenches during the World War I; I found it a great read and in fact read the entire book at one ‘sitting’ “bugger” I was hoping that it would have lasted me a few days, but I could not put it down and many other people who have borrowed it since have also enjoyed it.
Dinner was Thai prawns in tomato soup, very nice.
Friday
Still no sleep, and Sheila and I went back to the beauty parlour to get a couple of nails repainted as they had chipped a little; they were repaired and repainted at no extra cost and with no problems. I bought a copy of the Bangkok Post newspaper to read while I waited. I think it is one of the world’s better newspapers as it employs its own journalists and does not just print sanitised syndicated columns from foreign papers. There is also more world news that we get in Australian papers.
Rosalind had decided to give Khun Noy the night off and make dinner that included an exquisite cheesecake. Sheila with Rosalind help had bought me a ‘Breitling’ watch, because the numbers had started to drop off my six year old ‘Rolex’. I was very impressed with my ‘Breitling’ but I needed to take it to a watchmaker in Suan Plu as I needed a few links taking out to make it fit properly. It was done while I waited and cost the equivalent of six Australian dollars; I did not feel it was appropriate to haggle over that. On the way down the Soi I had seen the four dogs and gave them a bit of a scruff. After I got back to the apartment I thought that I should get the names of the two security guards opposite who had been kind to me by giving me many lifts on their motorbikes. I went back down to the Soi and the two guards pointed to one of the dogs laying at the side of the Soi. “Yes yes” I said “Fang”. “No, No Mr John,” they exclaimed with very serious looks on their faces. They pointed again to Fang and made loud “brm brm’ noises while miming that a car had run over the of Fang. I knelt by the side of Fang and he was breathing very shallowly and not moving at all with his eyes very wide and fixed. Fang was obviously in deep shock and my first instinct was to try and see how badly he was hurt, but also concerned how the guards my react about me interfering.
I smoothed Fang’s fur and could see no obvious injuries but all his limbs were so slack it was obvious that he was badly hurt. I then thought that perhaps there was some way I could quickly put him out of his misery, but again concerned at how the guards might react. While I was pondering this dilemma another guard came back from the bottom of the soi and in broken English managed to get me to understand that they knew who had ran over the dog and they had gone to his house to get him to take Fang to the vet. Within a minute a large black Mercedes was driven from the bottom of the soi to where we had Fang and a well dressed Thai man got out expressing his sorrow for what had happened saying that he was not aware that Fang had gone under his wheels. With him was a Thai lady who I suspect was his housekeeper, she had brought some newspapers with her and she lifted the very limp Fang on to the newspapers which she placed on the back seat of the car. I was pleased that Fang was being properly cared for, but I suspected that he would die. I went back up to the apartment feeling very sad and was barely able to explain what had happened. Khun Noy’s response was “Ah well everything lives, everything dies,” a judgement that was delivered with a smile. I found this a little hard, but I guess it reflects her Buddhist beliefs and in the long run is a philosophy that causes far less distress.
Saturday
We did not go to bed until 0145 after a great meal and despite thinking of Fang many times I di d get some sleep. As soon as I had my breakfast I went down to see the guards and find out any news about Fang. The guards were very sombre as I approached and the news was not unexpected when they told me that Fang had died forty minutes after they had got him to the vets. “Ah well, we all are born and we all die,“ I offered by way of condolence and insight to the Thai philosophy they nodded and seemed to understand but were as sad as I felt. It was worse when they pointed out the three remaining dogs who were all laying with their noses pointed to the ground showing no interest in anything around them. They managed to explain to me that Fang had been the leader of the pack and that they did not know what to do without him. When I went back up to the apartment and told Khun Noy and the others the news about Fang, everyone appeared suitably sad, including Khun Noy; but I think that she was more sad for me feeling sad, rather than Fang who was on his journey to his next reincarnation.
Sheila and I went for a walk around Lumphini Park, where we saw a few large monitor lizards and some terrapins. Sheila was affected by the heat and humidity so we went back to the apartment quite quickly. On the way back the large black Mercedes stopped near us and the driver explained that we was the one who had run over Fang and had taken Fang to the vets. He added that he had been very upset and was just now returning from the temple where he had given prayers for Fang and asked for forgiveness for having killed Fang. I felt pleased that Fang’s passing had not gone without appropriate recognition and contrition.
Adam went to the gym for a couple of hours while I watched a film: ‘We are no angels’ starring Robert de Niro and Sean Penn; I thought that it is a fun movie.
After gym Adam was hoping to get his teeth braces removed, after having them for a couple of years. Adam returned a little disappointed after being told that they would not be removed for another five weeks. Rosalind had prepared a great minestrone soup for dinner followed by an exquisite cheesecake.
Sunday
We had arranged to take Adam and Rosalind for brunch to the famous Sukhotahi Hotel. It was only a ten minute drive away and being a Sunday the traffic was not a problem.
The Sukhotahi Hotel is just one story and is very elegant, the brunch is very popular and bookings are essential. The selections that one are faced with are terrible as so many are so yummy that there is no way that anyone could have even the smallest sample of all the goodies and not burst their stomach. I gave it the best shot I could but many of them I just had to look at and drool as I was filled beyond bursting and had to walk around the dining room a few times just to ease the pain of my overfilled stomach. It is a gastronomic heaven and one that deserves to be recognised as a place to die for.
We struggled home after which Adam delivered a cake he had made to the gym for his personal trainer, Khun Tuan, whose birthday it was on that day.
Meanwhile was watched the film ‘Godfather part III” followed by the Chinese Grand Prix. We all thought that Michael Schumacher did very well to win considering the disadvantage of his tyres in the wet.
