AHOY ! Part 4

Day 7 (Saturday)

Franco says: “Well done, guys and good bye !”

Our last day at the harbor had arrived! Franco meant we didn’t have to rush. Since his flight to Sicily would not leave before eight o’clock in the evening. Since he had holiday now. He wanted to visit his girlfriend there. Stay for a few days and then travel further to Tuscany, where he has his house.

Our flight home was scheduled for tomorrow, Sunday afternoon, and the hotel rooms for tonight were already booked – in St. Julians. So after our last visit at “Fifteen 37 Cafe” we booked a taxi, which should pick us up from our pontoon at eleven o’clock and drive us to the hotel. Our plan was to visit Valletta after the check-in and show M&M’s a bit around. Since it was the third time on Malta (and Gozo) for Patrik and me, we thought we could act as tourist guides J

Soon everything was packed and our bags were sitting at the pontoon. The mood was a little gloomy when we waited for the taxi, so it was actually good it came a bit too early. After saying goodbye to “our Felicity”, Franco accompanied us to the taxi and gave us a big hug by saying his farewells.

Gosh, who likes “Good Byes”…?!

After a racy 20 minutes drive (if you ever went to Malta, you know what I mean), we arrived at our hotel and were welcomed with a huge “sorry, we had to book you into another hotel, which is close-by, since we had a serious boiler damage yesterday evening. Soooo sorryyyyy!”.

Well, what could we do? Our bags were driven to the new hotel, while we walked the ten or so minutes. It looked nice, although, much bigger than the one we had originally booked (we don’t like these huge “palaces”). Only Patrik’s and my room was ready yet, so we all took our bags in order to deposit them there. It was kind of a shock to be in this huge hotel, with so many floors and rooms – or maybe it just seemed a bit scary to us, after a week living so close together on “Felicity”…. In any case, we were a bit disappointed that our rooms weren’t side by side.

Soon we were ready and strolled to Spinola Bay, where we wanted to eat a light lunch. There are so many nice restaurants and bars there, so it was not easy to choose one, but in the end we found a lovely place and ordered some bruschetta and a bottle of white wine. It tasted heavenly and we were more than pleased – and soon ready to take the bus to Valletta! On our last visits, Patrik and I were lucky to experience the old busses on Malta, which were famous for their unique make-up (and their “insane” drivers, if I may say so), because back then, the vehicles were owned by families and they decorated them after their – more or less good – tastes. Nowadays, the busses are modern and they even close the doors while driving, probably because they have built-in air-con’s these days ?.

After about 40 minutes we arrived at the big bus stop in Valletta – which is a bit more organized than years ago. It didn’t take long and we played our “roles as tourists” as expected: A lot of window shopping, real shopping and many “wow!”, “amazing!” and “beautiful!”, because of the awesome architecture, which really IS fascinating – at least that didn’t change! With so many impressions, one gets thirsty and it was time for an aperitif. Again we found a cozy restaurant, with a beautiful view over the ”Grand Harbour” and it even had its obligatory cat, a charming, longhaired, ginger-colored feline who greeted us. Thinking of Franco, we ordered a bottle of Sicilian white wine, then raised our glasses in a toast to him and agreed (for the 268^th time) what an amazing week we’ve had!

The afternoon went quick and soon it was time to catch the bus back to Spinola Bay – having a last drink at the “Dubliners Pub”, before heading to the hotel.

Back there, M&M’s got their room key, fetched their luggage and we agreed to meet at eight in the lobby. WOW, what a big shower we had and all for ourselves – not to mention the huge bed! Funny, what you suddenly appreciate, if you didn’t have it for a while, right?! Anyway, feeling refreshed we all were hungry and ready for dinner. Since Spinola Bay had so many lovely restaurants. We tried there first and soon got lucky – catching a table on a nice patio.

We enjoyed a really nice dinner and naturally had a lot to talk about – mixed with a couple of good laughs. Time just flew by and on the way back to the hotel, we decided to pay a visit at the exclusive Portomaso Marina, with its costly apartments. Even in the low-lit area we were able to admire the fancy yachts who lay there and we could just guess what they were worth…. Back at our hotel we ended the evening on our balcony, enjoying a beer/cider and decided, we would meet at nine o’clock the next morning for breakfast. Our flight would not leave before half three in the afternoon, so we had plenty of time.

Sleeping in a real bed again felt divine and finally, even I was able to relax and sleep tight.

Day 8 (Sunday)

Missing out, what Franco says….

The next morning a cloudy and rainy day greeted us. Which suited us in a way, since we had to fly home anyway.

After breakfast, we went to the reception and booked a taxi to the airport, picking us up at one o’clock. Until then we could deposit our baggage at the hotels storage room and we went outside, hoping to find a last tourist shop, which maybe was open.

Well, it was Sunday after all and the shops were closed. We went to a nearby coffee shop and ordered espresso. Although, it had started to rain, it was still warm enough to sit outside under the roof, looking at the few cars and people with their colorful umbrellas. The mood was still high, but we all conformed that “heaven was crying”, because we had to leave “our” beautiful Malta. We also imagined, how it would have been, with this kind of weather a week ago…..not much fun, that was clear, so we all thanked the Weather Gods for our incredible luck we’ve had!

Even killing time went quick – by doing silly selfies for example – and so we were back at the hotel. Our taxi came on schedule and after about half an hour drive through the – meanwhile heavy – rain, we arrived at the airport. Check-in went quick, also the security and passport control and then we were inside, in the Duty Free Zone. I purchased a last present for Cony, our cat sitter, and then we settled at the bar of the Hard Rock Café and ordered our drinks.

Soon it was time for boarding and without delay. We rolled from the gate and when lifting in the air we said good bye to the islands. The sun was shining above the clouds and the skippers captain weather forecast for Zurich was promising. Sunny and around 24 deg. C. Perfect – again a journey from the rain into the sun!

For a few of us the lack of last night’s sleep took its toll…..Sorry guys, I simply couldn’t resist…. J

At half past four we landed in Zurich, fetched our luggage and checked the train time table. Unfortunately, we didn’t have much time for many hugs and long goodbye’s. (which was maybe better). Soon Patrik and I sat in our train, towards Frauenfeld. Cony, our sweet neighbor and cat sitter offered – before we left – to pick us up from the train station. So we thankfully took her offer and called her from the train. After hearty hugs she said that everything went fine and Odin is safe and sound – thank God!

Ten minutes later we were home-sweet-home with the sun still shining. We opened the windows (and a bottle of prosecco) and were amazed about the SPACE we had.

Only Odin was missing…..we were sure though, that he heard us, but played his cat-like part of being mortally offended. (He came home later that evening – overjoyed =^.^= )

Well, all in all we absolutely agreed that we’ve had a fantastic week – not only earning our certificates. Also spending a week on a sailing yacht, together with our dear friends Michaela and Michael. Last but not least met Franco. So, thank you all for an awesome and unforgettable time !