Adapted from the questionnaire used here. Anti-consumerist travel achievement: fully ditching make-up. This happened way before 2018, but I never blogged about it much. I had never used much of that stuff, but every little item means more space in the luggage and more toxic chemicals down the drain. Using nail polish requires a nail polish remover. Using mascara calls …
Mogul sets off to lecture young people, admits infrastructure flaws
Real estate mogul Frank Salt, whose family-owned business is one of the largest in this sector in Malta, is known for writing somewhat puzzling columns for the Times of Malta, the country’s largest, conservative-leaning newspaper. I won’t help the editors, who eagerly publish all this, in their clickbaiting efforts, but you can find out about Salt’s interpretation of things by …
Why do restaurants shoot themselves in the foot?
Food is increasingly glorified – as a travel, community, bonding and self-development experience. Many people of my generation and social class spend a huge portion of their monthly budgets on eating out rather than saving for purchases. Unsurprisingly, catering is a robust business even in countries that are still grappling with the impact of the economic crisis. Restaurants compete for …
Things I would take with me when moving countries (III): kitchen equipment
As we completed half of our studies, my best friend at the time and I set off to opposite ends of the European continent for our much-awaited exchange semester. We had both been informed that our dormitory rooms will only have the most basic furniture, and we chose very different ways to deal with it. My friend at the time …
Things I would take with me when moving countries (II): stationery
In the about an essential kit to take along when moving countries, I wrote about an essential wardrobe to go through most of the life situations in one’s new home. I want to make it clear that all of the countries I’ve lived in had plenty of shops for various budgets, but whenever I can, I try to avoid a …
Charity or rights? New survey on helping poor countries
I’ve been unpacking the results of the recently released Eurobarometer survey with a focus on Malta lately. It is full of interesting trends, which are likely to translate into policy decisions about development aid. These are the most interesting findings: Respondents who experience the most difficulty in paying bills are generally less positive about development aid issues and the least …
Transport in Malta – problems and solutions
I recently had a story published in the Equal Times – one of my favourite publications to work with. As always, it was a demanding process, and I took a long time to work on it. As a result, I collected by far more stories than I could use in the article. Since then, a pedelec rental scheme has been …
Things I would take with me for moving countries (I)
The headache of packing a huge suitcase before the trip. The compulsory journey to Ikea in a new location. The equations and calculations – how many clothes, how many decorative items, if any, how many things for daily life… I certainly don’t miss any of those. These were my chores of moving to a new country, and in quite a …
Unpublished stories: Archaeologist of corruption assassinated in Malta
Shortly after the murder of Daphne Caruana Galizia, I had my pitch accepted by the Equal Times, which turned into an article about the murder and DCG’s place in the society. As Malta marks half a year since her death, below I’m posting an edited version of the bits I prepared while doing research on her work last year but …
Drawing on mini canvas
I bought a few mini canvases from Nanu Nana on my last trip to Germany. I love using them outdoors in Malta. #Pleinair #painting with @outdoor_artists at #sananton gardens, thanks to @clive_angelo_gerada_artist & co. #minicanvas by @mein_nanunana #miniatureart #minipainting #minipics #Malta #3d #perpective #paintingsofinstagram A post shared by Daiva Repeckaite (@daivarep) on Feb 24, 2018 at 12:34pm PST In San …