Monday
We finished packing midmorning after saying good bye to Adam before he went to work.
Rosalind went with us to the new Bangkok airport, driven by Khun Boon Chuay. None of us had been to the airport before so even Khun Boon Chauy was interested to see it as it had only been operating for a few weeks.
It is huge and even trusty Khun Boon Chuay missed the drop off point at first attempt and we had to go around again. We had allowed ourselves plenty of time as usual so it was no problem. It is a huge airport and I believe the recent reports that it would be easy to become a citizen of the airport and live there given all the facilities that are provided. We wandered along one of the levels and the myriad of shops, and found a young lady with a hand held notice board indicating the level and location of the booking counter for our flight. We took our time noting that most of the levels were a mirror image of the others with hundreds of shops. We also took the opportunity to have a light lunch but a couple of the place we tried first would not take credit cards as their systems had still not been fully installed. After lunch we found a ramp down to the boarding lounge for our flight but there was a rope across it with a notice saying it was not open. There were no seats in the colonnade where we were so we just stepped over the rope and took our seats in the boarding lounge. Other people followed our lead and by the time the airline staff arrived to open the boarding lounge, it was almost full. Although it was not fully operational on the day we flew we were very impressed with the airport and how it functions.
After gym Adam was hoping to get his teeth braces removed, after having them for a couple of years. Adam returned a little disappointed after being told that they would not be removed for another five weeks. Rosalind had prepared a great minestrone soup for dinner followed by an exquisite cheesecake.
Sunday
We had arranged to take Adam and Rosalind for brunch to the famous Sukhotahi Hotel. It was only a ten minute drive away and being a Sunday the traffic was not a problem.
The Sukhotahi Hotel is just one story and is very elegant, the brunch is very popular and bookings are essential. The selections that one are faced with are terrible as so many are so yummy that there is no way that anyone could have even the smallest sample of all the goodies and not burst their stomach. I gave it the best shot I could but many of them I just had to look at and drool as I was filled beyond bursting and had to walk around the dining room a few times just to ease the pain of my overfilled stomach. It is a gastronomic heaven and one that deserves to be recognised as a place to die for.
We struggled home after which Adam delivered a cake he had made to the gym for his personal trainer, Khun Tuan, whose birthday it was on that day.
Meanwhile was watched the film ‘Godfather part III” followed by the Chinese Grand Prix. We all thought that Michael Schumacher did very well to win considering the disadvantage of his tyres in the wet.
Monday
We finished packing midmorning after saying good bye to Adam before he went to work.
Rosalind went with us to the new Bangkok airport, driven by Khun Boon Chuay. None of us had been to the airport before so even Khun Boon Chauy was interested to see it as it had only been operating for a few weeks.
It is huge and even trusty Khun Boon Chuay missed the drop off point at first attempt and we had to go around again. We had allowed ourselves plenty of time as usual so it was no problem. It is a huge airport and I believe the recent reports that it would be easy to become a citizen of the airport and live there given all the facilities that are provided. We wandered along one of the levels and the myriad of shops, and found a young lady with a hand held notice board indicating the level and location of the booking counter for our flight. We took our time noting that most of the levels were a mirror image of the others with hundreds of shops. We also took the opportunity to have a light lunch but a couple of the place we tried first would not take credit cards as their systems had still not been fully installed. After lunch we found a ramp down to the boarding lounge for our flight but there was a rope across it with a notice saying it was not open. There were no seats in the colonnade where we were so we just stepped over the rope and took our seats in the boarding lounge. Other people followed our lead and by the time the airline staff arrived to open the boarding lounge, it was almost full. Although it was not fully operational on the day we flew we were very impressed with the airport and how it functions.
The flight back to Sydney via Singapore was without incident, though I did miss having a business class seat on the leg from Singapore to Sydney.
When we got to Sydney we got though immigration and customs very quickly and then by taxi to the domestic terminal for our flight to Bathurst. I was not happy when I had to pay a $40 excess baggage fee to Rex for our luggage when at no other time in our travels had it been an issue. But after travelling overnight I was too tired too argue, and just paid the money and lodged a complaint afterwards; that of course fell on deaf ears.
Once again we were picked up by Eric Andrews at Bathurst airport and when we picked Chloe up from our next door neighbour Bette; Chloe was very nonchalant about just walking back into her home as if we had never been away.
Three months was a long time to spend in Bangkok, but it did save me having to withstand winter in Bathurst, and it was great to spend time with Adam and Rosalind. The visits to Italy and Malta were fantastic, especially Malta, it is a destination that we all would endorse for any traveller.
When we got to Sydney we got though immigration and customs very quickly and then by taxi to the domestic terminal for our flight to Bathurst. I was not happy when I had to pay a $40 excess baggage fee to Rex for our luggage when at no other time in our travels had it been an issue. But after travelling overnight I was too tired too argue, and just paid the money and lodged a complaint afterwards; that of course fell on deaf ears.
Once again we were picked up by Eric Andrews at Bathurst airport and when we picked Chloe up from our next door neighbour Bette; Chloe was very nonchalant about just walking back into her home as if we had never been away.
Three months was a long time to spend in Bangkok, but it did save me having to withstand winter in Bathurst, and it was great to spend time with Adam and Rosalind. The visits to Italy and Malta were fantastic, especially Malta, it is a destination that we all would endorse for any traveller.
Our dghajsa
John with Senglea behind on the right
Adam in our dghajsa 
A Maltese dghajsa (dye-sa)
Me fighting the lunch-time crowds in Senglea
A view across Grand Harbour from Senglea of Valetta
A busy street in Senglea Malta
Labels: Malta magic
posted by John Lunn at 12:43 AM
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