Wednesday, February 10, 2010

Malta, Malta, Malta

It's still the first day off the cruise ship and we're still in Malta and even though we never left the city limits of Valletta, we saw some fabulous sites. Valletta is a peninsula and once you leave the cruise ship you can walk almost completely around the city keeping the water to your right and then take most any street on your left into the city. There you'll find quaint shops along tight streets where almost every door leads to a shop or home. Street artists abound with gorgeous sites to sketch and paint like this one of a flower cart. We actually found this as we threw caution to the wind and ambled along basically lost for most of the day. The city is hilly so all you have to do is reach the top of the hill on the street you are on, get your bearings and head wherever your heart desires. Stop and have a gelatto or snack and continue enjoying your stroll.
And speaking of artists, when I returned home I painted this piece from a photo I had of a tobacco shop that was literally as wide as its' front door. Shops were everywhere like this. The painting is titled "Tobaconnist" and will be in my April 2010 one man show in Memphis, Tenn. It's in oil and it's about 24 X 30 on a gallery wrapped canvas. Check out my website at jmcroy.com for into about the show.

Street artists, flower shops, quaint streets and homes. This was just a taste of the Europe that was to come but here are some pictures of things you might be surprised to find on your first trip to Europe.


The world's smallest police cars. Well, maynot the in the whole world but I'd never seen any so small.



And with such narrow roads, where are all the quick stop gas stations like in the good ole U S of A? Well, here they are, like all the other shops, they fit into narrow buildings and service the cars just like any old gas station except the building was probably built in the 1500's.





And you're not going to believe this sign. Ready for lunch?