Itineraries

Just under two weeks away from my second trip out to Malta, and my itinerary for the trip is finally coming together!  It's looking so hectic, but it also looks like tons of fun:

• Friday, 28th: Depart from my college in the U.S.  First time flying with Lufthansa so we'll see how it goes!
• Saturday, 29th: Arrive in Valletta sometime in the afternoon.  Check-in, relax a bit, and then heading over to my SO's house to say hello to his parents.
• Sunday, 30th: Sight-seeing in Valletta.  They have installed a massive 58 metre (190 ft) lift (elevator) since I was last there, which I intend to ride ad nauseam.  It'll also be the first time I get to visit St. John's Co-Cathedral with a native.
• Monday, 31st: New Year's Eve Party!  As far as I understand, this is going to be like most New Year's parties in the U.S. except for the fact that there will be Maltese people there who may or may not be able to speak English while inebriated.  
• Tuesday, 1st: Lunch with my SO's family, and the first time I'll be meeting everyone, including siblings, nieces and a nephew who I didn't have a chance to meet last time I was there.  So, the most nerve-wracking part of the trip!
• Wednesday, 2nd: Pantomime.  This is something that seems popular in all the formerly British colonies except for the U.S.  It seems to be some sort of comedic, musical, morality play, but since there isn't an equivalent in the states I really have no idea.  Apparently they have a lot of audience participation and occasionally pull people onto the stage.  I can only imagine what would happen if I were volunteered and someone tried to ask me things in Maltese.
• Thursday, 3rd: Going to see The Hobbit!  OK, I really didn't have to be in Malta to do this, but I will be.
• Friday, 4th: Visiting the Hypogeum, a UNESCO World Heritage site and one of the many things featured on the Malta episode of "Ancient Aliens".  
• Saturday, 5th: Nothing specifically planned yet!
• Sunday, 6th: Heading back to college to finish up the massive workload that comes with being a senior!
• Everything Else?:  If there's time, and weather permits, I'm also hoping to visit a petting zoo, go horseback riding, and eat an obscene amount of Mediterranean food. 

With Christmas approaching, I'm sure time will pass quickly, so I need to start packing!

Going to Malta!

So adding on to the trips I took in August and September, I'm heading back to Europe on the 28th of December for New Year's.  This time I'm visiting my boyfriend and his family in Malta, somewhere I visited during my study abroad and am excited to see again.  When I was there in May, it was absolutely beautiful.  I simultaneously can't believe people actually live there, and that more people don't live there!  It's apparently one of the most densely populated countries in the world (owing to its small size: it's only twice the size of Washington DC), though it didn't seem anywhere near as dense as say, New York City.

Anyway, I guess since it's not as warm in January, it's supposed to be more "green" than it was in May.  I'm not sure how much greener, though, since it seemed pretty arid when I was there, so I'm not sure where grass or plants would come from.  It's also supposed to rain more than last time as well, though hopefully not as much as in Glasgow.  Hopefully since it's in the Mediterranean it'll be at least a little warmer than in the U.S!

Dead Flat Broke

It occurred to me that I never mentioned that since studying abroad, I've actually returned to Scotland not once, but twice.  The first time was in August, when I was invited to a Scottish wedding out in the countryside and took the opportunity to visit all the places I missed on my first trip.  It was nice, because there were a few things that I'd really been upset about not getting around to.  My boyfriend ended up renting a car, so to and from the wedding we were able to visit the Borders, Hadrian's Wall, etc.

The wedding ceremony itself was restricted to family and close friends, so I ended up attending just the reception, which was pretty much the same as receptions in the U.S. except that there was golf in the backyard.

The second time I returned was in September.  My intent was to surprise my boyfriend for his birthday: I'd gone through a good deal of planning with his friends, and had managed to keep it a secret despite my extreme excitement.  The idea was that his friend would meet him at a coffee shop, or some other place, where I would also casually happen to be.  The reality was that it was raining, I was excited, and I'd left my wallet in the airport parking lot.  I had my luggage (a few days clothing, toiletries, passport and camera), my UK phone (with 10GBP worth of service left), and 21GBP in cash, most of which I ended up spending before I realized my wallet was missing.

Oops.

I tried contacting his friend and there was no answer (my flight was early, and he was not awake).  Long story short, I ended up deviating from the plan and texting my boyfriend to meet me at Queen Street Station. He was still surprised, of course, but I was a bit sad the original plan didn't work out.

Either way, being broke in a foreign country is super difficult!  Those forty-five minutes when I didn't have any money, no where to sleep, and no one I knew nearby made me realize that I could probably never be one of those people who just get up and backpack across the continent.