fresh gozo cheese and local oranges

g'day all! life is pretty ace at the moment - busy but brilliant. it's my birthday next week, and my wonderful man has organised a surprise day for me on Friday, and then on Saturday i'm having an open house brunch, where all my friends and family will pop round for a waffle with ginger cream somewhen in the day. i get to see my brothers, sister in law and niece, as well as all my amazing friends - so excited :)

so, as promised, here's part two of my photos from the island of Gozo...

♥ a delicious salad with fresh local produce - olives, tomatoes, cucumber, rocket, mushrooms, chickpeas, and the freshest local cheese. perfect on a hot and sunny day.

♥ the island is incredibly old - there is even talk in the Bible of Paul visiting Malta, and i dare say that Gozo was inhabited also at the time - so beautiful and yet untouched. these rock formations by the water front are fascinating (as are my saltwater sandals, of course!)

♥ broad beans were in season when were there, and they were delicious cooked with little boiled broccoli and chicken with red onions, sundried tomato and rosemary (the official herb of the week, because i purchased an entire packet and felt the need to eat as much as possible to get good value!) - a tasty, simple evening meal on holiday.

♥ variations on a theme - chicken with broad beans, red onion, rosemary, sun-dried tomato and sweet potato. yum!

♥ our local food store - tiny, but still having several options for dairy free milk, including my favourite organic coconut milk. amazing! plus, the old guy who ran the store was so nice, he'd let me touch and taste the fruit and veg, and gave me a good price on everything.

♥ eating a fresh local orange in the most beautiful square in the city - a perfect holiday moment.

♥ pear tart with a cisk lager - a brilliant afternoon in sunny Gozo, and a great end to the holiday. i've discovered a taste for beer that i have matured into in the last few months - plus, as my brilliant boyfriend wasn't there to have one, i felt i needed to try the local delicacy so i could explain what it was like :)

so that's Gozo for you - i highly rate it on list of destinations, and i think a family holiday will be booked out there again in the spring... we'll wait and see. i'd certainly love to go back - i came home so rested and relaxed, and i swear i could feel the vitamin d coursing through my blood stream from all that sunshine!

how are you all?

currently listening to: feeling this by blink 182