Photo taken by Mr C

For some reason I was feeling out of sorts when I woke up, possibly because I could feel the beginnings of the lurgy coming on. We were a little late for breakfast but thankfully there was only a small queue.

After breakfast we had planned to catch the ferry to Birgu but the plan was flexed and we detoured to the war memorial first rather than on the way back from Birgu as we had planned. The pathways that led to the memorial were all blocked off. We had quite a tricky time getting to the war memorial and so it took us longer than expected. Some pathways were closed and the roads around it were very busy.

After photographing the memorial, we walked to the lift that would take us down to the ferry. Unfortunately, the extra time it had taken to get to the memorial meant that we had just missed the ferry and had to wait for it to come back.

Photo taken by Mr C

Eventually in Birgu, we took a few photos of the harbour before sitting on a bench for a few moments to look at a map so we could get our bearings. It was now time for a refreshing drink before walking into town. We didn’t opt for the nearest café and settled for a shady arcaded place a short distance down the street.

Then we headed into town checking a signboard before choosing to visit the Inquisitors Palace first. As we neared the palace, I saw a photo opportunity and realised my camera was missing. I remembered I had put it next to me on the bench when we sat to briefly peruse the map. I always check I have left nothing behind when I move on from a place but for some reason, I didn’t see the camara, maybe it had fallen on the floor underneath the bench. I will never know…

Mr C retraced our steps checking all the cafes and also the bench area where we briefly sat. It was gone without a trace.

Despite being distracted due to the loss of my camera, or, more importantly to me, the photos I had taken during the first days of our holiday I enjoyed our visit to the Inquisitors Palace.

By some quirk of fate, I had unexpectedly upgraded my mobile phone (paying less for my contract) just a few days before we travelled to Malta!  The new phone has an adequate camera, so going forward I was able to capture my own photo memories of our adventures in Malta.

Photo taken by Mr C

We went in search of lunch, ending up on the harbour front sharing a pizza and enjoying a glass of wine and beer seated in shade at restaurant Sottovento. This was handy for our next intended visit, The Maritime Museum. However, we found that the museum was closed to the public until further notice, because is being refurbished.

We returned to Valletta, on the way checking at the café near to where I lost my camera. The waitress took my phone number and directed me to the police station that was 200 yards away to see if it had been handed in there. It hadn’t but the police officer also took phone details, although both of us knew that by now my camera was not going to turn up.

It being my birthday, back at the hotel Mr C ordered a bottle of Prosecco to be delivered to the room. The bar staff said, can you take it yourself? Mr C agreed but they provided no ice bucket so it turned out to be a do it yourself sort of celebratory drink on the balcony! When we sat down, I had a little birthday surprise in that my mum (who struggles with technology) was able to use her new mobile phone to ring me up to say happy birthday.

We walked into Valletta to find a suitable restaurant for a birthday meal, ending up, to our delight, dining in our restaurant of choice, Grain Street which we had thought was shut that day. The food and service were amazing.

Our cosy nearby bar was shut on Sundays so we returned to the hotel for a nightcap instead.

During our recent Malta adventure I unfortunately lost my camera along with the photographs for the first part of our holiday. Luckily just before we travelled I had upgraded my mobile phone (paying less for my contract) so I was able to take photos after my camera had gone missing.

I have now replaced the camera but the photos that should have accompanied my stories from Malta have been lost in a foreign land…

After breakfast we made our way to the bus stop in order to catch the bus to Amalfi where we intended to catch a water bus to Salerno. Once again the bus did not arrive as scheduled but on this occasion we only had to wait 30 minutes. The boat trip was enjoyable, stopping off at different ports on the way to Salerno. On the journey I tried to get to grips with my mobile phone camera so that I could document the day. The camera seems to have a mind of its own and features I thought I had turned off kept catching me out when I found that they were in fact turned on!

Once in Salerno we headed towards the Cathedral (Duomo di Salerno) stopping for lunch on the way. We knew we were in non-tourist Italy because the Italians knew only a little English which made ordering food fun and we weren’t completely sure what we would get. As we waited for the food to arrive Mr C located a nearby electrical store by searching on Google. It was only a short distance away and we went there after we had finished our lunch. I had low expectations of finding a suitable small camera but felt it was worth a look.

As we entered the store we were greeted by a man who indicated that we had to put our bags in a blue locking shoulder bag (to stop petty theft from the store). Mr C asked him if the store sold cameras and he pointed us in the right direction.

Unexpectedly the shop did have the type of camera I was looking for and Mr C was able to translate the tech specs for me. I chose the camera I wanted; we conducted a conversation half in Italian and half in English. I was offered a case at discount price and a memory card was added to my purchase. The shop assistant who was helping us with our purchase gave us a ticket and pointed to the cash desk. Once the item had been paid for, we were given a different ticket and had to ask what we were supposed to do with it. We had to go back to the camera counter and the purchased items were released to us. We then had to return the cash desk so that the items could be put in a carrier bag. Our personal bags were then released from the blue security bags. As we left the shop the door alarm went off, they had forgotten to swipe the security tag on the camera…

Purchase complete, we headed to the Cathedral which is plain, simple and extremely peaceful. It was only as we entered the crypt that I realised it housed the body of St Matthew which had been brought there in the 10th century. The crypt was also very peaceful and we sat for a while in reflection.

We made our way back to the harbour and purchased our return ticket to Ravello. The journey back was quicker than the one earlier in the day because this boat sailed directly to Amalfi where we caught the bus back up the hill to Ravello. Once back in Ravello we assumed our position in one of the cafe bars in the square, enjoying the sunshine before it was time to go to the hotel to freshen up before dinner.

We had chosen to dine in the Michelin starred Rossellinis  Restaurant in the Hotel Palazzo Avino. The evening was an experience with a perfect view over the Amalfi Bay towards Minori and Majori all accompanied by a musical duo playing English classic songs. On arrival I was provided with a footstool for my handbag and the waiter in charge introduced himself before asking if we would like Pink Champagne as an aperitif. We were provided with a gourmet selection of bread (to which we did not do justice) as we sipped our Champagne and chose our meals from the menu. After our orders had been taken the wine list was produced – it was a mighty tome which would have taken a week to read. Mr C’s starter arrived before a wine decision had been made so a side table was provided for the wine list. Mr C enlisted help to choose a suitable ‘local’ dry white wine to accompany the meal. In between courses we were presented with tasty morsels to complement the meal. The desserts were delightful, I had chosen Tiramisu with a difference; it was a taste sensation. Mr C had chosen a dessert that was intriguingly entitled ‘Memories of Mont Blanc’. When it arrived it looked like a candle (or perhaps a stick of dynamite) complete with wick. The waiter proceeded to light the wick and said ‘I am not a terrorist’. The burning wick was supposed to unleash the smell of vanilla…

Comfortably replete, we soaked up the atmosphere as we sipped the remainder of our wine with yet more tasty morsels. All too soon the evening came to an end and it was time to retire for the evening.

I have just returned from holidaying in Ravello, Italy. Halfway through the holiday my camera failed; the shutter stuck in the closed position and the camera view remained black! This led to an unexpected adventure into non-tourist Italy to try and track down a small camera to accompany me on my Italian travels…

…more on the holiday coming soon

People who know me well will appreciate this photo

I always have my camera in my hand/s when I am out and about.

More ‘In My Hands’ can be found in the gallery.

I struggled with this one a bit. I have lots of unpublished digital photos but I didn’t want to just post one that had no other connection. Eventually I remembered that I had one of those self portraits with me taking a photo in the mirror. You can just about see me (and the camera)