My New Life in Malta

I had quite a day today! First, the director came by to pick me up for rehearsal. He has been very nice in offering me rides several times, since I do not have a car and the rehearsal place is a bit out of the way. He had told me that today he needed to make a stop, but he had not told me what it was. We went to a non-descript house in Floriana, where I was introduced to people. It turns out it was a shelter for recovering drug addicts run by a Catholic charity. The staff chatted with me a bit about how the place is run, while people kept coming in and out of the office. I actually would not have guessed what the place was because it had a very lively atmosphere and everyone seemed to be friends. This was completely unexpected but very interesting for me. Some people live in the shelter, while others come during the day only. Others have been released from prison and do not have a plce to live. A side of Malta that one does not normally see! Every place has its problems, and one of the things I briefly talked about with a staff member was that in the grand scheme of things Malta is doing quite well. At least that is my opinion when you compare it to the rest of the world. I pointed out that in my country of birth there are homeless people going hungry on the streets, while this simply does not exist here. We left the shelter and I was really inspired by the hard work they are doing to help others.

Then on to rehearsal, where a television crew had come by to do a small piece on the play! Tune in to Net TV on Sunday, January 14th at 6:00pm to see a little bit of the rehearsal and the director. I might possibly appear off to the side, if they use those few seconds of footage. The interview was carried out by Maltese television personality Claire Agius, who, it turns out, spent a few months doing missionary work in Peru! Her camera man also spent a few months doing missionary work in Peru! (I keep meeting more and more Maltese who have done so or know someone who has. Apparently there is a Maltese priest in Arequipa who arranges these exchanges. I am intrigued and will have to look more into this). Claire showed off to me how she had learned some Spanish, so I showed off how I can speak Maltese. I have seen her show a few times, so I felt like I was meeting a famous person.

Alas, I will not be able to see the interview when it airs, because this weekend… we are London-bound! Tomorrow M and I leave for a long weekend in the British capital. Here in Europe it is actually possible to do such a thing. Outside of Europe it sounds so very decadent to use a phrase like “I am going to London for the weekend” (so I just had to work it into this posting). I was only there once before for part of a day, so it is basically my first time there and I am very excited. I will also get to see two dear friends whom I have not seen in SIX years, so I am doubly excited.

The blog will thus take a break for the next four days.

And tomorrow my Maltese friend and faithful blog reader P heads off for her new job in Brussels. Good luck, and I hope to visit soon!