Sun or Rain - Only God knows when.

So, 

One of the main reasons I left Malta, and decided to live in the U.K. is due to the fact that in Malta we get approximately 5 months of Summer -  starting end of April and lasts until around mid September. 

Though summer is nice, it's very humid and sweaty in Malta; with a temperature averaging 35 Degrees Celsius and during heatwaves, over 40. Though in the offices or at home, it's nice and cool thanks to airconditioning and fans, as soon as you go outside it feels like you just walked into an oven. 

In contrast to this, summer in the UK has been horrible this year. In the past month, I can hardly remember any days rain-free. Even though it is a nice change to summer as I know it, I’d rather have last year’s English summer. I think summer here will have the highest rainfall since record.

Hoping August will bring more sun to this summer-less island...

All Seasons in 1 Month

When living in England, one of the advantages is to live on island, yet you wouldn't endure the heat the summer brings. But it is also a known fact, that weather in the UK is very much depressing for any Mediterranean peeps living there, due to clouds and rain during the majority of the year.

This is true.

I would say that I enjoy the fact that I don't sweat like a pig 24/7 for four recurring months, but at times - not seeing the sun for weeks makes me want to go hysterical. It is not the heat that I miss, it is the opportunity of wearing summer clothes, sandals, and not carrying a jacket wherever I go.

Since the first of June, until today the 25th of June, I could say that here in Stoke we had weather from all seasons. It started off really cold with drizzle, freezing nights with temperature just above 0 degrees and hail during the days, and for the past 5 days, a heatwave with temperature of 20 to 25 degrees during the day. Last night the temperature at 1am was at 18 degrees, with no sign of breeze.  It was pretty much pointless leaving my bedroom window fully open all night. But, no mosquitos - yay! It was so warm, that I thanked my lucky stars that I do not share my house with anyone else and I could run about wearing (or not wearing!) anything I want.

Though I am complaining about the heat, I must admit that it is a lovely change to see a constantly blue sky, and wearing summer dresses. As such, I'm planning on taking advantage of the situation and visit a park this weekend :)

So, fingers crossed on this... and prepare yourselves for some blog posts with photos... Not just from this weekend, but also London and Holland.

Steffi xxx

What's the point?

I have just returned from Holland last night and I'm trying to get back into the whole mood and routine of work and rainy weekends. The weather in the UK has been wetter these past weeks, than during the actual winter, although less cold. I don't mind this weather when I don't have any plans, but as of late, I've been making plans only to see them ruined by rain and mud.

But this is not what I wanted to talk about today...


My question today is, what's the point of life?



We work for the most part of our lives.... becoming slaves of desks, factories and what not... only to have a few days a year of pure pleasure. And the rest is just a struggle to make ends meet, with bills, cleaning, cooking, health recovery and relationship drama. And when we are old enough to stop working... We're just too old to do much with our lives, other than sitting on our asses watching TV or reminiscing about our past... What's more, technology further distracts us from what life and human comfort is all about.



We shut down to the real world, and live in a virtual, non-existent world...



I don't know about you, but this is not the kind of life I wanna lead... But unfortunately things are so imposed on us, that there's nothing we can do. Being out of touch technology wise and financially, will only destroy us further... and ironically, screws us further as we will look like complete idiots in other people's faces...

Day 1: Sun-kissed Malta

It is true, what they say... That absence makes the heart grows fonder.

St. Julians, Malta

Last week, my boyfriend and I visited Malta, after not being there for over 5 months. The least I can say is that I was plenty excited of being in sun-kissed Malta, of sitting on the shore watching the waves play and tease each other, of seeing my family and friends once more.

We didn’t have a terrible winter in the UK, and Spring has been sunny, partially cloudy, but I yearned for those bright blue skies and a little breeze. Being in the UK,  all I see is canals and lakes, which I do love.  But I missed that salty smell the sea brings to the plate.

First day in Malta, Mark and I spent it in St. Julian’s, being lazy at the beach. I’ve tasted Cisk XS again, and I have to say, that nothing tastes better in the sun. No, not even ice cream! We’ve also been to the cinema  and watched Intruders. I do believe that it was a low-budget movie, but we both enjoyed it and I’d suggest it to anyone in the mood for a thriller movie. For those of you who are interested in knowing who starred in this one, the main actors are Clive Owen and Carice van Houten (apparently a rather famous Dutch actress).

Later on in the day we also met Carly for a drink. Being the eve of St. Patrick’s Day,  I celebrated it by drinking a pint of the beloved Guinness. And for those who are wondering, no I am  not an alcoholic, but I do love beer. And wine. And Jagermeister. And Jack Daniels.

Stay tuned for more updates and photos from our long weekend in Malta!

Snow here, there and everywhere!

After much wait and anticipation for me and all those who LOVE snow, and after much wait and dreadfulness for those who despise it, last weekend was a snowy weekend here in Stoke.

Mostly due to the excitement of seeing snow again since last December, I found it hard to sleep on the Friday night. It was forecasted to start snowing at noon on Saturday, so the plan was to finish off the errands beforehand and then go somewhere nice and cosy to enjoy the view of snow. Needless to say, my plan fell apart, and when it started snowing at 12:03pm, I was in Knutton waiting for a bus. Freezing my ass off, was the least of my problems though as I was pretty much enchanted with looking at the hail, which soon enough turned into snow. What a beautiful view!

The snow kept going through the afternoon, evening and night. At some point I went for a walk close by to home. By the time I got home I was full of snow. Some photos of my night brief adventure can be found here:

Furthermore, on the Sunday when it stopped snowing, I went to a park close by and took some photos. It was a misty day, and a cold one too. The lake was frozen, the sky white... the photos I took looked haunted, and I probably fell more in love with snow...

I don't know if it is just me... but I find snow to be calming; for that moment in time, I forget all my troubles and I'm stress-free.

Note: All the photos in this article belong to me, and were taken in Porthill. Please get permission should you require to use any of them.