The shop across the way

I feel like I need to add something about the guys in the shop across the way. When I said that they act like they own the place, I didn’t really explain that their presence in the Square gives them that ownership. They are there from about 7am until midnight each day, taking their “siesta” from about 1 until 4 or 5. After they watch their soap opera at 1, they might go home, but often they spend a large part of their break over at Grapes Wine Bar just across the way, or sitting on the steps at St. George’s Church, smoking and laughing. Last weekend some other people ran the shop and yet they still spent a bulk of their weekend in the Square. In this way, they are located there about 80% of the day, every day, and so it’s understandable that they would “act like they own the place.”

There are a handful of businesses in the square - Beaver Fashions I have of course mentioned, a “Fine” Food Shop, The Liquer Store, Organika, Grapes and Wine, a cell phone accessory store, and Ta Nisju (a clothing store) all share the same space. But Grapes and Wine and the Café across the street (which has no name) are the only ones with seats and presence IN the square itself as opposed to the other shops that you must venture into for access. In this way, the shop across the street stands in contrasts to Grapes and Wine by virtue of the fact that they do not cater to tourists the same way. They start to “shoo” out customers so they can take their break, despite it being an area tourists frequent no matter the time. GW stays open. They are loud and boisterous and play their “club” music at volumes that are unnecessary for the resonance of the space. GW does not. Unlike most of the “tourist” cafes, they don’t wear uniform shirts but wear whatever they want. Yesterday one wore a shirt that said “God is a DJ.” Today he sports a Jimi Hendrix shirt and camo shorts. GW wears yellow uniform shirts and black pants. They clean (somewhat begrudgingly) the space of their store yet they litter away from that space, dropping cigarette wrappers on the church steps while they yell and mock the bells as they chime yet sitting there as if they own that space too.

They are friendly enough with each other and seem to have a lot of acquaintances that drop by throughout the day but they don’t go out of their way to be friendly to tourists, never taking their order proactively or making them comfortable in their space. Sometimes I think they purposely try to make people uncomfortable to claim further ownership - they just passed under my balcony on their way for their break and I heard one of them say, in English, “Nice Ass” about one of the people passing by. He even repeated it louder for his friends to joke and laugh about. These guys rarely speak in English so this comment was intentional in a space where English is the shared language. It guaranteed him that everyone in listening range would hear his claim. Juxtaposed from the people and space of GW across the way who have done quite a bit to their location to be inviting - shady plants, candles, more accommodating hours, all politeness and civility…it makes a statement that these guys don’t care.

Although, that’s being naïve and assuming that the people at GW DO care, when in fact they may not. It’s not a family store in the same sense. They have more employees and can be open longer hours. Because they have more employees they need more money which means they stay open longer. They could feel exactly the same way about tourists but as they are the bread and butter of their operation they do more to make them comfortable and happy. The guys across the way tend to serve primarily locals and the wandering tourist who doesn’t know any better. And when they serve locals, it is in keeping with the public space of Malta that those locals are primarily men. Last night around 9 p.m. there were 19 local men gathered around and in that café watching TV and talking. It wasn’t until 11 that a younger, mixed gender, local crowd came out. Perhaps waiting for the guys to close so they could go with them to Club Paradiso or La Grotta.

I take great interest in watching them. Partially because they are right in my viewing range, partially because they are so noisy that they practically demand the attention, and partially because I know that they have noticed me too. I’ve encroached on their turf, coming and going with the regularity of a local but the look of a tourist. I am in an area where everyone seems to know everyone else…I figure it’s only a matter of time before our paths cross and they want to know what my deal is.