The last few days have been more than hot and the heat has finally got the better of both the wanderers…minimal wandering, relishing air conditioning, and well….literally melting! Here goes our weekend story…
Began with an inside day on Friday, canning a planned BBQ invitation on Friday night, not only due to the heat, but also creepy messages received (prior to event) from the proposed host!
Saturday a visit to Sue’s cousins up north, Trudi experiencing the first melt, and overwhelming heat exhaustion….rescued by the shade and a cool glass of water from a nearby indian restaurant (very helpful) owner..
Then home to hydrate (bottles of water) and rest in the cool for the afternoon before venturing out to the Delicata wine festival at Barracka gardens in Valletta after the sun set!! Catching a very crowded bus around 8.30pm…seems everyone had the same idea!
Arriving at the gates of Valletta to the lit up fountain monument! Realising the daytime 40 degrees had not abated…and bodies perspiring the minute we were out of the airconditioned bus… oh well we were here now so we strolled (slowly) towards the festival…
22€ later, armed with a (glass) wineglass and a bag of tokens to buy wine we passed through the gates of Upper Barracka Gardens…passing…
The medics on standby….not realising that we would soon be needing their services!
Into the Throngs of people…
Hunting for the first glass of wine(to lighten our token load) and some air to breathe…
Every inch of the ground, standing room only, was taken as the band pounded out its tunes to a very warm crowd…
This is where things took a turn..or rather Sue did! We had just found Sue’s cousin and partner and found a more peaceful standing spot at the back of the gardens (first wine in hand) Sue doesn’t drink wine so had only had a couple of sips of her Rose….when the heat melted her…literally! Flanked on one side by Trudi and a cousin on the other..consciousness left her….coming to for a few seconds then out cold..melting to the ground…
Back to my first person story…I woke crouching on the ground with my back against a metal fence…Trudi one side in tears (she had got a fright when I fainted)….one cousin on the other side and 2nd cousin racing round gathering water and alerting medics…the ones we had earlier passed!
By the time they arrived I had almost drunk a bottle of water, and was recovering…they gave my cousin electrolyte sachets…not one but three… to add to my second Bottle of water, after downing this I felt brand new ! But definitely not game to ingest anything other than water for the rest of the evening! So my cousins and Trudi had a great night with my share of wine tokens, and I quietly enjoyed the fireworks, vibe, sights and sounds of Malta’s annual wine festival party..
An event that happens every year when I am here, but have managed to miss…and was not prepared for the overwhelming heat and crowds…
Needless to say…first job on Sunday was a walk to the pharmacy to purchase our own supply of electrolyte sachets and drink daily as a preventative action!!
All who wander are not Lost girls 